Skincare: Botanical Extracts

So what is the appeal of extracts? They're natural and have a long history of use behind them. Folk medicine was the only medicine for most of human history. We couldn't isolate chemicals, let alone understand them. I'm sure there was experimentation with extracts and people learned what helped (or at least didn't hurt). Some plants seem to have net positive chemical compositions when applied to human skin, promoting effects like wound healing or bacteria elimination.

I say 'net positive' because so many chemicals exist within an extract that there are bound to be some in there that are useless or down right irritating for some people (like fragrances). Dozens if not hundreds of chemicals can be found in a botanical extract and you don't know what exactly you are really getting. However, as long as the overall effect is beneficial for most people then the extract is much more likely to end up as a part of folk medicine. Yet, there is another concern: No two extracts are the same.

Different crops from different climates during different times of the year extracted using different methods will produce variable chemical compositions. Cosmetic formulators are concerned about this, and consumers should be too. Without a chemical analysis, you don't know what is in the extract and at what percentages. However, products simply claim the use of the extract with no information on their real composition.

For example, a high quality green tea extract would have a high percentage of (50-90%) polyphenols and a dark brown color with a distinct tea scent. The final product can have dyes or scents to simulate this while using a poor quality extract, making it even harder to tell.

Most products don't even bother trying to pretend though. They just 'fairy dust' the product. Translation: add a tiny amount that does nothing for the skin but does everything for the marketing team. They do this so they can call their product a distinct and appealing name like 'Green Tea Mist Toner with Centella Asiatica: A Natural Remedy for Hydrating and Soothing Your Skin'. I hate to break it to everyone, but if your skincare product 'full of extracts' isn't a bit brown or yellow looking, it probably just has some fairy dusting going on.

For many extracts, active chemicals have been isolated from them and refined. EGCG is the most common polyphenol from green tea. Centella Asiatica has four main biological actives which are asiaticoside, madecassoside, asiatic and madecassic acid. Using just the actives eliminates many of the problems that come with extracts. No more useless or irritating chemicals piggybacking off the success of their effective chemical cousins. Consumers know what they are getting. The product is consistent across batches. The product can also be more potent and effective.

I can think of only a few saving grace's for botanical extracts. There are some chemicals in extracts which we don't have a means of isolating yet. Or we haven't identified which component of the extract is producing the compelling results. You might miss out on some unsung hero chemical when you use just the identified, tried-and-true botanical actives. Right now we really don't know enough about how most chemicals we slather on our faces actually interact and work with the skin on a biological and chemical level. Just find what works for your skin and be a bit more skeptical of marketing based around extracts.