Hibiscus' Anti-Aging and Skin-Firming Benefits Have Earned It the Nickname "Nature's Botox"

It is easy to get swept up looking for the latest and greatest skincare ingredients. While knowledge is power and knowing what polyglutamic acid is can only be a good thing, some of the most effective and praised ingredients have been right under your nose for years. Such is the case with hibiscus which Cynthia Franco, celebrity aesthetician, recently described to me as "nature's botox."

My conscious interaction with hibiscus has been pretty limited — sometimes my grandma will make me a cup of inflammation-battling hibiscus tea or I will come across the flower during a walk in a garden. But once Franco, whose clients include Salma Hayek, Lucy Boynton, Zoey Dutch, and more pointed it out to me, I started to see it in so many skincare products. She isn't the only person to give the flower this miraculous accolade, there's a colloquial expression used to describe it in the skincare world.

According to board-certified dermatologist Dr. Marina Peredo, MD, FAAD one of its most botox-like benefits is being a superb skin-firming ingredient. To break it down in a digestible way, understand that hibiscus is a vitamin C, alpha hydroxy acid (AHA), and antioxidant-packed ingredient according to Dr. Peredo.

Vitamin C, for its part, is a known complexion booster with collagen-boosting properties — but that is just the tip of the iceberg. The antioxidants anthocyanin, myricetin, and beta-carotene that are also found in hibiscus are an important part of the reason it has been dubbed "nature's botox," according to both Franco and Dr. Peredo. "Anthocyanins visibly boost elastin production and cell turnover," Franco tells InStyle explaining, "elastin is what gives the skin a supple, youthful appearance — it firms and blurs wrinkles." Myricetin and beta-carotene, on the other hand, "slow down the degradation of collagen," and reduce inflammation according to Dr. Peredo. The end result is bright, youthful, and firm skin. Incorporate "nature's botox" into your skincare regimen with the eight products below.