Is Centella Overhyped or Underrated? I Dug Into the Research So You Don’t Have To

Hi everyone,

This is my 3rd post about ingredients (snail mucin & PDRN linked at the bottom) and the next request is up: centella asiatica! For context, I worked in analytics at a healthcare company, piecing together information to help people make decisions. Now, I'm putting together 360 summaries on asian skincare ingredients, because I was looking for products & frustrated that this didn’t already exist!

Have you all tried centella? What was your experience? Favorite / least favorite products? Other ingredients you love more for soothing & calming?

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What does Centella Asiatica claim to do?

Centella Asiatica is a plant, with its main active compounds being asiaticoside, asiatic acid, madecassic acid, and madecassoside (Note your skincare might include all or some of these). It claims to:

• Barrier repair
• Soothe inflammation & redness
• Support hydration
• Support wound healing & regeneration
• Provide environmental / antioxidant protection

How likely is it that it will work?

• A Trusted Go-To: 8.0 (of 10): A reliable go-to for many
  • Clinical Evidence: There are several, randomized, human studies that have shown consistent effectiveness for wound healing, rosacea, and barrier repair with topical centella. They are small trials (n=~30-100), but experts do support centella use for its soothing properties.
  • AB Community: The feedback is positive from the community, loving it for soothing, barrier repair, and use alongside strong actives. The biggest critiques are that it’s not always effective or has noticeable effects on its own.
  • \New* Traditional Use**:* Centella has been used topically for centuries in traditional eastern medicine for burns, wounds, eczema, inflammation, and generally soothing irritated skin. 

What's the risk that this will irritate my skin?

• Skin Safe (2 out of 10): Really well tolerated even by the most sensitive skin types. There are very rare allergic reactions.

Who should consider using it and passing on it?

• Most loved by: It’s loved by acne-prone, sensitive skin, or barrier-damaged folks. It’s also loved by users of strong actives (i.e. retinol), to mitigate side effects.
• May not be loved by: Very difficult to find a specific skin type here, but people who have oily / breakout-prone skin have said that they look for lighter formulations.

What are some of the most highly purchased & reviewed products?

1. SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Ampoule
2. SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Hyalu-Cica Sun Serum
3. Purito Centella Serum
4. iUNIK Centella Calming Gel Cream
5. Dr. Jart+ Cicapair

So what?

• Centella is a trusted ingredient that can help soothe, heal, and calm skin and is supported by the trifecta (clinical use, traditional use, the community). A great use is pairing it with your stronger actives to help manage side effects.
• If you'd like to incorporate it, here's some tips:
  • Look for centella extract, madecassoside, asiaticoside at the top of the ingredients list for the products you choose.
  • Pairing with ceramides (barrier repair), panthenol (for calming), or niacinamide (for pigmentation) can be beneficial

If you’ve been following along, I did change the layout a bit to simplify it even further. If you have feedback on this or other ingredients you’d like to learn about, let me know!

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Past Ingredient Summaries: PDRN (https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/comments/1l86p6e/research\_on\_if\_you\_should\_use\_pdrn\_creams\_serums/); Snail Mucin (https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/comments/1k9oqqq/research_on_whether_you_should_use_snail_mucin/)

Sources: Clinical evidence (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11510310/#sec4-pharmaceutics-16-01252; https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5340444/; https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4852572/; https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6166374/; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1468-2494.2008.00440.x; https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38831627/; https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34214362/; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcmm.17635); Community score (r/asianbeauty; hwahae, r/skincareaddiction); TAM (WebMD; https://www.researchgate.net/publication/370771410_Wound_healing_activity_of_Centella_Asiatica) 

Definitions Guide: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1vFQ4l0mx1Ey9433MlNs6INx4TQc2qmwzjFxA4sPLN4E/edit?usp=sharing