Atlanta dermatologist speaks on TikTok’s slimiest skincare trend

It’s slimy and smelly. But on TikTok, it’s so much more.

Spend enough time scrolling through skincare content on social media and you’ll likely find your way to snail mucin. The ingredient, a glycoprotein found in these mollusks’ sticky mucus, has become a popular addition to skincare products over the years. Antiaging, antiinflammatory, antimicrobial — preclinical and small studies have shown this goopy ingredient could come with some major benefits for your skin.

According to an Atlanta dermatologist, however, this is a beauty trend that might not necessarily be the best option for most. But it’s consistently on her patients’ minds.

“All the time,” Dr. Jordan Lim told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution when asked how often she’s questioned about snail mucin.

“You name it: patients, Christmas parties, holiday parties. I feel like we get questions about these trends, especially the ones that are floating around on social media, all the time.”

Lim is an Emory dermatologist, Mohs micrographic surgeon and an assistant professor of dermatology. For her, answering questions about snail mucin — and other skincare trends — is nearly a daily task.

“We’d all need an apartment full of skincare products if we followed every single one that’s talked about on social media,” she shared. “But that’s usually the question that comes up most.”

Is it safe?

Snails have been used in medicine since antiquity. Millenia ago, Hippocrates reportedly even proposed snail mucus as a treatment for burns and other wounds. According to Lim, however, modern science still doesn’t fully understand precisely how snail mucin affects human skin.

“In general, I would say it’s probably actually too early to give anyone strong evidence behind its use,” she said.

“Because we don’t have big studies, on humans in the real world, figuring out what it does to skin. Nor do we have big studies comparing snail mucin to other products that have these same kind of claims to help us heal quicker or help protect our skin.”

It’s that lack of information that makes it difficult for medical professionals to confidently say the slimy skincare solution is all it’s cracked up to be.

“Is it safe to use these products? Yeah, probably,” she said. “But is it going to be as effective as what the label says? There’s not good evidence to tell us that.”

Is it worth trying?

Research into snail mucin skincare may still have a long way to go, but the products are already packing the shelves. Being so popular, should curious skincare users still give them a try?

“I think having a basic skincare routine is actually going to be more helpful — more worth your money when you’re out there looking at these huge shelves — than always kind of following every single trend,” Lim said. “Your skincare regimen does not need to be huge and robust to get you really good results.”

According to the dermatologist, a good baseline skincare regiment features a gentle face wash, sunscreen and possibly a retinoid-based skincare product.

“Those are probably the things that we have the most evidence to get you those results that you want,” she said.

Start with a small test spot

If you’re thinking about adding snail mucin to your skincare routine, Lim says it’s best to take things slow. Even after you’ve built a solid baseline routine, she recommends being cautious when introducing any new product to avoid irritation.