PROIn Stock
150ML
SensClean Cleansing Foam
Gentle cleansing for sensitive skin
Centella Asiatica
The plant-based healer - an ancient Ayurvedic plant with powerful regenerating, soothing and anti-inflammatory properties. Rich in madecassoside and asiaticoside for collagen stimulation.
Botanical Extract
All(87)Active Ingredients(32)Aromatherapy(3)Skin Science(19)Technologies(4)Skincare Routines(13)Professional Insights(8)Hair Science(8)Ingredients Library(50)
Centella asiatica is one of the few botanicals that has earned a place in both serious skincare and dermatological practice. In Asian skincare it appears as cica, and it is almost always associated with one word: calming.
Product routine
Step 1CleanseGentle foam for sensitive skin
Step 2TreatSoothing serum for redness and sensitivity
Step 3MoisturizeCalms and hydrates irritated skin
Step 4ProtectSPF 50 protection for sensitive skin
What It Is
Centella asiatica is a perennial herb used in Ayurvedic and traditional Chinese medicine. Skincare uses an extract of the leaves rather than the plant itself.
The active components
There are four main ones: asiaticoside, madecassoside, asiatic acid and madecassic acid. Together they are called centellosides. Different extracts contain different ratios of them, which explains why two products listing centella can behave quite differently.
How It Works
Centella's main value lies in calming visible redness and supporting the skin barrier. Which is exactly why it turns up so often in after-treatment products and in care for reactive skin.
What the data says
Centella is among the better-studied botanicals, but much of that research was done in vitro or on animal models rather than on human skin in real conditions. The figures quoted in marketing materials most often come from there, and are worth reading with that in mind.
Who It Suits
Sensitive, flush-prone skin, skin after exfoliation or a treatment, and skin recovering from an over-active routine. It is exceptionally well tolerated and rarely irritates. A full regime is in our sensitive skin routine.
How to Use It
In a serum, essence or cream, morning and evening. It combines well with almost anything, and particularly neatly with niacinamide and panthenol, which pull in the same direction.
A useful trick
Cica, Centella and Madecassoside: Are They the Same
Cica is short for cicatrisant and is used as a marketing term for a whole category of soothing products. Not every product labelled cica contains centella, and not every one that does has it at a working level.
Madecassoside is one of the individual centellosides and is sometimes isolated and used on its own. A product naming the specific component and its percentage is usually more transparent than one that simply says "centella extract".
What to Expect, and When
The sense of calmed skin arrives quickly, often within days. A visible reduction in redness takes longer: usually a few weeks, provided you are not adding new irritants during that time.
Centella is not aimed at wrinkles, pigmentation or blemishes. If you expect that, you will be disappointed, not because the ingredient is weak but because its job is a different one.
Common Mistakes
The first is using it as a rescue after an over-aggressive routine without changing the routine itself. A soothing product on skin that is still being exfoliated three times a week solves nothing.
The second is expecting it to remove existing redness caused by dilated vessels. Couperose and rosacea have a different mechanism and need a different approach, including a medical one.
If you use retinol or acids, apply a centella product on the evenings between them. Skin gets a rest without the routine going empty, and irritation is less likely to build up.
01What is Centella Asiatica and why is it important in cosmetics?
Centella Asiatica is a perennial herbaceous plant containing four key triterpene compounds - asiaticoside, madecassoside, asiatic acid, and madecassic acid. These molecules stimulate collagen synthesis, accelerate skin healing, and possess potent anti-inflammatory action, making them indispensable in professional dermocosmetics.
02Is Centella Asiatica suitable for sensitive skin?
Yes, Centella Asiatica is one of the most suitable active ingredients for sensitive and reactive skin. Madecassoside suppresses pro-inflammatory cytokines, while madecassic acid reduces the sensitivity of nerve endings. Centellosides also strengthen the skin barrier by stimulating ceramide synthesis, which reduces reactivity and discomfort.
03Can Centella Asiatica be used after cosmetic procedures?
Centella Asiatica is ideal for post-procedure recovery. After chemical peels, microneedling, or laser procedures, centellosides reduce erythema and inflammation, accelerate regeneration, and stimulate skin tissue remodeling. Madecassoside provides anti-inflammatory action, while asiaticoside initiates fibrogenesis and new collagen synthesis.
04How does Centella Asiatica stimulate collagen synthesis?
Asiaticoside activates the TGF-beta and SMAD signaling pathways, directly amplifying transcription of procollagen genes. The result is increased production of both type I collagen (providing dermal firmness) and type III collagen (providing elasticity). Laboratory research reports an increase in hydroxyproline - a key marker for collagen synthesis.
05Which Collagena Professional products contain Centella Asiatica?
Collagena Professional® integrates a standardized Centella Asiatica extract with guaranteed active centelloside content in its formulations. Standardization ensures reproducible clinical results and optimal concentrations of asiaticoside, madecassoside, asiatic acid, and madecassic acid.
From our catalog
Recommended Products
Discover our products containing the active ingredients mentioned in this article
