Researchers reveal rosemary extract in viral skincare trend is worth the hype
Penn students and dermatologists are determined to find how rosemary and rosemary extract can repair damaged skin without leaving scars.
2 min. read
The social media trend touting rosemary and rosemary extract as part of skincare routines is now backed by science. A compound found in rosemary leaves may significantly improve the healing of skin wounds and reduce scarring, according to new research published in JCI Insight from the Perelman School of Medicine.
“Many skin injuries end in scars, and in some people, it can lead to long-term cosmetic and even functional issues,” says senior author Thomas Leung,an associate professor of dermatology at Penn Medicine. “Our findings suggest that rosemary extract, and specifically the antioxidant, carnosic acid, can shift the healing process from scarring to healthy skin regeneration. We don’t have proven ways to consistently do that in humans.”
The inspiration for this study stemmed from an unusual place: TikTok and Instagram. After seeing beauty influencers and other social-media users touting the skin-healing benefits of homemade rosemary extract serums and products with rosemary, Penn undergraduate student Jiayi Pang and Penn Ph.D. candidate Emmanuel Rapp Reyes turned to Leung for expertise. Then, they did what all good scientists do: they went to the lab and ran their own tests.
“We hypothesized there was likely something real behind the hype because rosemary contains many antioxidants,” says Pang, co-lead author of the study, who has been working on the rosemary extract experiments since the fall of 2023. “But we knew in order to really uncover its potential, we needed to prove its healing properties and uncover how exactly it was facilitating healing.”
The researchers made cream with carnosic acid, a naturally occurring antioxidant mostly existing in rosemary, to accelerate wound closure and restore hair follicles, oil glands, and cartilage. The team found that a particular nerve sensor in the skin previously identified as essential to scarless healing, TRPA1, was critical for stimulating the healing in this instance as well. “We also identified other herbs, such as thyme and oregano, that may activate TRPA1. But rosemary stood out for its potency and safety,” says Rapp Reyes, co-lead author of the study. “Other natural ingredients, such as mustard oil, or the topical medication imiquimod are known to also stimulate the TRPA1 receptor, but unlike rosemary, those can cause irritation and inflammation.”
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