Bidens pilosa, and what we leave out

Named by Linnaeus in 1753. Overlooked by an industry chasing strength.

Bidens pilosa was formally named in 1753. There is a documented record of traditional topical use across Trinidad and Tobago, Africa, China, Cameroon, Brazil and Venezuela — for cuts, burns and skin problems. In the 1970s the UN Food and Agriculture Organization promoted its cultivation in Africa as "easy to grow, edible, palatable, and safe."

This is historical and ethnobotanical context. The FAO note concerns agricultural and food promotion, not cosmetic use. The traditional-use record is not a safety claim about this finished cosmetic, and the record of an aqueous leaf solution being used traditionally to bathe children is not a claim that this product is suitable for infants.

Why a plant, when the industry spent thirty years on potency

Conventional retinoids work by driving cell turnover, and irritation is not a side effect of that process — it is intrinsic to it. Faster turnover is the spending. Which is why "gentle retinol" is a contradiction rather than a formulation problem: you cannot dose your way out of a mechanism.

We use Bidens pilosa at 2% for retinol-like cosmetic benefit by a different route. Not a weaker retinol. A different thing. The number is on the front because you were always going to look for it.

We are not the first

MÁDARA and NIVEA both use Bidens pilosa. We are not claiming to have discovered anything. What we have done differently is state the dose openly and build the rest of the formula around not spending from your tolerance.

What we leave out, across the range

No retinoids. Not a lower dose. None.
No exfoliating acids. No AHAs, no BHAs, no PHAs.
No niacinamide in the Recovery Cream. It is a common personal sensitivity in this group and it is not load-bearing here.
Full INCI on every product page, above the marketing copy, where you will look for it.

If we ever change a formula

We will say so on the product page, keep the old INCI published alongside the new one for comparison, and email everyone who has bought it. Formulas changing silently underneath people is one of the specific things that got you here.

Nothing on this page is medical advice and none of it is a diagnosis. If your skin is broken, bleeding or infected, or if you are on a prescribed treatment, speak to a GP, pharmacist or your prescriber.