Have you heard of beta-glucan?
If you’re someone who reads ingredient labels, shops for clean beauty products, and wants your skincare to get you noticeable results, you know how it goes.
You’ve probably had that moment where you’re standing in the skincare aisle or staring at a shopping page asking: But does this really work?
At CV Skinlabs, we know you want clean beauty products with non-irritating ingredients and that you like to avoid all those hard-to-pronounce chemicals in your skin care. But we also know that you want natural ingredients backed by real results, and that’s why we chose beta-glucan as a key part of our healing formulas.
Although not as well-known as retinol or hyaluronic acid, beta-glucan offers equally impressive benefits, particularly for sensitive, stressed, or dry skin. In this post, we help you understand just what this ingredient is, where it comes from, and why it’s just what your skin needs.
What Is Beta-Glucan?
Beta-glucan is a naturally occurring polysaccharide (a type of sugar molecule) found in the cell walls of certain plants, fungi, yeasts, and grains. It appears naturally in sources like oats, barley, mushrooms, seaweed, and even baker’s yeast. (At CV Skinlabs, we use gluten-free oats in all our formulas.)
Depending on where you get your beta-glucan from, it may behave a little differently. Yeast-derived beta-glucan, for example, has been extensively studied for its wound-healing properties. For skincare products, it’s most often extracted from oats or mushrooms because these molecules are easily recognized and absorbed by the skin.
You may have heard that you can use oats to calm itchy or irritated skin. It’s actually the beta-glucan within the oats that does most of the work when it comes to repairing, rejuvenating, and calming the skin.
Initially, manufacturers identified beta-glucan solely with its immune-boosting effects. Later, though, they discovered its many benefits when applied topically to the skin.
Why We Chose Beta-Glucan for CV Skinlabs
Our mission at CV Skinlabs has always been to create safe, effective, nurturing skincare products that help compromised skin recover and become healthier and more youthful looking. We took a lot of time examining every ingredient, as we wanted to make sure that it would not only be safe for sensitive skin, but would help to make our products effective.
Beta-glucan aligns perfectly with our philosophy of supporting the skin’s natural healing processes rather than overwhelming them. It doesn’t mask problems or provide temporary fixes. It works at the cellular level to help strengthen, protect, and rejuvenate skin from the inside out.
What Does Beta-Glucan Do For Your Skin?
Below, we’ve listed some of the most potent benefits beta-glucan can have on your skin.
1. Deep Hydration (Even Better than Hyaluronic Acid)
Beta-glucan is a humectant, which means that it helps attract and bind water to your skin. Similar to hyaluronic acid, it helps retain moisture in the skin, making it less likely to dry out throughout the day.
Even better, because the ingredient is readily accepted by the skin, it can sink into the deeper layers, delivering moisture there while creating a protective film on the surface to trap moisture. If you’re dealing with tight, dry, or flaky skin, this ingredient can help restore a smoother, more dewy look.
2. Strengthens the Skin Barrier
The skin’s outer layer is its first line of defense. Over time, this layer can become compromised by pollution, over-exfoliation, weather, and aging. It may develop cracks and breaks that make it less able to hold onto moisture or protect the skin from outside invaders or irritants.
Beta-glucan helps repair and reinforce that barrier by stimulating the production of essential lipids (fats) and proteins that hold skin cells together. It helps the skin retain moisture and block out irritants, which leads to healthier, more resilient skin.
3. Soothes and Calms Sensitive Skin
Beta-glucan can help naturally reduce redness, inflammation, and discomfort. This is why it’s often used in formulas made for post-recovery or very delicate skin.
The ingredient interacts with immune cells in the skin to help tame the immune response. If your skin is red and irritated, for instance, due to environmental stress or the general wear and tear of life, beta-glucan can help keep it calm and comfortable.
4. Promotes Wound Healing and Skin Repair
You may not realize it, but your skin is constantly working to repair itself. Often, during the overnight hours, while you’re resting, it’s fixing all the problems it encountered during the day. Beta-glucan helps support this process by accelerating recovery from wounds, cuts, and burns, encouraging cell turnover and collagen production.
That means it’s perfect for anyone dealing with damaged skin, whether it’s caused by acne, cosmetic treatments, or chronic dryness. Particularly when applied at night, it provides the skin with the support it needs to regenerate more efficiently.
5. Boosts Collagen and Reduces Signs of Aging
Due to its ability to stimulate collagen and enhance skin repair, beta-glucan also helps smooth fine lines and improve skin elasticity. Used regularly, it can promote firmer, more youthful-looking skin. Because it helps maintain hydration deep in the skin at the same time, it naturally plumps fine lines and improves texture without the need for harsh anti-aging products.
6. Delivers Antioxidant Protection
Free radicals are unstable molecules from pollution, stress, inner metabolism, and sun exposure that can break down skin cells and speed up aging. Beta-glucan is actually a type of antioxidant, which means it helps neutralize these free radicals before they can wreak their damage.
It’s probably not an antioxidant you’ve heard of, but when combined with vitamin E, it helps defend your skin’s integrity and helps it stay strong and vibrant.
Nature + Science = Radiant Skin
At CV Skinlabs, we believe that nature often holds the keys to powerful healing, and that science helps us unlock those benefits. Beta-glucan is a perfect example of a natural ingredient backed by scientific research, delivering results you can see and feel.
It’s one of the reasons our customers tell us their skin feels better, looks healthier, and becomes more resilient after using our products.
Skincare shouldn’t be harsh. You deserve products that are clean, nurturing, and effective. Next time you scan an ingredient list, look for beta-glucan. We’ve included it in our CV Skinlabs trusted products, so you can feel confident knowing it’s working hard behind the scenes to bring you closer to radiant, beautiful skin.
Had you heard of beta-glucan before?