When does skincare stop being cosmetics and start becoming medicine?
It’s a question every skincare formulator should take seriously.
As a phyto skincare formulator, my job is to create products that cleanse, moisturise, protect, condition and support the normal function of healthy skin.
But there is an important boundary.
A cosmetic can be formulated with ingredients that have interesting biological properties. An ingredient might be soothing, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimicrobial or supportive of the skin barrier.
That doesn’t automatically mean the finished product is a medicine — or that I can legally claim it will treat a medical condition.
There’s a fundamental difference between saying:
“This cream helps moisturise and support the skin barrier.”
and:
“This cream treats eczema.”
The first is a cosmetic proposition.
The second potentially crosses into the territory of a medicinal claim.
And that distinction matters.
Conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, acne and rosacea can involve complex underlying pathology. Managing them may require diagnosis and treatment by an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
As formulators, we therefore need to understand not just what an ingredient can potentially do, but also what we can responsibly claim our finished product does.
This is where formulation becomes more than simply mixing ingredients together.
It involves understanding skin biology, ingredient functionality, safety, stability, substantiation, legislation and — importantly — the limits of our expertise.
For me, good skincare formulation isn’t about making the biggest claim possible.
It’s about making the most defensible claim possible.
Because supporting healthy skin is one thing.
Treating disease is another.
And knowing where that line sits is part of being a responsible formulator.
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