Skin Science: The Chemistry and Biology of Beauty: Not a beauty course: a science course about what you put on your skin. Animated lessons, real labels from five markets, and hands-on labs

A fully animated, narrated science course on skincare, makeup, hair and body products for the US, EU, UK, India, Korea and Japan: 18 modules, 72 lessons. Watch what really happens in skin: the lipid mortar cracking under harsh soap, acids losing power as the pH rises, UV photons stopped by a sunscreen film, melanin being made and passed up to skin cells, a pore clogging and inflaming. Learn to read any ingredient list, find the 1% line, judge claims and evidence, and compare real labels from real brands with a fair scorecard instead of fear. Then practise with checked work: calculations, spot-the-ingredient on real labels, and lab simulations where you tune a cleanser routine, an exfoliant's pH, a sunscreen's real SPF, a retinoid ramp-up or a safety assessment until it meets the goal. Covers skin biology, cosmetic chemistry, evidence and regulation, cleansers and moisturizers, actives, sunscreen, skin types and tones, common conditions (awareness, not diagnosis), aging and life stages, food and supplements, makeup, hair, nails and fragrance, safety controversies, world beauty markets, procedures and devices, and science-based morning and night routines.

18 modules · 72 lessons · 811 practice questions · Beginner · first module free, then $3

What you'll learn

• Explain how skin works: its layers, the barrier, oil, pigment and renewal, and what a product can and cannot reach.
• Use basic chemistry (pH, pKa, emulsions, molecule size and oil-love) to predict whether a product can work.
• Read any ingredient list in any market, find the 1% line, and spot fragrance, allergens and marketing filler.
• Judge a claim by its evidence, and tell hazard from risk with the margin-of-safety sum regulators use.
• Choose cleansers, moisturizers and actives (acids, retinoids, vitamin C, niacinamide and more) for a skin type and goal.
• Pick and use sunscreen properly: filters by region, SPF and UVA ratings, the real amount and reapplication.
• Recognize common skin conditions and the red flags that need a dermatologist.
• Separate diet, supplement and lifestyle evidence from hype.
• Understand the chemistry of makeup, hair dye, bleach, straighteners, deodorants and fragrance.
• Compare brands and markets fairly with a scorecard and real labels, not fear.
• Build and explain a scientific morning and night routine for yourself or someone you advise.

Syllabus

1. Your Skin, the Organ — Layers, the brick-and-mortar barrier, the acid mantle and microbiome, cell turnover, sebum and melanin: the living surface every product has to work on.
2. The Chemistry You Need — Molecules that love water or oil, pH and pKa, surfactants and emulsions, and what decides whether an ingredient gets into skin at all.
3. Evidence Literacy — Hazard versus risk, the margin-of-safety sum regulators use, how to read a study, decoding marketing language, and how the US, EU, India, Korea, Japan and China regulate beauty.
4. Labels Decoded — INCI names, order by amount, the 1% line, fragrance and allergens, expiry symbols, and real labels from different markets side by side.
5. Cleansing and Moisturizing — Cleansers from soap to syndets, the moisturizer triad, barrier repair with ceramides, and matching textures to skin and climate.
6. Actives I: Exfoliation and Retinoids — AHAs, BHAs and PHAs and why pH matters, the retinoid ladder from esters to tretinoin, getting used to retinoids, purging and over-exfoliation.
7. Actives II: Brightening, Antioxidants and Trends — Vitamin C forms and stability, how pigment is made and blocked, peptides and growth factors, and K-beauty heroes tested against the evidence.
8. Sun Science — UVA, UVB and visible light, filters by region, SPF and PA maths, how much to apply and when to reapply, and sunscreen for every skin tone.
9. Skin Types and Tones — Finding your skin type, Fitzpatrick types and skin of color, sensitive versus sensitized, climate and water, and why one product acts differently on five skins.
10. Common Conditions: Awareness, Not Diagnosis — How acne forms and what each treatment targets, pigmentation, rosacea, eczema, psoriasis, fungal acne, and the red flags that need a dermatologist.
11. Aging and Life Stages — Intrinsic and extrinsic aging, collagen and glycation, teens and babies, pregnancy and breastfeeding, menopause, men's skin and shaving, older skin.
12. Food, Supplements and Lifestyle — What the evidence says about diet and acne, the gut-skin axis, collagen, biotin and glutathione, and how sleep, stress, smoking, alcohol and pollution show up on skin.
13. Makeup Chemistry — Pigments and shade ranges, powders, mica and talc, silicones and long-wear film formers, eye and lip safety, and makeup hygiene.
14. Hair, Scalp, Nails, Body and Fragrance — Hair keratin and bonds, shampoo myths, dandruff, dyes and bleach, straighteners, nails, deodorant versus antiperspirant, body care and fragrance chemistry.
15. Safety and Controversies — How safety assessors decide, the contested ingredients (parabens, phthalates, PFAS, benzene), skin lightening dangers, counterfeits and DIY risks.
16. World Beauty Markets — K-beauty, J-beauty and C-beauty, the US and EU and French pharmacy, India and Ayurveda, and what 'natural', 'clean', 'cruelty-free' and 'reef-safe' really mean.
17. Procedures, Devices and Professional Care — In-clinic peels, lasers, microneedling and injectables, at-home devices, prescriptions and teledermatology, and how to choose safe professional care.
18. Routines and Capstone — Morning versus night, scientifically; layering and real ingredient clashes; routines by goal, budget, climate and market; then audit a shelf and advise real customers.