She Said Beauty – Inside Your Ingredient: Licorice Extract

It seems like every year there’s a new darling ingredient of the Skincare industry – acai berries, chia seeds, argan oil… Some are wonderfully effective and stick around for good, while others are little more than trends that fade quickly without any impact. This year’s popular addition, seen in all matter of skincare lines and brands, is the extract of Glycyrrhiza Glabra, commonly known as licorice root  – though it’s only new to us here in the western hemisphere, having been a staple of Eastern medicine for centuries, prized since ancient times for its broad range of health and beauty benefits.

The potent extract is made from the small, rough brown licorice root, which smells and tastes like the candy but shares little else with its sweet cousin. A brilliant inclusion to a skincare regime, licorice has a gentle brightening and soothing action. Used in cleansers, serums, moisturisers and spot treatments, it helps fade sun damage and hyper-pigmentation safely for all skin tones, while blocking melanin production to prevent more from forming. Skin is left brighter, clearer and hydrated. Full of potent antioxidants with powerful anti-inflammatory effect, licorice root extract is particularly soothing and effective for inflamed, red, and acne-prone skin, as well as tired, dull and dehydrated complexions. The root even contains a compound that works as a mild sunscreen, shielding from UVA/UVB rays, so that your newly bright and rejuvenated skin stays that way.

Want to try a little licorice flavour in your routine? Look for products that contain the extract (sometimes listed as Glycyrrhetinic acid) amongst the first half of the listed ingredients – this means that there’s an active amount in the formula, enough to really benefit your skin. The products listed below all use licorice as an active ingredient, and are a great way to try out the sweet treat for your skin.

Dull, splotchy, sun-damaged? Try the Alpha H Liquid Gold line, which fuses the power of licorice with glycolic acid for a glowing, exfoliated and brightened visage. Super by Perricone, First Aid Beauty and Jurlique also offer great, natural brightening lines that use licorice as an active ingredient.

Red, irritated, Rosacea-prone? Jurlique’s Herbal Recovery, Eucerin’s Anti-Redness and Murad’s Redness Therapy use licorice to soothe and protect inflamed and sensitive skin.

Breakouts, unbalanced, oily? Murad and Super by Perricone both offer acne-prone skin relief with lines that use the antiseptic, balancing and healing properties of licorice to gently help treat and prevent breakouts.

Won’t it be nice to feel a little less guilty next time you eat a jumbo sized bag of licorice laces in one sitting? Just tell yourself you’re doing it for your skin…….