4 Benefits Of Panthenol (Vitamin B5) For Skin
Many people often see vitamin B5 serum when they choose skin care products, but vitamin B5 cannot be found in the ingredient list of the product. Because vitamin B5 will usually use a new name in the ingredient list, you can take a closer look at the ingredient list. One of the ingredients called panthenol or calcium pantothenate is vitamin B5.
Panthenol is an alcohol derivative of pantothenic acid, which is widely used in various fields from insomnia to dandruff and is already present in a variety of skin care products and shampoos.
For sensitive skin that needs moisturizing and repairing, you can choose a serum containing panthenol to repair damaged skin.
Vitamin B5 is also called pantothenic acid. The name pantothenic acid is derived from the Greek word “panto”, which means Everywhere, reflecting its widespread presence in food and its acidic characteristics.
The lack of pantothenic acid in the human body can cause symptoms such as rapid heartbeat, fatigue, nausea, and insomnia.
Lack of pantothenic acid in the skin will cause hyperkeratosis, roughness, desquamation, and severe skin ulcers.
The value of vitamin B5 and vitamin B3 (niacinamide) is great skin care ingredients, but their uses are different.
However, vitamin B5 is not very stable and is not suitable for direct use in the formulation of skin care products. Formulators usually use its precursor—-Panthenol or Calcium Pantothenate.
This is why you can’t find vitamin B5 in the ingredient list, but the product name is B5. Strictly speaking, vitamin B5 is not equal to panthenol.
In this respect, vitamin B5 is very similar to squalene and vitamin C. They are both unstable ingredients and require certain treatments before they can be added to skin care products.
Squalene is unstable. Generally, squalene can be processed to obtain more stable squalane.
Vitamin C is unstable. Generally, vitamin C is processed to obtain more stable vitamin C derivatives, such as vitamin C glucoside.
Top 4 Benefits of Panthenol for Skin
Panthenol can participate in a series of biological reactions and exert biological activity. Its effects include healing wounds, highly moisturizing, relieving rough skin, and even increasing hair volume.
1. Permeable moisturizing function
Panthenol has a very good moisturizing ability. After using panthenol products, you can feel the skin’s moisturization almost immediately.
Panthenol is a small molecule humectant. Because of its small molecular weight, it can effectively penetrate the stratum corneum or hair, bring moisture to the stratum corneum, soften the skin, improve rough skin and desquamation, and play a role in water absorption and moisturizing.
Panthenol helps strengthen the skin’s barrier function and promotes hydration.
2. Gentle repair function
After the panthenol penetrates the skin, it is quickly converted into vitamin B5 (also called pantothenic acid), which begins to repair our skin.
Vitamin B5 can promote the metabolism of human protein, fat, and carbohydrates.
Vitamin B5 is also the raw material for the production of coenzyme A, and coenzyme A is an important material for energy production, that is, without coenzyme A, cells will not be reborn.
The skin’s absorption of panthenol increases the absorption of vitamin B5 in a disguised form, thereby promoting the production of coenzyme A. Coenzyme A stimulates the growth of skin cells to achieve the effect of skin repair.
We can simply understand it as: panthenol stimulates the growth of skin cells, accelerates epidermal renewal, and repairs damaged skin.
It is also very important that panthenol is very friendly to the skin. Ubiquinol does not have strong skin irritation like retinoic acid. Ubiquinol hardly causes any skin irritation and allergies. It is very suitable for sensitive skin.
In many cases, panthenol is used in combination with hyaluronic acid, glycerin, or niacinamide for better results.
3. Excellent anti-inflammatory function
In addition to moisturizing and repairing, panthenol also has certain anti-inflammatory, anti-itch, and skin-calming effects.
For damaged skin such as sensitive skin, acne-prone skin, and skin caused by hormone abuse, their essence is caused by different degrees of inflammation in the skin and damage to the skin barrier. The anti-inflammatory and soothing effects of panthenol, as well as the ability to promote the growth of epithelial cells and repair the skin, are excellent ingredients for repairing this damaged skin.
You can use daily skin care products containing panthenol, which is also very friendly to acne-prone skin.
In addition, panthenol has a certain degree of improvement effect on skin problems such as atopic dermatitis, contact dermatitis, ichthyosis, psoriasis, and sun erythema.
4. Excellent hair care function
Panthenol can also increase hair volume. By increasing the diameter of the hair, it makes the hair stronger, not easy to break, and makes the hair thicker, so that the overall hair volume appears to increase.
Panthenol can increase the diameter of the hair as a result of research conducted by Procter & Gamble. At that time, Procter & Gamble launched a hair care essence. Of course, it included not only panthenol but also caffeine and niacinamide, which played a synergistic role in hair care.
Because of this feature, panthenol is widely used in hair care and nail care products. Panthenol can effectively improve hydration, moisturize hair and improve nail flexibility.
Using an eye cream containing panthenol may make your eyelashes longer.
Does panthenol have any side effects on the skin?
When applied topically, panthenol is generally considered safe for most people and is well-tolerated. It’s known to have minimal side effects. However, as with any skincare product, there is a possibility of individual sensitivities or allergies, so it’s a good idea to do a patch test before using a new product containing panthenol on your face.
In rare cases, some individuals might experience mild irritation, redness, or itching when using products with panthenol. If you notice any adverse reactions, it’s recommended to discontinue use and consult with a dermatologist.
Overall, panthenol is considered a relatively gentle and safe ingredient for most people, and it can offer hydration and skin-barrier support. But remember, everyone’s skin is unique, so it’s important to pay attention to how your skin responds and adjust your skincare routine accordingly.
Conclusion
Panthenol is a derivative of vitamin B5. Only when panthenol enters the skin can it be converted into vitamin B5.
Panthenol has highly effective moisturizing, repairing, anti-inflammatory and hair care functions, and is very suitable for damaged skin.
Serum containing panthenol can be used as a repair and moisturizing serum to be added to the daily skin care steps.