Allium Sativum Garlic Bulb Extract

_Allium sativum_ (garlic) bulb extract is touted as a skin conditioning agent and is backed by research as an antifungal ingredient. Studies indicate it also has potential for mitigating environmental stressors thanks to its many antioxidant compounds. Adding to the anti-aging benefits, garlic extracts offer natural peptide compounds—although their benefits for skin are not comparable to more targeted/stabilized lab-engineered peptides. Worth noting, it’s possible that volatile compounds (primarily one known as allicin) of this naturally aromatic ingredient may be retained during processing, hence making it a potential skin irritant since allicin is a sulfur compound. Studies in this regard aren’t conclusive; in fact, there’s evidence that allicin is anti-inflammatory and can play a helpful role in skin healing, although that was with a high (30%) concentration. While researchers point out that garlic has a long history of use for medicinal purposes, including skin issues, at the time of this writing no formal Cosmetic Ingredient Review safety assessment has been performed for _Allium sativum_ (garlic) bulb extract. All in all, _Allium sativum_ (garlic) bulb extract appears to offer promise for skin in some regards, but we’d like to see more studies to confirm its non-irritancy and safety for use on skin.