1. Introduction
From Michelle Wu, Boston’s first Chinese-American female mayor who made history, to Ye Shuhua, a 95-year-old academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences who topped the trending charts with a fluent English speech, the talent and hard work of women in the new era have become a focus of attention, and their attitudes towards life have been a hot social topic in recent years. For women in the new era, being a “good wife and loving mother” is no longer the only pursuit. They have clear goals and plans for their lives, putting themselves first, being good to themselves first, and then being good “mothers” and “wives.”
More and more young women are developing their own worldview and values after venturing out into the world on their own, possessing independent self-assertion and not being bound by societal dogmas; more and more female entrepreneurs and executives are not only leading new business models but also driving market development, forming a beautiful landscape in the workplace… Just as Academician Ye Shuhua of the Chinese Academy of Sciences encouraged in her speech: “ If you want something, be brave and go for it. ” Women of the new era are striving to break through the glass ceiling.
2. The rise of the “she-economy”
● A consumer market size of ten trillion yuan
As women pursue spiritual enrichment, their consumer awareness is also awakening. In the new era, women are independent and self-reliant, with their social and economic status continuously improving, making them a backbone of the consumer market. According to relevant data, as of 2020, my country had approximately 530 million female consumers aged 20 to 60, supporting a consumer market worth trillions of yuan, with women born in the 1980s and 1990s being the main consumers. 87% of mothers control the family finances, and 97% of women are the decision-makers for household purchases. The consumption trend index of middle-class new women is as high as 130 points, far exceeding the national average of 115 points. The power of the “she-economy” is now undeniable.
● “Self-indulgent” consumption trend
With the continuous improvement of women’s consumption power and the increasing diversification of aesthetics in the new era, they are more willing to express their own understanding of beauty than to be defined by society, and they also place greater emphasis on “self-indulgent” consumption . The “New E-commerce and New Women’s Consumption Report” released by Pinduoduo points out that the main consumption area of the “she-economy” is personal care and beauty products . Against the backdrop of the “appearance economy” and “big health,” new-era women are paying more attention to their all-round self-care. According to CBNData data, categories related to appearance, such as skincare, makeup, and oral beauty supplements, have received increasing attention from consumers, driving trillions of yuan in consumption growth in related markets over the past two years. Among them, the consumption growth rate of oral beauty supplements far exceeds the average growth rate of various online categories .
3. Oral beauty treatments
● Industry Development History
Oral beauty products , as the name suggests, refer to functional foods that achieve skin care from within through dietary habits, with a direct aim of beautifying the body and improving appearance . They can be categorized by product form into oral liquids, capsules, tablets, and powders; and by efficacy into four main categories: whitening, anti-aging, moisturizing, and hair loss prevention. In China, the concept of “oral beauty” first appeared in the 1990s. “Tai Tai Oral Liquid,” launched in 1992 targeting menopausal women, was China’s first oral beauty product.
Since the beginning of the 21st century, the consumer base for oral beauty products has gradually become younger, with collagen drinks becoming the most popular star product in the market. However, in 2013, several collagen drinks on the market were exposed by Consumer Reports and Focus Interview for exaggerated advertising and counterfeit products, leading to doubts about the actual effectiveness of oral collagen. According to incomplete industry statistics, the overall sales of collagen in China have declined by 80% since May 2013, impacting the overall oral beauty market. In the past two years, as conventional topical skincare products can no longer meet the extreme beauty pursuits of modern women, oral beauty products have made a comeback and are once again highly sought after.
Oral beauty product classification [3]
● Current Status of Market Development
Globally, the Asia-Pacific region currently dominates the oral beauty market, holding a 25% market share. Within the Asia-Pacific region, China follows Japan as the second largest oral beauty market, and is projected to account for 28% of the global market share by 2022 .
Current Status and Forecast of the Global Oral Cosmetic Market Size in Different Regions [4]
A Euromonitor report indicates that China’s total sales of health supplements reached 311.6 billion yuan in 2020, with oral beauty products accounting for 23.8 billion yuan . According to official data from Tmall, during the 2020 “6.18” shopping festival, oral beauty products were among the top three most popular consumer categories, with sales increasing by 2266% year-on-year . This demonstrates the rising popularity of oral beauty products, with those born in the 1990s and 1995s accounting for over 50% of consumers in this sector, making them the main consumers of this category.
