Burdock root extract comes from Arctium lappa, a plant that has long been used in folk remedies and traditional Chinese medicine. It contains plant compounds called phenolic acids, along with a group of compounds known as lignans.
In lab testing, these phenolic compounds have been shown to mop up free radicals and help slow down the breakdown of fats in cells that leads to damage, both signs of real antioxidant activity. Separately, one of its lignan compounds blocked the activity of an enzyme involved in making pigment, in cell based lab tests, which offers a possible explanation for why burdock root is sometimes marketed as skin brightening.
Almost all of this evidence comes from lab dishes or animal studies rather than from people, and there are essentially no well controlled human trials testing burdock root extract on skin for any specific benefit.
Burdock Root Extract References
Antioxidative and in vitro antiproliferative activity of Arctium lappa root extracts, BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine
A review of the pharmacological effects of Arctium lappa (burdock), Inflammopharmacology, 2011
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