TCM Was Centuries Ahead With Its Longevity-Based Approach to Beauty—Why Are We Only Paying Attention Now?

“The key to physical beauty and a long life is keeping your system in balance”, Professor of Traditional Chinese Medicine TCM, Dr Ke, tells me after he’s peered intently at my tongue. I am sitting in his office at the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, where he offers a TCM Longevity Reset as part of the hotel’s new curated wellness journeys. While the packages may be recent, Professor Ke has been advocating for and teaching TCM in the UK for the past 40 years. Of course, the system of medicine is believed to be at least 23 centuries old, but it’s only within the last few years that it has seen an overwhelming swell of interest in the West.

Scroll through TikTok, and you’ll likely notice thousands of creators posting videos about “How to become a ‘Chinese Baddie’”. Like all trends, it’s simplistic and boils down the ancient practice to a few pithy lifestyle changes, largely involving drinking warm water and using a gua sha. But it does speak to a rapid shift of awareness—estimates from Mordor Intelligence project that the TCM market will reach a whopping $92.67 billion in 2026.

Still, while cultural relevance has never been higher, general understanding remains shallow.

Indeed, within TCM, beauty and health have always gone hand-in-hand. If your system is in disharmony, or out of whack, Dr Ke explains, it will manifest physically: In your hair, your skin, your weight, and even your hands. To this end, the professor looks at my peeling nails, takes my pulse, snaps pictures of my tongue, listens to my litany of complaints, and diagnoses me with a heart and kidney imbalance, which has manifested emotionally, physiologically and physically.

A Western doctor would then prescribe me medication or topical treatments, but Dr Ke turns the focus to healing my internal health through a tightly edited plan of acupuncture, herbs, diet, and broader lifestyle changes. “These changes will, in time, impact your appearance,” he says.

Catarina Oliveira has a master's in TCM, and is the co-founder of Herbar—a skincare brand inspired by the practice. She tells Marie Claire UK that TCM is especially effective at treating day-to-day beauty woes that feel chronic, including hormonal acne, sagging, redness, flushing, sensitivity, puffiness and water retention, dullness, chronic dryness, eczema, dark circles and otherwise stressed skin.

For Oliviera, the TCM approach revolves around the idea that your skin is not separate from you. This is a sentiment that award-winning integrative Chinese Medicine clinician Ada Ooi brings to her practice, too. "TCM looks at the entire body, nervous system, digestion, bowel movement and stools, circulation, sleep, emotional health, hormones, and organ systems,” she explains. “We often say that the skin is a mirror of what is happening inside. If digestion is weak, nutrients are not absorbed properly. If circulation is poor, the complexion is dull. If emotional stress is unresolved, inflammation and tension appear in the face. TCM focuses on restoring balance from within so that beauty emerges naturally, rather than forcing results. Beauty is therefore not cosmetic in nature—it is a sign of vitality."

So, within the practice, the appearance of the skin is closely tied to body fluids and blood, which nourish the skin and remove toxins. Skin problems can result from either excess or deficiency. Hair, on the other hand, is dependent on the blood and kidneys being in harmony. As Professor Ke explains, if someone has "weak blood", they can experience hair loss, thinning, and even changes in colour and texture.

By this logic, acne may be linked to excessive internal “heat” (inflammation) and “dampness” (fluid retention), while pigmentation is associated with blood stagnation. Premature ageing is often attributed to “Yin deficiency”, a depletion of cooling, nourishing fluids, often exacerbated by chronic stress, and puffiness to poor fluid metabolism. Conditions such as eczema and rosacea signal deeper systemic imbalance. But instead of suppressing the symptoms, TCM strives to address the underlying imbalance, often through a combination of approaches.

It's then unsurprising that these practitioners work extensively with stress-related concerns like jaw tension, fatigue, skin sensitivity or immune-driven inflammation. "Many clients come in after trying multiple skincare products with little success, only to discover that their concerns are rooted in digestion, sleep disruption, emotional overload, hormonal imbalance, or mental burden developed from a younger age,” adds Ooi. “Once these internal systems are supported, the skin often improves as a secondary effect."

Plus, it’s all about timing. The West prioritises immediate, visible results, but TCM emphasises long-term resilience and steady, sustainable change. “Western skincare often pushes the skin with strong actives and intensive treatments,” Oliviera continues. “TCM is more about supporting the skin, strengthening the system and allowing it to regulate itself. In the East, skincare is rooted in daily consistency—SPF, gentle hydration, barrier support. The results are slower, but it’s not about short-term reward.”

And while terms like “science-backed” are replete in our cosmetics industry, Professor Ke emphasises that this doesn’t mean that TCM isn’t "evidence-backed": some of these cures have been performed effectively and safely for centuries.

So, what are they? Herbs form the cornerstone of treatment. At Herbar, Oliviera and her co-founder Rui Liu prioritise ingredients focused on regulation rather than attack. “Instead of stripping, exfoliating, blasting or correcting, it’s about harmonising: calming the system, strengthening the barrier and supporting recovery,” she says.

Among the ingredients rarely seen in Western formulations are Reishi—the “longevity mushroom”, prized for resilience and stressed skin—Jujube (Da Zao), which restores and supports that soft, healthy glow, and Tremella. “It may be viral on Instagram now, but it has been used in Chinese medicine for centuries for hydration and plumping,” she says. “It’s literally known as the beauty mushroom.”

It’s also about how the entire formula, or blend, works together. “It’s not always about one hero ingredient doing everything. There’s an entire school of thought in Chinese Medicine around how ingredients support, guide, harmonise, and balance each other, and that’s a huge part of what makes these TCM formulas so powerful and so intelligent."

TCM can also address cosmetic concerns directly, through two synergistic pathways, Ooi adds—these are systemic regulation and local stimulation. Firstly, you can target core meridians, including the liver, spleen and kidney, for systemic wellbeing. “Acupuncture regulates the nervous system, hormones, digestion, and fluid metabolism, all of which impact skin health. Many signs of ageing (dullness, puffiness, breakouts) are linked to stress, inflammation, or internal imbalances. Supporting the body’s internal systems helps resolve the root cause and restores natural radiance from within.”

You can use acupuncture akin to an injectable, too—it’s just been performed for centuries longer. Ooi adds: “Fine needles are applied directly to areas of concern, such as frown lines, sagging, or under-eye puffiness, to increase microcirculation, stimulate collagen production, release muscle tension, and enhance lymphatic drainage. This can improve tone, texture, and lift without invasive procedures.”

This is often a last resort, however. A holistic approach remains central, Dr Ke concludes: “Your body’s constitution underpins everything. Whether it’s too damp, dry, hot or cold, knowing your body type allows targeted interventions in diet, drinks, or lifestyle; we go from there.”