BETA-GLUCAN

Beta-Glucan is a naturally occurring polysaccharide found in sources including oats, yeast, mushrooms and certain algae. Once known primarily for its immune-modulating properties, it has become an increasingly important skincare ingredient because it does something particularly valuable: it helps skin hydrate, calm, repair and become more resilient at the same time.

This combination has made Beta-Glucan particularly relevant in Korean skincare, where maintaining a strong, well-hydrated skin barrier is often treated as fundamental to healthy-looking skin. Rather than simply adding water to the surface, Beta-Glucan has been studied for its relationship with the biological processes involved in barrier repair, inflammation and skin recovery.

What does Beta-Glucan do for skin?

Beta-Glucan is a powerful moisture-binding ingredient, helping attract and retain water while forming a lightweight film that helps reduce moisture loss. For dry or dehydrated skin, that means greater softness, comfort and suppleness—but hydration is only the beginning of its story.

Newer research has explored how Beta-Glucan interacts with pathways involved in the skin barrier itself. Studies have found effects on proteins and lipids important to healthy barrier structure, including filaggrin, loricrin and lipid synthesis, suggesting a role in helping compromised skin rebuild a stronger protective barrier.

Beta-Glucan is also particularly interesting for stressed, irritated or inflammation-prone skin. Research has demonstrated anti-inflammatory activity and effects on inflammatory signaling, while clinical research involving skin recovering from laser treatment found better hydration, reduced water loss and improved recovery measures when a Beta-Glucan skincare regimen was used. So when skin has been over-exfoliated, environmentally stressed, dehydrated or simply pushed too far, Beta-Glucan is much more than another hydrator. It helps create the conditions for skin to become calmer, better hydrated and more resilient.

What about fine lines, wrinkles and firmness?

This is where Beta-Glucan gets especially interesting. Clinical research has reported reductions in wrinkle depth, wrinkle height and skin roughness after consistent topical use. Other clinical research has reported improvements in skin firmness, hydration and elasticity. Laboratory research has also explored Beta-Glucan's effects on fibroblasts, collagen synthesis and protection against UV-related oxidative damage.

That gives Beta-Glucan a legitimate place in the conversation around visible skin aging, particularly because dehydration, barrier deterioration, inflammation and oxidative stress can all contribute to skin looking older, rougher and less resilient.

What will you see and feel?

For dehydrated skin, expect greater softness, plumpness and comfort, with fine dehydration lines appearing less pronounced. For stressed or compromised skin, it can mean less tightness and discomfort and skin that feels calmer, stronger and better able to retain moisture.

And for skin showing fine lines, roughness or loss of firmness and elasticity, continued use can support a complexion that appears smoother, more supple, firmer and more resilient. That combination is what makes Beta-Glucan so compelling. It doesn't force skin into behaving differently. It supports some of the things healthy skin is already trying to do: hold onto water, maintain its barrier, regulate inflammatory stress, recover and protect itself.

In HALO™, Beta-Glucan brings the Korean skincare philosophy of hydration, barrier health and skin resilience into an everyday treatment serum, while Niacinamide and N-Acetyl Glucosamine focus more directly on brightness, uneven tone and pigmentation.