Ingredient Library
Lotus Absolute
Nelumbo nucifera
Lotus absolute is a serene flower extract that hydrates and soothes while lending a soft, calming scent. Comforting, it suits dry and stressed skin.
A natural history
Few flowers are as beloved or as meaningful as the sacred lotus. Across Asia and the ancient world it has been revered for thousands of years as the very emblem of purity and grace, for it rises immaculate from muddy water, lifting a perfect, unstained bloom above the murk to open fresh each morning with the sun. Its serene beauty has filled art, temple, and poem from India to the Nile.
There is real science in its perfection. The lotus leaf is so exquisitely water repellent that raindrops bead up and roll away, carrying off every speck of dust, a self cleaning marvel botanists call the lotus effect. The same flower that symbolizes rising clean above the world turns out to be, quite literally, one of nature's most spotless, and its petals give a precious, calming floral extract.
What it does for your skin
Lotus flower is rich in antioxidant flavonoids. In laboratory study, a lotus flower extract showed antioxidant activity and calmed enzymes tied to skin aging, which its researchers linked to cosmetic potential.[1] Earlier work isolated several antioxidant flavonoids from the flower that scavenge free radicals.[2] In a formula lotus absolute is a soothing, antioxidant floral that helps stressed, dull skin look calm and refreshed. That soothing, antioxidant effect is documented in laboratory studies of its flavonoids.
References
[1] Tungmunnithum D, et al. Validation of an HPLC method for the separation and quantification of antioxidant and skin anti-aging flavonoids from Nelumbo nucifera stamen extract. Molecules. 2022;27(3):1102. doi:10.3390/molecules27031102
[2] Jung HA, et al. Antioxidant principles of Nelumbo nucifera stamens. Arch Pharm Res. 2003;26(4):279-285. doi:10.1007/BF02976956
Found in these formulas
Questions, answered
It is a soothing, antioxidant floral, rich in flavonoids, used to help stressed, dull skin look calm, refreshed, and serene.
It rises pure and unstained from muddy water and opens fresh each day, which made it a timeless symbol of purity, and its leaves are so water-repellent that dirt simply rolls away.