Promoting a Healthy Skin Barrier with Upcycled Daikon Seed Extract

According to SPATE, US Google searches for ‘skin barrier’ have been growing at a steady pace over the past 2 years, and are expected to increase another 22% in the coming year. TikTok videos, blogs, articles, social media posts, and product advertisements have helped drive awareness of the skin barrier, and its importance, among consumers. 

While cosmetic scientists and other personal care / beauty industry professionals are well-versed in the skin barrier and its importance, this level of scientific information is new to most consumers. Articles from beauty magazines and medical experts warn of the risks of over-exfoliation and prescribe products and routines guaranteed to preserve and protect the skin. 

In response, searches for harsh exfoliants and chemical peels are declining while products featuring ingredients that help preserve and repair the skin barrier are seeing an uptick in interest. For example, US Google searches for “chemical peel” are forecasted to decline 22% in the coming 12 months, while searches for skin barrier-friendly terms such as “antioxidants” and “ceramides” have been increasing by double-digit percentages year-over-year (spate.nyc). This trend will continue, as self-educating consumers deepen their knowledge of personal care ingredients and seek to understand efficacy claims.   

Daikon Seed Extract (DSE), a lesser-known natural emollient from Natural Plant Products, has been gaining interest from the industry in recent months, with searches on the online materials database UL Prospector more than doubling in 2022 vs 2021. DSE is derived from the seeds of commercial daikon radish fields in Oregon’s lush Willamette Valley. Daikon is used as a rotational crop by family farms, no-till planted between crop cycles to help maintain soil health and reduce soil erosion.

Daikon is planted in the spring when rainfall is abundant, so requires little to no irrigation. Approximately 66% of the seeds used in the production of DSE are upcycled – seeds that are cracked or otherwise not suitable for agricultural use and which had previously ended up as a waste product. This natural and sustainable ingredient isn’t just better for the natural biome, it’s better for skin biomes, too. 

DSE has a novel chemistry, with a fatty acid composition that differs greatly from the C16 and C18 dominated fatty acid composition that typifies so many cosmetic grade botanicals. This unique ingredient is mechanically extracted and refined, and is composed of an atypical mixture of C18, C20, and C22 fatty acids, offering a new chemistry to formulators. 

Trans-Epidermal Water Loss (TEWL) is both a symptom and an outcome of a compromised skin barrier. In a study which compared Daikon Seed Extract and Meadowfoam Seed Oil with two well-known emollients used in skin care, DSE was shown to decrease TEWL in test subjects while also significantly increasing skin barrier function. 

This sustainable emollient is ideal for a wide range of personal care applications, from face and lip care to body and hair products. Daikon Seed Extract is odorless, extremely light-colored, and has good absorption with a delicate slip similar to esters and silicone-type emollients. Combine these qualities with being good for the macro and microbiomes and it’s no wonder Daikon Seed Extract is found in popular commercial products around the globe. 

Learn more about this skin barrier-supporting natural ingredient and request samples for your next formulation.