## 3 Results  
In total, 40 female volunteers, with an average age of 45.28 \(\pm\) 3.95 years, participated in this study. To evaluate the effects of the tested formulations, key skin parameters--including facial skin hydration, transepidermal water loss (TEWL), erythema index (EI), melanin index (MI), and skin pH--were measured before and after the six-week application period using the Courage & Khazaka MPA-9 device. In addition, the Nati Skin Analyzer was employed to assess deeper dermatological features such as skin structure integrity, wrinkle depth, vascular lesions, and pigmentation irregularities. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c} \hline \hline
**Colour** & **Skin** & **Wrinkle** & **Vascular** & **Skin** \\
**Spectrum** & **Texture** & **Depth (mm)** & **Lesions (mm2)** & **Discolorations (\%)** \\ \hline Green & 0–8 & 0–0.05 & 0–2 & 0–10 \\ excellent & & small, shallow & well-vascularised skin & Within the correct amount and distribution of melanin in the skin & \\ Yellow & 8–10 & 0.06–0.1 & 2.01–10 & 11–55 \\ good & & medium & poorly vascularised skin & Epidermal hyperpigmentation (yellow, yellow-brown) \\ Red & \textgreater{}10 & 0.11–2.7 & \textgreater{}10 & 56–100 \\ incorrect & & deep & very poorly vascularised skin & Skin discolouration—greysh brown colour \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 1: Colour grading and its numerical values for skin texture and wrinkle depth measured using the Nati Skin Analyzer. While both formulations led to a significant increase in skin hydration, the cream with _K. elatine_ demonstrated a more pronounced effect, with values rising from 40.36 to 63.00 AU (_p_ < 0.001). Healthy skin is considered sufficiently moisturised when the probe shows > 40 AU in normal room conditions (20 \({}^{\circ}\)C and 40-60% air humidity) [33]. In comparison, the placebo group showed a smaller increase (47.81 to 57.68 AU, \(p\) = 0.001). Although the between-group difference was not statistically significant (_p_ = 0.191), the results indicated a clear trend favouring the hydrating potential of the _K. elatine_ extract (Table 2). The group treated with a cream with _K. elatine_ extract showed a significant reduction in TEWL, suggesting an improvement in skin barrier function. In contrast, the placebo group experienced a slight, non-significant increase in TEWL, indicating no measurable benefit. Although the between-group difference after treatment was not statistically significant (_p_ = 0.289), the results pointed toward a favourable effect of _K. elatine_ on epidermal integrity (Table 2). The Cohen's \(d\) effect size for the TEWL between the placebo and treated groups was 0.17, which meant that the mean differences between both groups were a relatively small effect. The slight but significant decrease in luminance observed in the _K. elatine_-treated group may suggest improved skin tone uniformity or reduced surface shine compared to the placebo (Table 2). The erythema index remained stable in the _K. elatine_-treated group, with no significant change observed (114.83 \(\rightarrow\) 113.68 AU, \(p\) = 0.812), whereas the placebo group experienced a significant increase in redness (255.22 \(\rightarrow\) 286.30 AU, \(p\) = 0.002). However, the between-group difference after treatment approached statistical significance (_p_ = 0.051). Furthermore, the relative change (%) between the placebo and the _K. elatine_-treated group was 1.59%. The results suggest that _K. elatine_ may help reduce or stabilise skin redness, indicating a potential anti-inflammatory effect (Table 2). The skin of volunteers applying a cream with _K. elatine_ extract showed a slight increase in melanin index from 276.58 to 295.40 AU (_p_ = 0.210), while no change was observed in the placebo group (127.43 \(\rightarrow\) 127.33 AU, \(p\) = 0.667), indicating a non-significant effect that requires further study to evaluate its impact on pigmentation (Table 2).