Beef Tallow Skin Care Is a Hard Pass For Dermatologists
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Beef tallow is getting attention, but not from chefs or recipe developers. The rendered form of cow fat typically used in cooking has captured the interest of skin-care lovers—some of whom claim it's a natural emollient with impressive acne-fighting, hydrating, and glow-boosting benefits. Has the ingredient made its way into your group chat? Here at Allure, ours has been booming about it—and we have a lot of questions.
In search of answers, we spoke to board-certified dermatologists to investigate the fascination with beef tallow in skin care. Ahead, you’ll find info about its benefits, its risks, and whether or not tallow skin care smells as meaty as the internet suspects it might.
Meet the experts:
Robyn Gymrek, MD, is a board-certified dermatologist at UnionDerm based in New York City.
Ava Shamban, MD, is a board-certified dermatologist based in Santa Monica.
Maya Thosani, MD, is a double board-certified dermatologist based in Scottsdale.
Heather Woolery-Lloyd, MD, is a board-certified dermatologist based in Miami, Florida.
In this story:
What is beef tallow?
Tallow is the rendered form of suet, a type of fat that comes from cows and sheep. In its solid form, beef tallow is waxy white or slightly yellow and has a similar texture to shortening or whipped butter. It’s what McDonald’s used to fry its French fries in before swapping to vegetable oil in the ‘90s.
“The rendering process involves slowly heating the tallow to separate the pure fat from any impurities,” says Robyn Gymrek, MD, a board-certified dermatologist. “Once rendered, tallow solidifies at room temperature, creating a creamy substance that has been traditionally used in soaps, candles, and skin care.”
Over on TikTok and Instagram, people are using beef tallow as a facial moisturizer. But if you head to Target and browse the skin-care aisle, you likely won’t see it listed on the ingredients label of a moisturizer (yet, anyway). While beef tallow has non-food uses, it’s not an ingredient widely utilized in today’s conventional skin-care products.
Some people using beef tallow in their skin-care routines claim they get their supply directly from their local butcher shop, while others buy the pre-jarred renderings meant for cooking. Most of the beef tallow-infused skin-care products that you can find featured in TikTok videos appear to come from indie brands and consist of thick balms or moisturizers, sometimes formulated with other natural ingredients like honey, beeswax, and olive oil.
Should you use beef tallow on your skin?
Some do-it-yourself ingredient trends have a way of making you wonder (for a split second, anyway) if you’ve been wasting hundreds of dollars on conventional skin care for your entire life. But in regards to adding beef tallow to your skin-care line-up, experts recommend you use other moisturizing alternatives.
“There is still little clinical or scientific evidence that beef tallow is actually beneficial for use on skin or in skin care,” says Ava Shamban, MD. “There are countless products formulated for various skin types and conditions—all manufactured in high volume for standardization—[that] are studied and proven as better options than tallow.”
Dr. Gymrek echoes this point, noting she sees no “outstanding advantage applying tallow to the skin over commonly-used plant-based alternatives that provide similar benefits.” She prefers other plant-based alternatives (but more on that later).
So what about all of those beef tallow enthusiasts who swear it’s been their best moisturizer discovery yet? Heather Woolery-Lloyd, MD, a board-certified dermatologist, says that if someone is using beef tallow and is thrilled with the results, she has no problem with them continuing to use it, though she doesn’t actively recommend it to patients. “As a dermatologist, it wouldn’t be my first choice for someone with eczema or severely dry skin,” she says. “I think there are other options that are better tolerated,”
Can beef tallow help with acne breakouts?
Many of the beef tallow skin-care videos on social media revolve around the claim that beef tallow can help clear up acne breakouts, but all of the experts Allure spoke with warned against using it on acne-prone or oily skin. “It seems like bull,” says Dr. Shamban. “It’s not a replacement or functional alternative to a treatment ingredient.”
