Nearly day-after-day, I scroll by Olive Younger’s Korean web site prefer it’s TikTok. I’m at all times on the hunt for rising Ok-beauty traits, and the best-selling merchandise and components on the South Korean mega-retailer are likely to affect magnificence cabinets right here within the US months later.
In February, I began noticing an onslaught of sky-blue formulation designed for delicate pores and skin hitting Olive Younger’s digital cabinets. All of them touted the identical ingredient: azulene. (You would possibly see it listed on product labels as guaiazulene, the stabilized type mostly utilized in skincare, says Kunal Malik, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in New York Metropolis.)
Intrigued, I reached out to Hee Jin Kim, MD, one half of a sister duo that runs PureenMD Pores and skin and Properly-Growing old Middle, with places in Fort Lee, New Jersey, and Seoul, to search out out whether or not azulene is poised to be Ok-beauty’s subsequent stylish ingredient primarily based on what she’s seeing in her South Korea workplace.
“Sure, very a lot so,” confirmed Dr. Kim. “Many Korean magnificence [content creators] have been actively reviewing azulene-containing merchandise just lately, significantly these centered on calming and post-procedure care.” One creator specifically, Inssi, is usually credited for sparking the rising recognition of azulene. She has posted a number of movies over the previous yr highlighting the ingredient’s skin-cooling and blemish-soothing powers.
I marveled at how shortly the merchandise visibly calmed her redness. Very similar to a canine that barks at each little noise and passerby, my pores and skin is reactive. The wind, temperature adjustments, and even a light-weight contact can set off redness and sensitivity. I’m additionally vulnerable to painful hormonal breakouts, so my pores and skin is the last word litmus take a look at for any new calming ingredient, and I instantly knew my routine wanted some azulene.
One drawback: Lots of Korea’s buzziest azulene formulation aren’t accessible simply but stateside, however there are just a few choices accessible to US customers. I obtained my arms on the Dr. Althea Aqua Marine Deep Serum. My pores and skin liked the cobalt-blue system a lot that I really useful it to my sister, whose pores and skin is much more reactive than mine. She went by a complete bottle in lower than a month as a result of she was reaching for it each morning, night time, and after figuring out.
Forward, specialists clarify precisely what azulene is and the way it works to appease pores and skin.
What’s azulene, and what are its advantages?
Azulene is a naturally occurring, deep-blue hydrocarbon mostly extracted from chamomile, says Y. Claire Chang, MD, a board-certified dermatologist primarily based in New York Metropolis. Although chamomile blooms with little white flowers and turns water golden when steeped as tea, it comprises this particular compound that tints skin-care merchandise various shades of blue, relying on how a lot is used within the formulation.
