A review on Lotus: use in herbal cosmetics

Cosmetic industry is seeing many changes with the growing awareness about the safety and lesser toxicity of herbal ingredients. Herbal cosmetics are used more and more now-a-days. Various review and research articles are available for studying herbal cosmetics and also for studying the herbal ingredients present in them. Lotus i.e. Nelumbo nucifera has been used in herbal cosmetics as an active ingredient since ages. Yet, there is lack of a proper detailed review on this herb which has innumerable applications. The roots, leaves, seeds, flower, stigma and stem have activities that can be made use of in cosmetics. Lotus has been reported as a highly effective whitening and anti-wrinkling agent and hence is widely utilized in anti-aging cosmetic preparations. Several other cosmetically beneficial effects of lotus have also been reported. This article aims at filling the gap between available scientific data and applications of Lotus. It is a widely used herb but a detailed organized review is not available. An attempt has been made to provide the same.