Aging can be unkind to our faces with unwanted lines, dullness, age spots, and texture. While retinol may be a skin care superstar for help looking younger, it also can be harsher for some skin types. However, retinol may have met its match with a new plant-based ingredient known as bakuchiol that could be the botanical answer to retinol.
Bakuchiol happens to be derived from the babchi plant, which plays prominently in Chinese and Ayurevedic medicine for its healing and regenerative power. Harnessing a special compound from the plant and seeds called terpenophenol is now finding its way in anti-aging skin care products. This new ingredient is being touted as effective due to its similarity to retinol.
Just like the retinol originating from vitamin A, bakuchiol has been showing considerable promise from researchers for supercharging cell turnover and collagen production that has been on the market a lot longer. Besides that same anti-aging assistance, bakuchiol has what I believe to be some amazing anti-inflammatory and antioxidants that also add to its appeal because it appears to be gentler to skin than retinol.
While retinol may help resurface the complexion and reduce the severity of lines and wrinkles, it can also cause redness, flaking and irritate the skin enough to sting. On the other hand, bakuchiol doesn’t seem to be as drastic in how it exfoliates to peel the skin, which may make it a better anti-aging solution for sensitive skins or those suffering from rosacea.
Unlike retinol that can break down in the sun, the components in bakuchiol will stay active as well. The way this ingredient handles premature aging from UV damage also may give it another plus over retinol.
As exciting as that prospect may be, this doesn’t mean that bakuchiol is perfect. According to one study, it may trigger redness when used over a longer time for those with rosacea. More research is yet called for, but this plant-based alternative to retinol is very promising, indeed, for the war on aging.
