Natural, organic ingredients are very popular components of beauty products these days. The latest trending ingredient in the skincare industry is dragon’s blood, which is said to have medicinal properties. Spoiler alert—it doesn’t actually come from dragons.
Dragon’s blood is a sap found in the Croton Lechleri tree in northwestern South America. The name derives from medieval encyclopedias that claimed the resin was really the blood of elephants and dragons that perished in battle. It is also said that witches used dragon’s blood as ink in spell writing.
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Medieval myths aside, the tree sap has been used as natural medicine in South America for years, as it is believed to have anti-inflammatory, wound-healing, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties. Dragon’s blood is also known to have a calming effect. When applied topically, it forms a protective layer on the skin and reduces redness and irritation.
The active ingredient is often combined with other similar healing ingredients to form anti-aging serums for the face and neck that improve loss of elasticity and prevent skin from sagging. Dragon’s blood can boost the effects of hydrating ingredients and lock moisture in, according to Fashionista. It is generally suitable for all skin types, but users with latex allergies may want to be cautious since the saps come from similar trees.
Dragon’s blood is used in several different types of beauty products beyond lotions and creams—it can also be found in plumping lip serums, moisturizers, eye masks, cleansers, perfumes, and gels. Rodial, for example, an innovative skincare company known for using natural ingredients, has an entire line of dragon’s blood-infused anti-aging and skin-protecting products.
Rodial’s Dragon’s Blood Sculpting Kit ($162) includes a hyaluronic mask, a sculpting gel, and an eye gel. The hyaluronic mask moisturizes dehydrated skin and smooths out imperfections for a firmer complexion. The sculpting gel defines facial contours by plumping sagging skin, while the eye gel de-puffs, brightens, and soothes dark under-eyes.
Another interesting dragon’s blood product from Rodial is the Dragon’s Blood XXL Lip Plumper ($30), which uses dragon’s blood extract to hydrate and soothe the lips while chili extract provides a tingling and plumping sensation.
Check out other dragon’s blood products from skincare brands like Peter Thomas Roth and WEI Beauty.
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