For years, I’ve been saying that “anti-aging” serums were junk.  I’ve read the white papers, I’ve tested the products, I’ve looked at the results…and I’ve said over and over that those bottles of hope were nothing more than modern snake-oil sold to a culture of women who have been taught to fear aging. I’ve gone so far as to file complaints with the FDA about a few of the more egregious and dangerous products.

As a product of our culture, I too am not looking forward to crepe skin, wrinkles and varicose veins. But I’m going to feel a whole lot better about being old if I haven’t thrown thousands of dollars away on products that have a negligible  chance of doing what they are purported to do.

However, I’m one voice in the wilderness, and who the heck listens to me anyway?  But now, the illustrious Consumer Reports agrees, and the May issue reports on this overpriced marketing scam.

Consumers are better off spending money on sunscreen or moisturizer, than anti-wrinkle facial serums according to the May issue of Consumer Reports. The publication, which is published by the Consumers Union, put nine face serums to the test and found only minor and inconsistent improvements among test subjects.

Almost all of the serums claimed to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles within six weeks or less, but the effectiveness of even the best products was limited and varied from subject to subject. Every serum tested produced a visual change in wrinkle length or depth for at least some test subjects, and did nothing for others. And when there were any wrinkle reductions, they were at best slight, and fell short of the miracles implied on the product labels.

The products tested ranged from $20 to $65 and are available at drugstores, department stores, and specialty beauty stores such as Sephora or online. This was the first time Consumer Reports tested serums specifically.

According to Consumer Reports, two serums— DermaSilk 5 Minute Face Lift and Neutrogena Ageless Intensives Deep Wrinkle— were rated as slightly more effective than the others. Interestingly, the serums with the best results received fewer positive comments from the testers than the others. Consumer Reports Health also found that the one serum with all-natural ingredients (no parabens or phthalates), Burt’s Bees Naturally Ageless Intensive Repairing, was the least effective at reducing wrinkles.

“Consumers should focus on getting back to the basics like moisturizing and shielding skin from the sun. Beyond that, if you want to try an over-the-counter anti-wrinkle product, realize that the results may be minimal if any. For more dramatic improvements, talk to a dermatologist about using a prescription retinoid like Renova, Retin-A, or their equivalent generics,” said Jamie Hirsh, associate editor, Consumer Reports Health.

Testing included 79 participants, 67 of them women, between the ages of 40 and 65. Testers used one serum on each side of their face for six weeks, longer than the time their manufacturers claim it takes for the products to visibly reduce wrinkles, according to the company. Trained sensory panelists then analyzed high-resolution images of the testers’ faces before using the serums, 20 minutes after the first applications, and after six weeks of use.