ABSTRACT
The advertisements for Renova®, the latest youth enhancer-that promises to dwarf in sales and fame Retin-A, its popular predecessor-are bold, no-nonsense, and attention-grabbing. Despite a flock of commercial imitators, Renova’s advertising as “the only prescription cream proven to treat fine wrinkles” carries the aura of scientific credibility.1 No expense has been spared to promote the “specially designed and patented water-in-oil emulsion.” Magazine and journal advertisements for the much discussed product are rarely limited to one page; three-page promotions have become standard. And dermatologists, a critical target of the advertising blitz, have been bombarded with generous five-page buys in Archives of Dermatology, a journal widely read in the profession.
