Obagi Products

About Obagi

“Obagi” is a line of skin care products that are best known for using multiple complementary products together in a system to treat skin care issues such as acne, sun spots and wrinkles.  Their first system and the one that made them famous is the Obagi Nu Derm System.

The reason we have Obagi in quotes above is because their brand name is used interchangeably to mean different things.

The name of the company that manufactures the products is Obagi Medical Products, Inc. and it is named after Dr. Zein Obagi MD a California based dermatologist who still maintains a private practice in Beverly Hills.

People also sometimes refer to the Nu Derm system as “Obagi” or use that word to refer to the brand or products in general.

This can be a little confusing and the overview of Obagi skin care products on this page is designed to give you some basic information and to help clear things up.

Obagi Products Overview

There are now ten Obagi systems and products in their product line (“systems” referring to treatments that combine products ).

Because the people refer to “Obagi” in such general terms it can be confusing for someone unfamiliar with their products to understand exactly which product someone is referring to (it’s confusing to us too sometimes!).

Below we put together below a brief overview of the current Obagi product line. Use it to read a quick synopsis about a product you may have heard about, or to browse through the list and see what treatments are available.

And check out the pages at right for more complete product information. On those pages you’ll find more detailed product descriptions that include user product application information, potential side effects, user reviews, expected results and more.

Obagi Nu Derm System

Nu Derm treats melasma (patches of uneven skin colors) and hyperpigmentation, areas of excessive pigmentation that are sometimes called “sun spots” or “age spots” or “liver spots”. It also has the added benefit of making skin tighter and reducing fine lines and wrinkles which gives you skin a more youthful appearance.

The Nu Derm system is comprised of  segments or steps to take your skin through the full process. The steps of Nu Derm are: Prepare, Improve, Stimulate and Protect. Additional steps can include Complement and As Prescribed.

The products within each step are designed to take the skin on a process that includes cleaning, pH balancing, treatment with skin lightening and tightening medicine (that causes increased up skin cell reproduction), exfoliation, more application of medicine, moisturizing and then protection with sunscreen (very important!).

Nu Derm is made up of more than 15 products, the exact number depends on skin type and if any supplemental products are added. The products are applied morning and night in the specified order. The bottle are labeled by order in which they’re used and there’s an instructional pamphlet included with each kit.

Nu Derm comes in two set ups, one for Normal to Oily Skin and the other for Normal to Dry skin types. See the Obagi Nu Derm page for more information.

Obagi Clear

Obagi Clear is actually a single product that’s part of Nu Derm and other systems. Although it’s supposed to be used with other treatments as part of a system many people want to use it alone because it contains a skin lightening ingredient called hydroquinone. Sometimes people refer to it as Obagi Clear 3 because there’s a 3 on the label which refers to the order in which it’s used in the Nu Derm system (that’s a hint: use it within Nu Derm!)

We devote an entire page to Obagi Clear that talks about how it works, what the side effects are, and how users felt about using it by itself versus as part of system. See our Obagi Clear page here.

Condition and Enhance System

Obagi Condition and Enhance is an interesting product because it’s designed to work in conjunction with cosmetic procedures. Obagi says it’s to, “improve and prolong the results of your cosmetic procedures “.

Condition and Enhance contains many of the same products as Nu Derm but there are not quite as many products and steps. Obagi Clear is also one of the products in the Condition and Enhance system. We don’t have a full review page for Condition and Enhance yet but we expect to soon and the link will be added here and on the main menu.

Condition and Enhance comes in two formulations – Surgical and Non Surgical depending on which type of procedure the patient is enhancing.

Obagi C Rx Systems

The idea behind Obagi C Rx is that vitamin C, as a powerful antioxidant, can repair and protect skin cells from harmful oxygen free radicals. A free radical is an atom with a positive ionic charge just looking for another atom to latch onto (like one in a skin cell), steal an electron, and damage in the process.

