By Karolina Koval - special for InfoBRICS
- TCM cosmetics are often described as “beauty from within” or “holistic skincare”. How do you explain the mechanism of action of topical TCM ingredients (like Panax ginseng, Reishi mushroom, or Licorice root) to a Western-trained dermatologist or scientist?
- The essence of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) cosmetics lies in the principle of "medicine and food sharing the same origin," combined with external protection anQd internal nourishment. TCM emphasizes that"the effectiveness of external care is rooted in internal regulation; the condition of the skin originates from the internal organs."Following the logic of topical drug delivery, deep conditioning, and direct action on the root cause, this can be accurately interpreted through modern scientific language: medicinal and edible TCM ingredients such as Ganoderma lucidum (reishi mushroom), Glycyrrhiza (licorice), and Crocus sativus (saffron) possess both oral safety and topical efficacy. Their active compounds can penetrate the skin barrier, with clear modern mechanisms of action, including antioxidant effects, anti-inflammatory repair, improvement of skin microcirculation, and skin brightening.
Among these, saffron (Crocus sativus) serves as a core medicinal and edible ingredient. Our saffron facial mask is a typical application ofthisprinciple. Centered around saffron, it is developed through scientific extraction and a gentle formulation design, enabling topical delivery, deep nourishment, repair, brightening, soothing, and mild skin conditioning. Its relevant effects have been validated by modern pharmacological and clinical studies—not merely based on traditional experience, but on multi-target, multi-pathway regulation of skin homeostasis. It combines external skincare with root-level internal regulation, aligning with the core logic of Western dermatology regarding skin repair and homeostatic maintenance.
-There is a growing trend of 'Chimezi' (Chinese-style aesthetics) in beauty. How is modern technology (such as nano-encapsulation or fermentation) being used to enhance the bioavailability and stability of traditional herbal extracts without losing their therapeutic potency?
- Modern technologies such as nano-encapsulation, bio-fermentation, and supercritical fluid extraction serve as the core support for the internationalization and modernization of TCM-based cosmetics. These technologies preserve the active ingredients and traditional formulation principles of Chinese herbal medicine while preventing the loss of efficacy. They also reduce the molecular particle size of active compounds, thereby enhancing ingredient penetration efficiency and skin absorption. This effectively addresses the challenges of traditional herbal extracts, such as susceptibility to deactivation, poor stability, and slow absorption, enabling the efficient delivery of topical skin application and deep conditioning benefits.
Our saffron mask and TCM-based lipstick are both developed using these advanced technologies. Specifically, the TCM lipstick integrates the principles of TCM aromatherapy. It employs multi-category botanical extraction techniques for essential oils from Chinese herbal medicines, utilizing a low-temperature, closed-system, physically gradient distillation process to obtain high-purity natural essential oils. The formula is 100% natural with zero chemical additives—no synthetic fragrances, artificial aromatics, mineral oils, chemical pigments, or irritating preservatives. This achieves a synergy between aromatherapy and skincare benefits. While nourishing the lip barrier and improving microcirculation of the lips, it also provides gentle wellness aromatherapy effects through natural inhalation. It is safe even for those with sensitive lips.
These technologies enable the traditional Chinese philosophy of beauty and skincare to perfectly align with global modern cosmetics production standards and consumer demands, helping Chinese-style beauty products enter the international market.
- Safety is a primary concern for international consumers. What are the current standards for testing heavy metals, pesticides, and allergens in TCM cosmetic raw materials, and how have these standards evolved in the last decade?
- Current core testing standards:
1. Heavy Metals and Harmful Elements: In accordance with the Safety and Technical Standards for Cosmetics (2022 Edition), the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (2025 Edition), and ISO 16128 international standards, strict limits are set for harmful elements including lead, arsenic, mercury, cadmium, and antimony.
2. Pesticide Residues: Based on the pesticide residue limit specifications for Chinese medicinal materials and cosmetic ingredients, quantitative testing is conducted for over 300 types of pesticides, including organochlorines and organophosphates.
3. Allergens: Following the EU and Chinese cosmetic allergen control lists, qualitative and quantitative testing is performed on potential allergenic components derived from Chinese herbs. Strict limits are enforced, fully complying with EU EC 1223 and FDA cosmetic regulations.
Evolution of standards over the past decade:
The scope of testing has been comprehensively expanded, limit requirements have become increasingly stringent, and detection technologies have undergone precision upgrades. Regulatory control has shifted from end-product spot checks to full-industry-chain traceability. Domestic standards have now been fully aligned with international norms, achieving mutual recognition of cross-border safety standards.
