Ingredient glossary
Menthol
On your shelf ✓What Menthol does for your skin, who it suits, and what to watch for.
INCI: Menthol
In short: Menthol delivers cooling and counter irritant, suits most skin types, and the evidence behind it is moderate. One thing to know: clear it with your doctor if pregnant; introduce it gently.
- What it does
- Cooling, counter irritant
- Best for
- Most skin types
- Watch out
- Clear it with your doctor if pregnant; introduce it gently
- Evidence
- Moderate
- How long
- Straight away
The molecule
The Glow take
Nice to have, and nothing to overthink.
Menthol plays a quiet supporting role, rounding out a formula rather than being the reason you buy it.
— Maya
What it does
- cooling
- counter irritant
moderate evidenceStudies on menthol show it activates cold-sensitive receptors and can modestly reduce itch in some contexts yet is also documented to provoke stinging and erythema in rosacea and sensitive skin panels.
Who it's for, and who should skip it
Tends to suit
- oily
- normal
Approach with care
- very sensitive
- rosacea
- eczema
- compromised barrier
- Clogs poresLow
- Irritation riskModerate
How it fits each skin type
- DrySuits
- CombinationSuits
- OilySuits
- SensitiveTake care
Take extra care if any of these apply to you: rosacea, eczema, compromised barrier.
Where it fits in your routine
This one works on contact — there is nothing to wait for.
What that covers, and what it does not
Measured on: Cooling and counter-irritant / antipruritic sensation, subject-rated (VAS) on experimentally induced itch.
Menthol is a TRPM8 agonist: it binds cold receptors as soon as it partitions into the skin, so the cooling and the itch suppression that follows from it appear within minutes and fade as it evaporates - a named receptor mechanism, not an impression of freshness. Human itch-model work (menthol applied against histamine-induced itch) measures the effect during the session, not across weeks. Nothing else this row scores - the acne 3, the antimicrobial idea - has any timed human data, and menthol also stings compromised skin on the same immediate timescale.
TRPM8 cold-receptor pharmacology; human histamine-induced itch model work on l-menthol (Bromm et al., Neurosci Lett 1995) - PMID not asserted
Menthol, answered
Is Menthol safe during pregnancy?
Clear it with your doctor first. Menthol is flagged as use-with-caution during pregnancy and breastfeeding, so check with your doctor or midwife before adding it.
Who should avoid Menthol?
Approach Menthol with care if any of these apply to you: very sensitive, rosacea, eczema, and compromised barrier. Its irritation risk is moderate, so introduce it slowly and patch test first.
What concentration of Menthol actually works?
Its concentration is rarely printed on the label, so use the ingredient list as your clue: near the top third it is likely doing real work, near the bottom it is more of a sprinkle.
During pregnancy
Treat Menthol as a maybe rather than a yes for now. It is flagged as one to use with caution while pregnant or breastfeeding, so it is worth clearing before you carry on.
When in doubt, check with your doctor or midwife. They outrank any website, including this one.When it is worth booking →
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