“Tallow is highly comedogenic and pore-clogging, so it will likely cause acne despite claims that it won't,” says Maya Thosani, MD, a double board-certified dermatologist. Dr. Shamban agrees, adding that on a comedogenicity scale from one to five, beef tallow is considered to be a two or a three, meaning up to 50 percent of people will experience contributing acnegenic conditions from it. “Acne is a multifactorial condition and the specific or actual origin of any one breakout may not be known,” she says. “That said, anyone who has been to medical school and studied the biology of our skin and skin diseases and conditions like acne would never agree that tallow is an effective treatment for acne.”
Dr. Shamban mentions using beef tallow after acne has already healed could potentially help with soothing the skin or calming redness thanks to its emollient properties. She emphasizes that this is a post-breakout treatment, though, and that it’s not accurate to say beef tallow is acne-fighting.
Like any ingredient derived from animals, beef tallow brings up ethical concerns surrounding animal welfare and the environmental impact of sourcing and processing it. According to Dr. Thosani, the ethics behind beef tallow is a complex issue. While waste may be reduced by using a by-product of the meat industry, she says the ethical concerns of cattle farming practices, the treatment and wellbeing of animals, and the environmental impact of beef production must also be considered.
What are the risks of using beef tallow for skin care?
As mentioned above, there is little research that exists on the use of beef tallow on human skin. Its use in skin care is not currently FDA-approved, and adding a skin-care ingredient to your routine that lacks standardization in sourcing and recommended use opens the door to potential health and safety issues.
“I would be concerned about the health conditions of the cows and the potential contamination from any number of diseases cows are known to carry, including the bovine spongiform encephalopathy, a.k.a. mad cow disease,” Dr. Shamban adds.
The use of beef tallow on skin could also result in adverse side effects like sensitivity or allergic reactions. Dr. Thosani says that there are conflicting studies documenting the ingredient’s role in contributing to skin and eye irritation, so further research is needed.
Heather Woolery-Lloyd, MD, a board-certified dermatologist, highlighted that some studies suggest that beef tallow could cause irritation and increase sun sensitivity. “Depending on how [the beef tallow] was formulated in the studies, it was sensitizing,” she says. “As with any ingredient, formulation matters so it doesn’t mean that all formulas of beef tallow are sensitizing.”
Another less serious yet rather unpleasant downside of beef tallow? It’s known for having a, well, meaty smell. Dr. Woolery-Lloyd says the scent of beef tallow is a major con of the ingredient. While she doesn’t personally use beef tallow, she told Allure that friends of hers who have tried “plain” beef tallow have reported an unpleasant smell, too. “You have to love your moisturizer if you are going to use it regularly, so if the smell is unpleasant, then some people may be less likely to use it,” she says.
Not all beef tallow products have an unappealing smell though. “Some products may have beef tallow as an ingredient, but could have added masking fragrances to minimize the scent,” Dr. Woolery-Lloyd explains.
But masking the smell with other ingredients, like essential oils or fragrances, may present another set of skin concerns. Essential oils can be irritating for those who have sensitivities to the ingredient and those who have sensitive or eczema-prone skin, says Dr. Woolery-Lloyd.
What are some alternatives to beef tallow?
Until there is conclusive clinical testing, safety regulations, and standardization, dermatologists recommend avoiding it. “I appreciate the effort to use more naturally sourced ingredients, but given the lack of regulated sourcing, processing, and stability of the tallow, as well as the comedogenic properties of using tallow, I would recommend other methods of hydration,” Dr. Thosani says.
If you’re looking for a plant-based ingredient with similar benefits, Dr. Gymrek has suggestions: Shea butter is rich in fatty acids and vitamins and deeply moisturizes skin. Mango butter, which is lighter-weight, has a smooth texture that blends well in skin-care formulations. Coconut oil offers deep hydration and antimicrobial properties (but be warned, it can be pore-clogging to acne-prone skin types).
Whether you’re on the hunt for a product to clear acne or soothe dryness, your best bet is calling up a dermatologist instead of heading to your local butcher.
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Originally Appeared on Allure