- BRICS nations are incredibly biodiverse. China has TCM, India has Ayurveda, Brazil has Amazonian ethnobotany, and South Africa has Indigenous Khoi/San botanical knowledge. Do you see opportunities for cross-pollination? For example, combining TCM principles with Brazilian Cerrado plants or Indian Ashwagandha?
- There are significant cross-border integration opportunities. The underlying philosophy of traditional plant-based skincare in BRICS countries shares common ground, all emphasizing natural botanicals and root-level nourishment, enabling complementary resources and mutual theoretical learning. Centered on the TCM principle of"medicine and food sharing the same origin,"and integrating characteristic medicinal plants from Brazil, India, and South Africa, this approach can expand the natural cosmetic ingredient system and create innovative products that combine Eastern beauty philosophy with the botanical advantages of multiple countries.
This can both extend the nourishing and repairing benefits of saffron masks and incorporate essential oils from various countries to enrich the application scenarios of TCM aromatherapy. It helps break the Western monopoly on skincare and opens up a new global track for traditional herbal cosmetics.
- How can BRICS nations collaborate to create a unified or mutually recognized standard for Traditional Herbal Cosmetics? Currently, regulatory frameworks vary wildly between Moscow, Beijing, New Delhi, and Brasília. What is the biggest hurdle to harmonization?
- BRICS countries can establish a transnational cosmetic standards cooperation alliance, starting by unifying core criteria for safety testing, raw material quality, and efficacy evaluation, promoting cross-border mutual recognition of testing reports and product certifications, advancing step-by-step towards standards integration, and jointly building a collaborative evidence-based evaluation system.
The biggest obstacles: significant differences in regulatory systems, legislative frameworks, and traditional medicine philosophies across countries; local industrial trade barriers; and incompatibility of existing standards, making rapid coordination and unification difficult.
-Supply chain resilience is a key topic for BRICS. How can we build a sustainable, ethical supply chain for rare TCM herbs that benefits local farmers in China while ensuring consistent quality for manufacturers in other BRICS countries?
- With safety compliance and a sustainable supply chain as the bottom line for the global expansion of TCM-based cosmetics, efforts should be made to promote standardized, ecological, and large-scale cultivation of Chinese medicinal herbs, establish a whole-chain quality control and blockchain traceability system, and strictly regulate the entire process from raw material cultivation and extraction to production.
Sign targeted pro-farmer procurement agreements to protect the income of local growers, and prevent the indiscriminate harvesting and overexploitation of wild medicinal herbs.
Establish a cross-border stable supply and sales channel among BRICS countries, strictly control raw material quality, and achieve multiple wins in ecological protection, increased income for farmers, and stability of the transnational supply chain, thereby laying a solid foundation for global expansion.
-In some markets, there is skepticism about alternative medicine. What evidence-based strategies have been most successful in gaining trust among skeptical consumers in Europe or North America, and how can BRICS nations learn from this?
- In European and American markets, the most successful evidence-based strategies mainly consist of three points: validating efficacy through modern pharmacology and clinical trials, disclosing comprehensive safety testing reports, and obtaining internationally recognized third-party certifications (such as EU EC and FDA), along with transparent disclosure of raw materials, formulations, and safety information. This is a robust approach that directly addresses consumer concerns, and BRICS countries can prioritize learning from this model.
But it must be emphasized: if foreign consumers don't even know what TCM is or what TCM can do, they will have no willingness to purchase in the first place. Therefore, we are simultaneously advancing the global popularization of TCM culture —entering 24 top business schools including Yale, reaching 140 universities across 57 countries, and publishing picture books on the"medicine and food homology"concept as well as bilingual (Chinese-English) editions of International Practice of TCM Engineering. This is not a departure from evidence-based strategies; rather, it removes market barriers at the cognitive level, allowing consumers to first understand TCM principles, and then trust TCM-based products. The dissemination of courses and books serves as the foundational effort to make TCM cosmetics"seen, understood, and chosen"overseas.
BRICS countries should adopt this complete pathway: in the short term, build trust through scientific evidence; in the long term, cultivate the market through cultural education. By pursuing these two tracks in parallel, traditional herbal cosmetics can truly achieve a global breakthrough.
-Some traditional TCM ingredients face sustainability challenges (e.g., overharvesting of wild herbs). What initiatives are underway to promote the cultivated, sustainable sourcing of key botanicals, and how can BRICS partners support these green initiatives?
