Why Gwyneth Paltrow’s a big fan of ‘vampire facialist’ Barbara Sturm
- Dermatologist Sturm, who also invented the concept of anti-ageing blood cream, is a pioneer of clean skin
- Sturm is against skin peels and retinol, preferring hydration and preventing inflammation
Skin doctor Barbara Sturm may be famous for her “vampire facial” but she’d rather be known for her scientific approach to natural-looking skin and the make-up free look embraced by celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow, one of her many high-profile fans.
Sturm, who is based in Düsseldorf, Germany, where she studied sports medicine, specialised in orthopaedics before developing an interest in dermatology.
Almost two decades ago, she came up with a discovery that led to that vampire facial and the even more popular “blood cream.”
“Together with other scientists I came up with a treatment where you take the body’s own proteins, from blood, and stimulate the cells to produce healing factors and anti-inflammatory proteins,” she explains when we meet her in Paris during fashion week. “You spin the blood, take out the red blood cells and inject it into the joints so it stops the process of inflammation and reduces the ageing process.”
She went on to develop a tailor-made cream that’s made by mixing a base concoction of her own making with the client’s blood: haute couture for the skin, if you will.