REVIEW: NIOD Copper Amino Isolate Serum (CAIS)

 

Now that I have a backup of the NIOD Copper Amino Isolate Serum (CAIS), I can safely say that this serum has earned a permanent spot on my skincare shelf.

Two years ago, I had "invested" in a 30ml bottle of this pricey serum by Deciem's NIOD brand, which needs little introduction for those who are savvy with their skincare. In case you're new to Deciem, NIOD or CAIS, kindly Google. :)

Hailed as one of Deciem's superhero products, the NIOD CAIS has copper peptides which repair skin. If you want to read about the science bit of copper peptides, check out the Deciem website, They explain it well. Or you could Google and see what skincare experts say.

If I had to rename this serum, I would call it 'Repair and Restore'. And that is exactly what it does. It heals acne, fades away acne marks, restores radiance by evening out the skin tone, calms down redness, fades hyperpigmentation (but only slightly, in my experience). Name a skincare problem and this will take care of it. It does all this with the help of copper peptides, which stimulate collagen, the building blocks of our skin. Think of it this way, if you replace all the old, worn-out bricks in a wall with brand new ones, you get a shiny new wall, right? The CAIS rebuilds and restores skin in a similar manner.

NIOD explains this product in a similar fashion. This is what the brand says:

As a highly-focused effort to maintain healthy-looking skin, this pro-repair, pro-collagen serum offers a novel approach to target all signs of skin aging indirectly. This indirect approach departs from the traditional thinking of addressing visible aspects of skin aging individually and instead forms a foundation to respect skin health.

The high 2% concentration of GHK and GHK-Cu in CAIS2 targets signs of skin aging, including visible textural damage, uneven tone, visibly enlarged pores and a general lack of healthy radiance normally present in younger skin. In short, the skin will look healthier with continued visible improvements with continued use.

While I've seen great results with the first generation of CAIS (pictured above next to the 2:1) which had 1% direct GHK copper peptide, this second generation CAIS has 2% copper peptide, which gives 1% pro-repair copper peptide and 1% pro-collagen peptide. Obvs, I'm excited to use this version and will let you know how it goes.

Now, the Mr. does not use skincare (as is the case with most men on this planet) but this is one product he turns to, albeit grudgingly. He has seen it work on the one or two odd breakouts he'll have from time to time. His breakouts (and mine) are reduced drastically overnight, and I'm not exaggerating. I have seen his surprised expression the following morning, on noticing how fast CAIS had repaired and healed his breakouts.

Apart from taking care of breakouts and healing the skin, CAIS works on the skin in a slow but steady manner. Depending on how regular you are with using it, you would see it perfecting your skin on a gradual basis. Post regular use of CAIS, my skin is MSBB (My Skin But Better).

This should go on the skin, first thing after washing your face and pat-drying it. Don't bother with toner -- just put a few drops of this watery serum and move it around on your face. You don't even need to massage it in. It absorbs readily. It literally feels like you are applying water to your face. Post application, it doesn't feel like anything. I don't experience instant hydration as such but it's over time that you notice that your skin is behaving how it ideally should. Over time, it is naturally balanced, clearer and just overall, healthy.

Now, for the price tag! This stuff does not come cheap and I'd be broke if I were to use it daily, which I did initially with my 30ml bottle. Since then, I reserve this liquid gold for times when my skin is truly stressed out (I've put it on skin that turned red due to over-exfoliation and it managed to take down the redness immediately) or a breakout that is particularly nasty. At present, I'm quite happy with my skin so, I don't see the need of using CAIS on the daily.

If you're looking at minimising your skincare stash and/or routine, you should consider getting this serum, It's one product that does the work of five products combined. That said, it's not a must-have product either, if you're pretty happy with the state of your skin. Like I mentioned earlier, I reserve it only for dire occasions. I mean, if it weren't so damn expensive, I would bathe in this stuff.

That's it, folks! If you have any questions, do let me know. And do check out the NIOD/Deciem website to read more about this product. As always, do your research and then invest. Be a savvy shopper! :)