- Domestically, comprehensive efforts have been made to protect endangered wild medicinal herbs and enforce harvesting bans. The promotion of GAP standardized artificial cultivation and bionic wild ecological planting of Chinese medicinal herbs has been vigorously advanced. Sustainable procurement guidelines have been improved, high-quality herb breeding technologies have been developed, and green, environmentally friendly production has been strictly enforced. These measures replace the use of wild resources at the source and protect the ecosystem.
BRICS countries can jointly formulate a convention on the ecological protection of medicinal plants, share ecological cultivation technologies, co-establish a sustainable raw material certification system, jointly combat illegal trade of wild medicinal herbs, set up a green industry fund, and work together to promote the green and sustainable development of traditional herbal cosmetics.
-With the rise of AI and personalized medicine, how do you envision the future of 'Personalized TCM Skincare'? Could we soon see apps that diagnose a user’s 'TCM skin constitution' and recommend custom-formulated herbal serums?
- AI technology will usher in a new era of precision customization and personalized formulas for TCM-based cosmetics. Based on the TCM theory of nine constitutions for pattern differentiation, and powered by AI-driven intelligent constitution identification technology, it can accurately determine a user's body constitution as well as skin and lip conditions, enabling the customization of personalized formulations.
We have already launched related innovative products: a customized herbal lipstick based on TCM aromatherapy, featuring a"nine constitutions, nine formulas"approach. It is integrated with Fudan University's intelligent robotic tongue diagnosis and constitution identification system. Tailored to different body constitutions—such as those with qi and blood stagnation or emotional depression—the lipstick provides personalized care formulas. Through natural inhalation, it delivers gentle wellness aromatherapy effects while nourishing the lips and improvinglip-related concerns.
Rapidly deploy AI-powered intelligent diagnostic tools to identify TCM-based skin and body constitution online, enabling precise customization of dedicated herbal skincare products. This allows traditional Eastern beauty wisdom to be realized in a quantifiable, scalable, and precision-driven manner.
- What is one underrated TCM herb or principle that you believe will become a major global trend in the next 5 years, and why?
- The core TCM principles of"medicine and food sharing the same origin "and" external protection with internal nourishment"will become a mainstream global trend.
This is the core advantage that distinguishes TCM-based cosmetics from ordinary skincare products. Chinese medicinal ingredients possess both oral safety and topical skincare benefits, aligning with the global consumer demand for natural, safe, and root-level skin nourishment.
Our saffron mask and TCM aromatherapy lipstick are the core embodiments of this philosophy. They not only deliver skincare benefits but also integrate aromatherapy and gentle wellness concepts. They are compatible with modern technology, personalized customization, and Chinese aesthetics, aligning with the global cosmetics market's trends toward compliance, science, and healthy consumption. With strong universal appeal and distinctive competitive advantages, they can easily enter international markets and convey the core wisdom of Eastern beauty and skincare.
- What is BRICS for you?
- In today's era of deepening globalization, the holistic approach, pattern differentiation and treatment, and the philosophy of harmony between heaven and humanity advocated by traditional Chinese medicine are highly aligned with contemporary global health needs. TCM has become an important vehicle for promoting China's excellent traditional culture and fostering civilizational exchanges and mutual learning between China and other countries. As China's leading window to the outside world, Shanghai has always served as a hub for Sino-foreign cultural exchanges and a key base for the international development of TCM.
This year, we established the Professor Wang Miao Studio at Longhua Hospital, affiliated with Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (SHUTCM). SHUTCM is one of the first four TCM higher education institutions established in China after the founding of the People's Republic. It is jointly established by the Ministry of Education, the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and the Shanghai Municipal People's Government. The university is a "Double First-Class" discipline construction university and a high-level university prioritized for development in Shanghai. Longhua Hospital, one of SHUTCM's affiliated hospitals, ranks third among TCM hospitals nationwide and first among TCM hospitals in Shanghai. It is also among the first batch of public hospital international medical tourism pilot units in Shanghai.
This has not only established a professional platform for the international dissemination of TCM but also injected new momentum into telling China's story well and creating a "Shanghai brand" for TCM's global outreach. Furthermore, the Shanghai Overseas Returned Scholars Association, as a CPC-led organization of returned overseas Chinese scholars, will fully leverage its talent pool, overseas networks, and people-to-people diplomacy strengths to vigorously support the work of the studio. It will connect domestic and international resources to build multilingual communication channels and study tour exchange platforms, helping TCM culture reach overseas audiences more precisely and effectively.
