Rubbing A Banana Peel On Your Face Is Not Some Big Skincare Secret – It’s Just Pointless

The latest viral clip to showcase this dubious hack is a morning routine video from fitness influencer Ashton Hall, but Hall is far from the only culprit. That video had racked up over 9 million likes on TikTok at the time of writing, catapulting banana skincare into the minds of the masses, but the idea of reusing your old banana peels on your face has been around for much longer.

Now first of all, we don’t want to demonize the humble banana peel. Banana skins are edible, and full of fiber and nutrients like potassium. They might not be ap-peel-ing to consume on their own, but one study suggested they could be ground up and added to flour to make perfectly serviceable cookies. Much like the weird stringy bits, you might want to think twice before discarding them. 

That does not, however, give you license to start rubbing them all over your face. Step away from the trash can and listen up.

“While vitamin C may be found in banana peels, it is unlikely that it will be at high enough concentration in the peel or through the skin to any significant degree when the peels are left to sit on the skin, even for an extended period of time,” dermatologist Dr Joshua Zeichner told Glamour. 

Even though we see ingredients like vitamin C in skincare products all the time, there’s a considerable amount of science that goes into formulating them. You cannot replicate that with kitchen waste, no matter how keen you are to try. 

“The vitamin C in bananas isn’t exactly formulated to penetrate the skin barrier and get absorbed into the dermis where you would have the benefits of these ingredients,” assistant professor of dermatology Dr Helen He told Verywell. 

There’s been a small amount of scientific research into the potential skin benefits of banana peels, but there’s nothing conclusive yet, and certainly nothing to recommend them. 

One review looking specifically at kepok bananas and their potential use in the treatment of acne concluded, “Banana peel contains many bioactive compounds which demonstrate anti-inflammatory properties through several processes of the inflammatory pathway.” 

“However,” the authors added, “further research is needed to confirm this finding.”

Another study used an extract from the same banana peel formulated into a gel and found that it could “ameliorate clinical photoaging due to exposure to UVB.” But before you toss your sunscreen, hold your horses – this study was limited to rats, which if you are reading this, you are not. They also weren’t simply slapping banana skins onto the rodents wholesale. 

Whatever way you slice it, it’s too soon to say that banana peels are the missing step in your skincare routine. 

One of the more bizarre claims made by banana dermatology enthusiasts is that they act like “nature’s Botox”. First, let us remind you that botulinum toxin is itself an entirely natural substance – it comes from Clostridium botulinum bacteria. But naming aside, it also just doesn’t work like that.

“Although some people might experience a temporary feeling of skin tightening, this will be short-lived, and it will not offer long-lasting results like injectable aesthetic treatments can,” aesthetician Nina Prisk told Fast Company. 

She also cautioned, “It may, in fact, result in skin irritation, especially for those with sensitive skin.” Banana peels are fairly abrasive, and as every millennial learned from bitter teenage experience (RIP our epidermises), harsh scrubs are rarely the way to go when it comes to facial skin. 

To sum up, it may be a shame to completely waste your banana peels – but if they are going to have a second life, it’s going to be found in the kitchen, not the bathroom. Eat them if you like, but please don’t go sloughing them over your face. Or, while we’re at it, other more intimate regions. 

And if you’ve been avoiding bananas altogether out of fear of an eight-legged encounter, rejoice! There are no spider eggs in your banana, so you can relax now.