Facial care routines have become the daily routine of many people, to the delight of dermatologists. As long as these are designed by professionals and specifically to meet the needs of each skin type, of course. They don’t have to be complicated, a couple of products are enough. And, from the age of 25, the most common thing is that they focus on delaying aging. For this reason, one of the star active ingredients is retinol, although it has a competitor: bakuchiol, a natural alternative that has the same advantages, but not its drawbacks.
Bakuchiol comes from the leaves and seeds of the Indian Babchi plant, which is among the ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine. What is done is to extract and purify this compound of natural origin in order to use it as an active ingredient in the composition of serums, creams or oils that are intended as anti-aging treatments.
One of the main properties of bakuchiol is its antioxidant power, as well as its ability to stimulate collagen synthesis in the skin. Therefore, it will be indicated for faces that want to delay the aging process and help improve both their firmness and elasticity, as explained by the Arbosana pharmaceutical team.
Bakuchiol also has corrective qualities, so it will be effective in unifying the tone of the face and giving it luminosity. It will also serve to achieve an improvement in skin texture.
Those faces prone to acne will also benefit thanks to its anti-inflammatory properties, since bakuchiol soothes the skin. And another advantage will be its antiseptic properties, ideal for oily skin.
The main difference between bakuchiol or retinoids, including the famous retinol, has to do with how different skin types react. While bakuchiol is suitable for all of them, including the most sensitive, this is not the case with retinol. Because it usually irritates the skin and requires a constant adaptation process. In addition, retinol is photosensitive, so you have to be especially careful with sunscreen and only apply it at night. In summer you have to be very careful with its use.
Bakuchiol has a less powerful chemical structure than retinol, so it does not require specific steps to prepare the skin and get used to it to tolerate it properly. Something that does happen with retinol, which will start at minimum concentrations and, little by little, increase its potency. For those skin that is not able to tolerate retinol, bakuchiol will become an ally.