The system combines a strong form of vitamin C with hydroquinone (the powerful lightener also found in Obagi Clear) to reduce wrinkles by making skin collagen stronger. The hydroquinone also helps lighten and tighten the skin. Vitamin E is another ingredient in the Obagi C Rx system.

The process is similar to the other systems in that there is a cleansing phase, treatment, exfoliation, moisturizing and sun protection. Obagi C Rx comes in two formulations, one for Dry and one for Oily skin. See our Obagi C Rx Systems page for more information.

ELASTIderm Décolletage System

The décolletage area of the body consists of the upper chest and lower neck. While many Obagi products and other beauty treatments focus on the face, this area often in need of freckle and spot removal and wrinkle reduction as well.

This is especially true when improvements are made to the face and the condition of the neck and chest become more noticeable by comparison.

There are only two products in the Elastiderm Décolletage System: Wrinkle Reducing Lotion and Skin Lightening Complex. The Wrinkle Reducing Lotion uses minerals to strengthen skin’s collagen and increase tightness, and the Skin Lightening uses 4% hydroquinone to reduce pigmentation spots to create a more even skin tone.

Improving the skin on the neck and chest area while using Nu Derm or Condition and Enhance Systems helps create an even appearance in skin color and wrinkles as both face and chest improve simultaneously.

ELASTIderm Eye Products

The Obagi Elastiderm eye products are designed to lift the areas under and around the eyes by reducing fine lines and wrinkles near the eye sockets. These formulas contain minerals such as zinc and copper, natural ingredients to enhance the results and and a patent pending skin cell ingredient.

The Elastiderm Eye treatments comes in two different formulations, gel or cream. They both contain the same ingredients.

Elastidem Eye are one of the products that are put in the Complement category of the Nu Derm systems because they  treat the area around the eyes, which is too sensitive for most of the other products in Nu Derm.

Obagi ELASTILash Eyelash Solution

Elastilash is supposed to give the “appearance” (says Obagi) of making your eyelashes look longer and fuller. It’s applied once at night. But we have to confess we’re not sure how this product works or what it contains. The Obagi website is very vague and even Beautypedia doesn’t have the lowdown on it.

CLENZIderm M.D. Systems

Obagi CLENZIderm M.D. Systems is for treating acne. It is another Obagi system that has multiple products designed to work together to remove oil from the skin and treat current udner skin infections.

The exact products used and process vary depending on whether one’s skin is oily or dry, but in both versions there’s a patented formula of benzoyl peroxide designed to keep deeper into the skin to fight acne causing bacteria. See our Clenziderm page here.

Obagi Blue Peel

Blue Peel is an Obagi product that’s used in a spa, skin care clinic or doctor’s office. It’s a medium depth peel because it uses trichloroacetic acid (TCA) to take off the top few layers of skin to stimulate new skin growth. This has the effect of making skin look fresher and tighter as new cells replace old dead ones that had been on the surface prior to the peel.

The best explanation we’ve come across for why Blue Peel is blue is so that the esthetician applying it can use the color to better judge the amount being applied, either to make an even layer or to apply it more thickly in spots requiring stronger treatment.

Having a Blue Peel done involves significant recovery time and effects as the new, raw skin heals. We’re talking some pain, possible scabbing and rawness and redness. Some people day a few days off work even. Read our Obagi Blue Peel review here.

Blue Peel Radiance

OBagi Blue Peel Radiance is also an in office procedure but it is a light peel. Several peels can be done with only a few weeks between them to gradually gain additional effects with few side effects and pain than a Blue Peel.

Obagi Rosaclear

Rosaclear is the Obagi treatment system for rosacea. There are four products used to treat the symptoms of Rosacea, a cleanser, a gel containing the anibiotic metronidazole (used to reduce inflamation, not because rosacea involves a bacterial infection which it does not), a hydrating color corrector with natural ingredients and a high SPF sunscreen. See our Rosaclear page here.

UPDATE:

Obagi has added two new products recently, ELASTIderm Eye Complete Complex Serum to treat puffiness around the eyes, and Obagi Clenziderm for Oily skin. Read more about Obagi’s new products here.