In fact, before the official establishment of the studio, our team had already carried out numerous initiatives in promoting TCM culture overseas, accumulating comprehensive experience ranging from curriculum export, intangible cultural heritage cultural products, to people-to-people diplomacy. Building on this practical foundation, the BRICS cooperation mechanism further provides us with a strategic platform for global expansion. BRICS cooperation represents a core opportunity for TCM cosmetics to go global and for TCM culture to reach international markets.
We have always been driven by the coremission of "Live in a TCM Way" in promoting TCM culture globally, with "medicine and food sharing the same origin" as the industrial foundation, deeply integrating cultural dissemination, academic exchange, industry going global, and market expansion.
In terms of breakthroughs within the foreign affairs circle, in 2025 our team successfully carried out multiple people-to-people diplomacy and friendly exchange events. We presented gifts to consulate wives of various countries in Shanghai and high-profile international affairs dignitaries, creating TCM intangible cultural heritage (ICH) national gifts. On-site, we simultaneously offered hands-on TCM ICH craft experiences. With their Chinese aesthetic quality, herbal skincare benefits, and intangible cultural heritage depth, our products received unanimous praise from the international circle, significantly enhancing the recognition of Chinese aesthetics and TCM culture among high-end overseas audiences, creating a notable word-of-mouth demonstration effect.
Based on the above practices, the "Live in a TCM Way – Overseas Promotion Project of Traditional Chinese Medicine Culture" was awarded the Outstanding People-to-People Diplomacy Funded Project of 2025 by the Shanghai Overseas Returned Scholars Association.
In terms of overseas market and educational outreach, the team has regularly offered TCM culture courses to entrepreneurs from 24 top business schools across five continents and 110 universities in 57 countries. The team has also been invited to UCLA to deliver online course packages, live-streamed teaching sessions, and online special-topic lectures, reaching a broad audience of international elites and overseas youth.
The team organized a dedicated overseas cultural exchange event in Singapore, where high-quality TCM intangible cultural heritage (ICH) creative products officially entered mainstream circles in Singapore. The event received feature coverage from overseas authoritative media outlets such as Singapore's Capital 958 Chinese radio station. Related videos gained wide popularity on platforms like Facebook, Instagram (outlawed in Russia - InfoBRICS), and YouTube, with multiple videos exceeding ten thousand views. The overall online exposure and popularity of TCM culture overseas continued to rise, effectively enhancing the international visibility and public appeal of TCM cultural products. Meanwhile, the ICH aromatherapy lipstick, as a tangible cultural carrier, also received widespread recognition and praise from overseas friends during classroom demonstrations.
In terms of overseas cooperation channels, the team has fully established long-term international partnerships and built stable, normalized cooperation channels for official and people-to-people diplomacy. These channels enable targeted, compliant, and regular promotion of TCM intangible cultural heritage cosmetic and cultural creative products to key overseas regions, including Singapore, core countries in the Middle East, Türkiye along the Silk Road, and friendly partner countries in Africa.
Using lightweight, high-quality beauty and cultural creative products as a friendly bond, we build a bridge for non-governmental exchanges between China and foreign countries, expand the overseas high-end audience base for TCM intangible cultural heritage techniques, TCM aromatherapy culture, and Dunhuang Silk Road Eastern aesthetics, and steadily promote the globalization of TCM-based lifestyle wellness concepts and original Chinese aesthetics, thereby enhancing the international soft power of Chinese culture and the global influence of independent Chinese TCM brand IP.
As an external mentor at Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU), we previously led selected XJTLU student participants on a dedicated trip to Shanghai to visit SJTU Bookstore and Fenglin International. We also served as judges for the"New Force of Chinese Trend TCM"IP Development and Entrepreneurship Challenge held at XJTLU's International Business School. From TCM IP development to OPC full-industry-chain practice, we provided continuous mentorship throughout their journey, allowing the concept of taking TCM cultural and creative products global to take root in the practical experiences of young entrepreneurs.
The overseas expansion practices described above are fundamentally attributable to the complete "New Force of Chinese Trend TCM" IP development and full-industry-chain entrepreneurship model we have established. This model integrates offline TCM culture courses, intangible cultural heritage hands-on experiences, and cultural creative product exhibitions and sales, together with online course packages, live-streamed teaching, short video content operations, and commercial promotion, forming a complete entrepreneurial industry chain of "content production → IP development → curriculum export → product realization."
Through an integrated online-offline model that combines industry, academia, research, and application, this approach helps participants systematically master full-chain entrepreneurial skills, advancing TCM culture from mere dissemination to industrialization, branding, and internationalization. This enables the"Chinese trend TCM"to truly become a feasible, replicable, and sustainable global innovative force.
InfoBRICS
