Panthenol

A natural history

Panthenol is the skincare form of vitamin B5, or pantothenic acid, a nutrient whose very name tells a story: it comes from the Greek pantothen, meaning from everywhere, because the vitamin turns up in nearly every food in nature. Pantothenic acid itself is too unstable to use on skin, so formulas use panthenol, the steady provitamin that skin readily converts into the active vitamin.

Panthenol became a quiet staple of gentle skincare decades ago, anchoring the kind of products reached for when skin needs comfort: after-sun lotions, baby balms, and barrier creams. The very first panthenol ointment appeared around the 1940s and is still made today, a testament to how dependable this little molecule is.

What it does for your skin

Panthenol works as a humectant and a barrier helper. In a placebo-controlled study, topical panthenol improved the skin's hydration and reduced water loss through the skin, a sign of a better-supported barrier.^[1] A separate set of controlled studies on a panthenol emollient found the same: better moisturization and a more resilient surface over a few weeks.^[2] That gentle, hydrating comfort is why it suits dry and sensitive skin.

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