The announcement caused a stir. Didier Raoult, who went from Covid-19 star to extremely controversial figure in the health sector, announced a few weeks ago that he had co-founded a cosmetics start-up: Magnifiscience.
In a post spread on Instagram, we see the “eminent” professor Didier Raoult alongside Nina Basri, the “founder of an innovative cosmetic laboratory.” A duo that offers cosmetics with anti-aging properties for sale. A day cream and a night cream are sold at 75 euros each for 60 ml.
In a video shared on his YouTube account two weeks ago, Didier Raoult justified his participation due to his work at the IHU in Marseille, where “he had already had relations with a cosmetology company for which he (worked) on acne (… ) try to understand the role of the microbiota in acne”.
This new activity comes at the right time for Didier Raoult who, as of February 1, will no longer be able to practice medicine.
The fervent defender of hydroxychloroquine during the Covid-19 crisis was sanctioned by the national disciplinary chamber of the College of Physicians for various transgressions of the public health code, including the promotion of said treatment without tangible and sufficient scientific data.
The response of the Order of Physicians
But can the “world-renowned researcher” legally dedicate himself to the production and study of cosmetic products, while being prohibited from practicing medicine for two years? The answer is not so simple.
Questioned by BFMTV.com about the possibility or not of Didier Raoult embarking on this matter despite his ban, the National Council of the Order of Physicians (Cnom) examined the issue. It seems that these two data are not incompatible, although there is one point of attention.
“Professor Raoult was sanctioned with disciplinary suspension from practicing for a period of two years starting on February 1, 2025. He will not be able to carry out any medical activity during this time because the appeal he filed with the Council of State is not suspensive. “, explains the Cnom before specifying:
“You cannot refer to your profession as a doctor” in your new activity.
A logic that is explained by the clear separation between medicine, pharmacy and cosmetics. This last sector meets very specific conditions. It can only be a product used “mainly or exclusively to clean, perfume, modify the appearance, protect or maintain these parts of the human body in good condition, or to correct body odors,” according to the page dedicated to the Ministry of the Economy.
“Unlike medicines, where we are curative, preventive or diagnostic, cosmetics have to do with appearance and are not medicines or care. This is how (Didier Raoult, editor’s note) can register in this space,” explains one source informed BFMTV.com. .
“It is part of cosmetics, not care, not medical activity,” adds this source. The company clearly indicates on its website that its activity is the “manufacturing of perfumes and perfumery articles and toiletries.”
Furthermore, following this same logic, Didier Raoult is also free to conduct pharmaceutical research. However, a much more regulated sector is needed, with more formal controls, a strict scientific and regulatory process until a pharmaceutical product hits the market.
Mentions of ambiguous legality?
Although cosmetics comply with fewer regulations, they must still respect a certain framework. And in particular, be careful not to deviate from the various indications placed on products for marketing purposes: health claims, environmental claims, lack of testing on animals, etc.
However, a mention on the startup’s website is, to say the least, ambiguous:
“Our formulas, based on rigorously tested active ingredients, are validated by biomedical research conducted in independent clinical expertise institutes, authorized by the ANSM,” reads the Magnifiscience website.
However, the National Medicines Safety Agency (ANSM) is no longer responsible for regulating cosmetics from January 1, 2024, as the agency confirmed again to BFMTV.com on January 15, 2025. This mission of Surveillance and control is now in the hands of the General Directorate of Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF). Asked about this matter, the two agencies did not respond to BFMTV.com.
Another mention surprises a good industry expert. “In the video where he explains his approach, he talks about molecules derived from stem cells that would have a cellular regeneration property. He presents it as something very innovative (…) placenta-based cosmetics, which are precisely in this idea of Stem cells, it’s something we were already studying in 1930!
Source: BFM TV
