About GUAM: Italian Seaweed Anti-Cellulite Treatments Since 1986
GUAM Beauty: Italian marine anti-cellulite science since 1986
GUAM Beauty is the US home of GUAM, the seaweed body care brand made in Italy by Lacote S.r.l., a cosmetic laboratory founded in 1986 by Egidio Siena. For 40 years, GUAM has supplied spas, clinics and pharmacies across Europe with marine-based anti-cellulite treatments, and it is now available direct to US customers, shipping next day from California.
Every formula begins with Atlantic seaweed harvested each May off the coast of Brittany, France, and cold-ground to preserve its iodine, magnesium and calcium. In 2024, GUAM FIR Seaweed Mud became the subject of an independent study published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, in which 60 women had 81% fewer cellulite nodules on ultrasound after eight wraps in four weeks.
GUAM at a glance
| Brand | GUAM (in Italy: Fanghi d'Alga Guam) |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Lacote S.r.l., San Prospero (Modena), Italy |
| Founded | 1986, by Egidio Siena |
| Signature product | Seaweed mud body wraps for cellulite, made to the original 1986 recipe |
| Key ingredient | Atlantic brown seaweed (Laminaria digitata, Fucus vesiculosus), hand-harvested in Brittany each May |
| Core technologies | Far Infrared (FIR) with Black Tourmaline, Bioactivity Extract, Lipoactive Nanospheres, Emana FIR fabric |
| Clinical evidence | Independent 2024 study in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, plus university tests on FIR, leggings and creams |
| Product range | Body wraps, anti-cellulite and firming creams, draining treatments, leggings, scrubs and oils, Inthenso premium and maternity lines |
| US store | guambeauty.com, online only, ships from Redding, California. Also sold through official listings on Amazon and Walmart |
Our story in brief
In 1986, Egidio Siena arrived at the port of Brest in Brittany and saw fishing boats loaded with seaweed from the cold Atlantic seabed. Local families had dried and ground this seaweed for generations, using it for health and body care. He turned that seaweed flour into a mineral-rich body mud, enriched with plant extracts, and tested it on 36 women who followed a one-month course of 45-minute wraps on their thighs and buttocks: three to four wraps in the first week, then two to three a week, tapering off toward the end of the month. That mud became GUAM, and the recipe has not changed since. Read the full GUAM story.
The technologies behind GUAM
Seaweed mud and osmotic drainage
GUAM mud is saltier than the fluid in your tissue. Held on the skin under film for 45 minutes, it draws trapped water out through the skin by osmosis, which is why legs feel lighter after a single wrap. The Dren line adds escin and verbena to support small blood vessels.
Far Infrared (FIR)
Black Tourmaline crystals in GUAM FIR formulas absorb body heat and return it as Far Infrared Rays at 4-14 microns, which reach 2-3 cm into tissue and improve blood flow in cold, sluggish areas where cellulite forms.
Bioactivity Extract
A seaweed concentrate made by bio-liquefaction, with three times the antioxidant power of standard seaweed extract. It protects skin cells from free radical damage and is the core active in GUAM's age-control formulas.
Lipoactive Nanospheres
Microscopic capsules about 220 nanometres wide, made with Coccoloba uvifera extract, a plant rich in oligoproanthocyanidins (OPC). Used in the FangoGel line, they are designed to target fat cells and reduce the formation of new lipids and new fat cells.
Emana FIR fabric
Used in GUAM leggings. Mineral crystals built permanently into the yarn turn body heat into far infrared, while seaweed microcapsules woven into the fabric release actives through skin contact over several weeks.
Atlantic seaweed, harvested in May
GUAM seaweed is gathered by hand in Brittany each May, when its mineral content peaks, dried in the ocean wind and cold-ground so its minerals stay intact. See every active on our ingredients page.
Research and clinical testing
- 2024: independent clinical study, Journal of Cosmetic DermatologyPublished on 7 March 2024 by researchers from the Universities of Chieti-Pescara, Molise, Verona, and Modena and Reggio Emilia. Sixty women aged 32 to 71 used GUAM FIR Seaweed Mud for eight 45-minute wraps over four weeks. On average, hip circumference fell 3.8 cm, upper thigh 2.9 cm, cellulite nodules on ultrasound fell 81%, and skin elasticity rose 40%. No side effects were reported. Read the full study summary.
- Far Infrared heat testsResearch carried out with the Universities of Genoa, Pavia and Modena measured the warming effect of GUAM FIR formulas. Skin temperature rose by an average of 1.8-2.6°C within 15 minutes of application.
- GUAM leggings, tested against placeboA university clinical and instrumental study compared GUAM leggings with placebo leggings for the appearance of cellulite, leg and buttock contour, and skin tone.
- Night slimming mud cream, double-blind testA double-blind test by an Italian university institute evaluated the slimming effect of GUAM night mud cream on 25 women aged 18 to 65.
- Consumer surveys, 2007, 2010 and 2013Three independent GfK Eurisko surveys of Italian women who use anti-cellulite products ranked GUAM seaweed mud first for results, with 74% of users reporting less cellulite, smaller thigh measurements or firmer skin.
- EU research on natural preservativesLacote promoted and coordinated a European Community research project, NATURE, on natural preservatives produced from seaweed for use in cosmetics, with partners including the University of Pisa.
GUAM in the United States
GUAM Beauty is the official US store for GUAM. We sell online only, with no retail stores, and ship most orders within 24 hours from Redding, California. US orders over $120 ship free. You can also find GUAM through its official listings on Amazon and Walmart.
Shop GUAM seaweed body wraps, read our FAQ, or take the quiz to find your formula. Follow GUAM on Instagram and Facebook, or visit our Amazon store.
Contact GUAM Beauty: support@guambeauty.com | (213) 315-0200 | 1267 Willis St. STE 200, Redding, CA 96001