After three days of not using it, the mask has turned into a bonsai. Will the seaweed mask sprout when applied on the face?

Everyone knows about seaweed masks, which are the ones made with "seaweed particles", are sticky and feel very moisturizing when applied on the face.

A video blogger’s seaweed mask video went viral after it was posted online, not because it was effective, but because it sprouted!

In the video, the blogger said that she soaked the seaweed mask she bought online in water for three days, only to find that the seaweed mask sprouted and turned into a bonsai .

The picture comes from the up master of bilibili APP "Miao Xiaozhu woke up"

This strange incident opened the door to a new world for netizens: Is the seaweed mask a seaweed seed? If so, can we buy a seaweed mask to grow?

It really can be successful

1. Is the sprouted seaweed mask seaweed?

Let’s take a look at the main ingredients of seaweed mask.

Tadpole randomly checked the registered ingredients of three seaweed masks online. It can be seen that the so-called seaweed ingredients in the three seaweed masks include Algae ostreatus extract, Algae macrophylla extract and Algae nigra extract, but there are no "seaweed particles" that we can see with the naked eye.

After searching in the "Catalogue of Used Cosmetic Raw Materials" issued by the Food and Drug Administration, we found that these three seaweed extracts are all legal and compliant. I couldn't help but be curious, since the seaweed mask only contains seaweed extracts , then what are those seeds that we think are "seaweed particles"?

The picture comes from the registered ingredients of seaweed mask verified by the Beauty Practice app

The introduction to seaweed in the People's Education Press high school biology textbook is as follows: Seaweed is a type of algae that grows in the sea and is an organism in the plant kingdom that produces energy through photosynthesis.

The main characteristics of seaweed are: there is no differentiation of true roots, stems and leaves; it does not bloom, has no fruits or seeds; its reproductive organs have no specialized protective tissues, and spores or gametes are often produced directly from a single cell.

Because algae have a simple structure, some botanists classify them together with fungi into the "thallus flora" of lower plants.

In other words, seaweed is a spore plant, and its reproduction method is spore reproduction. However, spores are reproductive cells and will not produce seeds at all.

2. What plant is the sprout from?

Since seaweed has no seeds, what exactly are seaweed granules?

Let's first take a closer look at the small buds after the seaweed particles germinate. We can see that its embryo has two cotyledons, indicating that it is a dicotyledonous plant that lives on land.

Not only is seaweed not a dicotyledon, it also does not live on land and does not have granular seeds.

The picture comes from the bilibili APP, the video of the up master "Formulator Markgo"

Netizens have different opinions on the "origin" of these particles.

Some netizens said it was Hyoscyamus henbana, but Hyoscyamus henbana is the dried mature seeds of the Solanaceae plant Scopolamine, which was called "Schonbana seeds", "Hengtang" and "Xingtang" in ancient times. It is a highly toxic Chinese medicine and is rarely used in prescriptions. Moreover, it is on the list of banned cosmetics. "Seaweed granules" should not be Hyoscyamus henbana.

Since ice powder seeds are also seeds that can exude transparent gelatinous substances after being mixed with water, which is very similar to seaweed masks, some netizens suspect that they are ice powder seeds.

The ice jelly seeds mentioned here are actually false nightshade. The ice jelly seeds are the seeds of the ice jelly tree, which is grown locally in Sichuan and is the main material for making hand-rubbed ice jelly.

However, according to the blogger's own comparative experiment using ice powder seeds, the particles of ice powder seeds and seaweed mask are still different to the naked eye. Some netizens also conducted comparative experiments on ice powder seeds and seaweed mask particles and found that the two are not the same.

The picture comes from the bilibili APP, the video of the up master "Formulator Markgo"

In addition, when we search for "seaweed mask" on an e-commerce platform, we find that some merchants advertise themselves as large-grain seaweed, while others advertise themselves as small-grain seaweed. Is there any difference between the two?

The picture comes from a screenshot of an e-commerce platform

On the social platform bilibili, you can see that the up master "Formulator Markgo" has already done a comparative experiment on the external characteristics of ice powder seeds, large seaweed granules and small seaweed granules under a microscope.

It can be found that the appearance of ice powder seeds, large seaweed granules and small seaweed granules is quite different, while the large seaweed granules and small seaweed granules are almost the same except for the size.

Then, he asked a friend who studies botany for confirmation, and the reply he got was that large and small seaweeds are all seeds of water lilies. After comparing under a microscope, we can also find that the appearance characteristics of large and small seaweed particles are indeed the same as those of water lilies.

Water sedge is actually the southern fairy we usually talk about . Its original plant is the dry seeds of the water sedge of the Acanthaceae family. It can be used to clear away heat and detoxify, reduce swelling and remove fire, treat sore throat, indigestion, relieve pain, snake and insect bites, etc.

In fact, both large-grain seaweed and small-grain seaweed belong to the seeds of the water hyacinth. They are just two variants in different environments, and the difference in appearance is caused by the difference in living environment.

The picture comes from the Internet

At this point, the answer to the second question is already very clear. The small particles in the seaweed masks sold on the market are not seaweed particles as we think, but are actually the seeds of the water hyacinth.

3. Is seaweed mask safe?

First of all, the seaweed granule mask has almost nothing to do with seaweed, it is just the seeds of the water hyacinth.

Secondly, these seaweed masks do not comply with national laws and regulations, not only because of the false advertising done by the merchants, but also because they use water hyacinth seeds which are not on the list of permitted ingredients for cosmetics, which poses a safety risk to consumers when using the products.

It is worth noting that consumers should not blindly use facial care products that have not been inspected by relevant departments to prevent irreversible consequences such as allergies, face ulcers, etc.

Some consumers believe that the gelatin component in this seaweed mask can play a certain role in moisturizing. In fact, it is because the gelatin can absorb moisture from the air and prevent moisture from escaping through the pores , which makes users feel that it has a moisturizing effect. It has nothing to do with other added ingredients.

In fact, using other correct methods to moisturize can also achieve the moisturizing effect and be more assured. Therefore, seaweed mask is indeed an IQ tax.

Here, Tadpole sincerely hopes that the relevant departments can come forward to regulate the seaweed mask industry and take some effective punishment measures, such as ordering relevant manufacturers to remove related products from the shelves or revoking the false propaganda about "seaweed" by illegal businesses.

We must refuse to use unsafe ingredients in cosmetics, and also expose this false advertising scam to protect the rights of consumers.

END

Audit experts:

Shi Jun, PhD in Botany.

Zhang Yuhong, associate chief physician of dermatology, Zhengzhou Central Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University.

Tadpole Musical Notation original article, please indicate the source when reprinting

Editor/Xiao Xitushuo