Age and gender distribution of users of oral beauty products in China [5]
Furthermore, with the increasing awareness of health and wellness among women and the frequent occurrence of problems with topical cosmetics, by 2020, approximately 62% of female consumers chose dietary therapy as their primary method for improving skin conditions , creating a broad market prospect for oral beauty products. According to Toubao Research Institute, China’s oral beauty industry is expected to experience a new round of growth, with the market size reaching 25.57 billion yuan by 2025, representing a compound annual growth rate of 3.8% .
China’s oral beauty industry market size, forecasted from 2016 to 2025 [6]
While traditional beliefs prioritize oral over topical treatments, the high cost-effectiveness of oral beauty products is the main reason for their popularity. Compared to topical skincare products, oral beauty products, such as whitening pills and anti-glycation pills, are considered to have more targeted effects. Compared to medical aesthetic treatments, oral beauty products are cheaper, have fewer side effects, and are more flexible in terms of usage and scenarios. The rise of “ingredient-conscious consumers” further aligns with this trend, focusing on the proportion of effective ingredients in products and emphasizing the use of targeted ingredients to address skin problems. As a result, professional concepts such as anti-glycation and anti-oxidation have become widely popularized and applied in product development and marketing.
Currently, the Chinese oral beauty market is mainly dominated by foreign brands, such as Japanese brands Pola and Fancl, and Australian brands Swisse and Blackmores, which are among the top-selling brands on the market. They have extensive experience in the beauty and health field and have a first-mover advantage in brand recognition. Meanwhile, emerging domestic brands, represented by By-Health and Bloomage Biotechnology, have developed rapidly in recent years.
4. Oral beauty product segment
As consumer demand increases, the concept of oral beauty products is becoming increasingly segmented. In the “anti-aging” field alone, there are already a series of derivative concepts such as “anti-aging,” “anti-glycation,” “anti-oxidation,” and “anti-wrinkle.” Data from Tmall Global’s MAT2019 indicates that whitening, anti-aging, moisturizing, and anti-hair loss effects related to oral beauty products all have a certain search volume online, with whitening and anti-aging being the most popular. Anti-glycation, anti-wrinkle, anti-aging, and anti-oxidation are the four fastest-growing categories in the anti-aging oral beauty product segment . According to CBNData’s consumer big data, different groups have different preferences for the “anti-aging” concept: those born in the 1990s and 1995s prefer “anti-oxidation,” those born in the 1980s and 1985s prefer “anti-glycation,” while other generations prefer “anti-aging.” So, what oral ingredients can help us specifically address skin problems? Let’s analyze them one by one.
(Data source: CBNData Consumer Big Data)
● Anti-glycation
Sugar is the main source of energy for the human body, accounting for about 70% of the body’s energy supply. In daily life, some of the sugar ingested is converted into energy, while the remainder is converted into glycogen and stored in the body. When sugar intake is too high, the excess sugar moves within the body, reacting with proteins, amino acids, or lipids to produce advanced glycation end products (AGEs). AGEs are considered a significant factor contributing to collagen cross-linking and the aging process. Glycation causes cross-linking damage to proteins, leading to the aging and hardening of normal protein structures, making the skin fragile and inelastic. Furthermore, AGEs inhibit fibroblast proliferation, reduce collagen production, and accelerate oxidative stress caused by ultraviolet radiation, making them one of the main causes of skin aging.
L-Carnosine is a dipeptide molecule composed of β-alanine and L-histidine, present in high concentrations in the brain and skeletal muscle tissue of vertebrates. Carnosine protects proteins from glycosylation by pre-binding to the sites on proteins where sugars normally bind to acetaldehyde, preventing sugars from interacting with proteins. Simultaneously, carnosine can reduce native proteins through transglycosylation, degrade reactive carbonyl substances (RCS) precursors of advanced aging products (AGEs), and inhibit the formation of AGEs, thus achieving an “anti-glycation” effect .
The table below lists some oral beauty products on the market that feature carnosine as the main ingredient and claim “anti-glycation” as their primary efficacy.
