Mushrooms and Their Bioactive Ingredients as Natural Resources for Development of Innovative Skin Care Formulations...

Glowing skin is the aspiration of individuals especially women for enhancing the beauty and charm. Modern lifestyle attaches significant importance to skin care. Hence the cosmetic industry is paying immense attention to cosmetic product development. Cosmetic industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the world in recent years. Majority of cosmetics contain synthetics as well as natural compounds. The risk associated with synthetic chemicals in cosmetics was realized by consumers and this awareness led to the demand for natural products-based cosmetics. As a result, cosmetic industries are compelled to pay adequate attention to raw materials from natural sources. Traditionally plants have been exploited for cosmetic product formulations. One of the natural resources that has caught the attention of cosmetic industry in recent years is the mushrooms. They are known to have strong antioxidant, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and tyrosinase, hyaluronidase, collagenase, and elastase inhibitory properties. Because of these attributes they are considered as multifunctional cosmetic bioactive ingredients. They have excellent antioxidant, antiaging, skin whitening, antiwrinkle and moisturizing properties. Common mushrooms frequently used in cosmetic formulation are Lentinula edodes, Grifola frondosa, Ganoderma lucidum, Cordyceps sinensis, Tremella fuciformis, Agaricus bisporus, Pleurotus ostreatus, Inonotus obliquus, and Hericium erinaceus. Mushroom based cosmetic products have substantial world market especially in USA, China, UK, Korea and Japan. Mushroom cosmetic market presents promising opportunities for expansion because of the growing demands of aging solutions. Global demand is predicted to reach nearly 3.9 billion USD by 2032. This review outlines the importance of mushrooms and their bioactive ingredients for development of skin care formulations and products in the multibillion-dollar cosmetic industry.