Bakuchiol

Measured on: wrinkle surface area and hyperpigmentation on facial photography (the anti-ageing job this base scores).

The trial usually cited randomised 44 people to 0.5% bakuchiol twice daily or 0.5% retinol nightly, with high-resolution photography at 0, 4, 8 and 12 weeks. Both arms are active and there is no vehicle or placebo group, so the week-12 improvement cannot be separated from what a bland cream, regression and seasonal change would have delivered over the same period, and the interim visits are not reported as separating from anything either. What the design does license is a comparison against retinol - equal reduction in wrinkle surface area and hyperpigmentation, with less scaling and stinging - which is a tolerability and equivalence result, not a date. The 2014 paper from the ingredient's developers is mainly gene-expression and in-vitro work with a small clinical adjunct, and the later in-vivo work reports a fibronectin biomarker rising by 4 weeks rather than a change a user would see. No vehicle-controlled trial of topical bakuchiol with timed endpoints was located, and this base's own row carries no evidence sources. The one thing in its favour is dose: 0.5% is what consumer products actually contain.

Dhaliwal S, Rybak I, Ellis SR et al., 'Prospective, randomized, double-blind assessment of topical bakuchiol and retinol for facial photoageing', Br J Dermatol 2019;180(2):289-296, PMID:29947134 - verified against PubMed; two active arms, no vehicle arm, assessments at 0, 4, 8 and 12 weeks. Chaudhuri & Bojanowski, Int J Cosmet Sci 2014 (developer paper, largely gene-expression and in-vitro) and Bluemke et al., Int J Cosmet Sci 2022 (fibronectin biomarker at 4 weeks) described without a timing claim. No vehicle-controlled topical bakuchiol trial located.