What Are the Peony Benefits for the Skin?

Botanical name Paeonia officinalis, the peony is a herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the family Paeoniaceae native to Central and Eastern Asia. It is slow growing and grows naturally in woods and meadows. Very famous in China for several centuries, this flower with multiple subspecies gives place to great events: flower shows and exhibitions follow one another throughout the country at the time of flowering, from May to July. Introduced in Europe at the end of the 18th century, it has become a very appreciated ornamental plant thanks to its numerous cultivars.

Peony in skincare is used as a cellular extract. Native peony cells are taken from certain parts of the plant. They are stimulated and processed in order to reconstitute the active ingredients. These are then multiplied using an ecological biotechnological process. In skincare, peony extract helps regulate the basic processes involved in hyperseborrhea.

It acts on a key enzyme in the epidermis to limit the overproduction of sebum. This enzyme is 5-alpha reductase, a protein that is responsible for the activity of testosterone, the hormone mainly involved in sebum production. As a reminder, in sebocytes, testosterone is transformed by the 5-alpha reductase enzyme into dihydrotestosterone (DHT). After several subsequent biochemical reactions, sebum is produced. Thus, hyperseborrhea is due either to an excessive secretion of androgen or to a high activity of 5-alpha reductase. By limiting the activity of the 5-alpha reductase, the native peony cells limit the overproduction of sebum and thus the appearance of imperfections linked to the obstruction of the pores.

Moreover, to avoid the desquamation of the epidermis on the surface, the peony cells reinforce the hydrous circuit and the retention of water in the epidermis. At the same time, they limit the release of interleukin-6 (IL-6), a mediator of inflammation, and substance P, a neuropeptide, which appear during sebum production.

Finally, native peony extract improves cellular respiration, which leads to the elimination of toxins.