What is it?
An extract of the whole plant of Bambusa vulgaris, a species of bamboo, which is a member of the grass family (Poaceae). Bamboo shoots contain phenolic acids such as chlorogenic and caffeic acid, and the shoots and leaves contain flavonoids such as orientin, vitexin and tricin. In cosmetics the extract is used as a skin-conditioning ingredient.
Key information
- The cosmetic ingredient is made from the whole bamboo plant, not only the shoots.
- Raw bamboo shoots contain taxiphyllin, which releases hydrogen cyanide when the shoots are cut; boiling removes it, which is why shoots are cooked before eating.
- We found no published safety assessment of this extract by the Cosmetic Ingredient Review or the EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety.
More information
Bamboo has a long history in traditional medicine. The rhizome, culm, shoots, leaves, roots and seeds have all been used, and Ayurvedic tradition includes bamboo preparations such as tabasheer, also called banslochan. Laboratory studies have identified phenolic acids including protocatechuic, caffeic and chlorogenic acid in bamboo shoots, and flavonoids including orientin, isoorientin, vitexin, isovitexin and tricin.
The best-known natural toxin in bamboo is taxiphyllin, a cyanogenic glycoside found in the shoots, with the highest levels at the shoot tip; cyanogenic glycosides have also been reported in Bambusa vulgaris. When shoot tissue is damaged, an enzyme converts taxiphyllin into hydrogen cyanide. Food Standards Australia New Zealand reported that fresh bamboo shoots may contain as much as 1,000 mg/kg of hydrogen cyanide, that levels fall substantially after harvest, and that slicing and boiling removes it. This is a question of eating raw shoots; we found no reports linking bamboo extracts on the skin to cyanide exposure.
We found no safety assessment of Bambusa vulgaris extract by the Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) or the EU’s Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety, and no published skin irritation or allergy tests. On labels it appears as Bambusa Vulgaris Extract, sometimes with “(Bamboo)” added. See also our profile for bamboo (Bambusa arundinacea).
Sources: Sciences of Phytochemistry (2022): Bambusa vulgaris: a comprehensive review of its traditional uses, phytochemicals and pharmacological activities; Food Standards Australia New Zealand: Cyanogenic glycosides in cassava and bamboo shoots, a human health risk assessment (2004)
