LAUSR

As a response to the growing demand of consumers for active, natural ingredients of cosmetic preparations, manufacturers are looking for new raw materials, rich in compounds with high antioxidative activity. In this research an attempt were made to evaluate the content of phenolic compounds, L-ascorbic acid and the antioxidant potential (DPPH • , ABTS •+ method) of aqueous and aqueous-glycerine extracts from cherry ( Prunus avium L), and sweet cherry ( Prunus cerasus L.). The next stage of this work was the application of analysed extracts to cleaning preparations. The best antioxidant properties were demonstrated for the aqueous-glycerine extract of sweet cherry fruit, which also was exhibit the highest phenol and L-ascorbic acid content. After application of analysed extract aqueous-glycerine extract of sweet cherry fruit to the gel, it was showed high foam stability. The model formulations enriched with the aqueous extracts of cherries and sweet cherries had a higher foaming ability, compared to the formulations containing the aqueous-glycerine extracts. The addition of both cherry and sweet cherry fruit extracts to the formulations resulted in a decrease in viscosity, in comparison with the baseline sample. The highest decline in viscosity (15% in relation to the baseline sample) was noted for the aqueous extract of sweet cherry fruit. None of model formulations, containing analysed extracts, did not induce skin lesions in the epidermal patch tests. The results indicate that the extracts can be used as a valuable cosmetic raw material, which have strong antioxidant ability and at the same time did not adversely affecting the usable properties of the washing gel.