Case studies of “anti-glycation” products with carnosine as the main ingredient
● Antioxidant
Free radicals are reactive molecular groups, products of oxygen metabolism in the human body. Free radicals are extremely unstable and can steal electrons from neighboring healthy molecules. When the presence of free radicals exceeds the body’s tolerance level, it triggers a “free radical chain reaction,” continuously producing more free radicals that then spread to oxidize other cells, leading to impaired cell function. This reaction is called “oxidative stress,” a state of imbalance between oxidation and antioxidation in the body. Oxidative stress ultimately leads to the gradual deterioration of cell structure and function, causing skin problems such as roughness, wrinkles, allergies, and pigmentation, and is even closely related to the development of various diseases.
The human body’s innate immune system can help neutralize some of the damage caused by free radicals. In addition, we can also obtain a substance from the outside that specifically combats free radicals, namely antioxidants. Ergothioneine and glutathione, as natural antioxidants that already exist in the human body, can effectively inhibit the generation of free radicals and directly eliminate them when applied to the body, thus achieving the effect of “antioxidation” .
Ergothioneine (EGT) is a rare, naturally occurring chiral amino acid derivative. In its dissolved state, ergothioneine exists as a tautomer between its thione and thiol structures; at physiological pH, it exists as a thione and therefore only reacts with certain thiol reagents. Glutathione (GSH), on the other hand, is a tripeptide composed of glutamic acid, cysteine, and glycine, containing a thiol group. It exists primarily in two forms: reduced and oxidized. Reduced glutathione is the active form, comprising approximately 95% under physiological conditions and exhibiting a high free radical scavenging rate.
It’s worth noting that ingredients like ergothioneine and glutathione not only have antioxidant properties but also inhibit melanin production and promote detoxification. Glutathione, in particular, is frequently used in dietary supplements as an effective liver-protecting ingredient .
The table below lists some oral beauty products on the market that feature ergothioneine or glutathione as their main ingredients.
Product examples with ergothioneine and glutathione as main ingredients
● Anti-aging
Aging is a natural process, a direct manifestation of the slowing down of bodily functions. While aging itself is not a disease, it is a risk factor for many diseases and a sign of approaching death. Throughout history, “immortality” has been the ultimate pursuit of all humankind. With the development of modern science, the concept of anti-aging has been gradually recognized and evolved, becoming a unique and systematic research field. And when we talk about anti-aging, how can we not mention our “old friend,” NMN?
NMN, short for β-nicotinamide mononucleotide, is a direct precursor to NAD+. NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) is an important coenzyme for mitochondrial energy conversion in the human body, and its levels decline with age. When NAD+ levels decrease, mitochondrial function is impaired, leading to cell apoptosis and thus aging and disease. Due to its short half-life and poor stability, supplementing NAD+ molecules alone cannot effectively increase its levels in the body. Therefore, taking NMN is currently one of the most ideal ways to supplement NAD+.
By activating Sirtuin (acetyltransferase) through NAD+ activation, NMN can reboot cells, achieving effects such as maintaining capillary regeneration, repairing genes, enhancing immunity, anti-aging, and preventing a range of chronic diseases . Many end products containing NMN cite preclinical studies demonstrating that NMN has various pharmacological effects in chronic diseases caused by NAD+ deficiency. However, the three most well-known benefits of oral NMN products are enhanced immunity, improved sleep quality, and anti-aging . The image below shows Pep Origin’s “anti-aging” products, with NMN and glutathione as their main ingredients.
5. Regarding finished enzyme products
Guangzhou Enzyme Products Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Enzyme Products), established in 2017, is an innovative high-tech enterprise with synthetic biology technology as its core and multidisciplinary applications. It is a global pioneer in applying synthetic biology technology to the fully green commercial production of “life molecules,” promoting “carbon neutrality” and “carbon emission reduction” in the field of specialty functional raw materials. Its products are used in fields such as biomedicine, nutrition and health, medical aesthetics and daily chemicals, animal health, green agriculture, and biomaterials.
“Life molecules” refer to functional molecules that contain one or more basic unit molecules such as amino acids, sugars, and nucleotides, and exhibit excellent “safety,” “efficacy,” and “accessibility.” In the field of oral beauty products, the company has dozens of functional raw materials, including NMN, glutathione, ergothioneine, and carnosine , committed to providing high-quality, affordable, and effective raw materials for high-quality oral beauty products!