Bakuchi and Bakuchiol During Pregnancy: What Precautions?

During pregnancy, caution applies differently depending on whether you are dealing with isolated cosmetic bakuchiol, used in a serum or cream, or with the whole seed of bakuchi in traditional, internal or external use. Neither form has solid pregnancy-specific safety data, but the documented level of risk is not remotely the same.

This guide goes product by product, to avoid treating the serum on the dresser and the seed in the spice cabinet with the same severity — or the same leniency.

Cosmetic bakuchiol: caution by default, as with retinol

Isolated cosmetic bakuchiol is often presented as a "gentle" alternative to retinol, which is classically discouraged during pregnancy out of an abundance of caution. The problem is that pregnancy safety data are just as lacking for bakuchiol: the reference clinical trial by Dhaliwal and colleagues (2019, British Journal of Dermatology), already cited in our base article on bakuchi, did not include pregnant women and therefore allows no conclusion for this population (see the study on Google Scholar). In the absence of reassuring data, the most cautious position is to suspend bakuchiol use during pregnancy, on the same precautionary principle applied to retinol, rather than assume a safety that has simply never been studied.

Bakuchi seed: to be avoided during pregnancy

The situation is more clear-cut for the whole bakuchi seed, in external or internal use. A case review published in 2019 in BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies by Li and colleagues, already cited in our article bakuchi: dangers, documents cases of liver toxicity associated with internal use of preparations based on Fructus Psoraleae (see the study on Google Scholar) — a liver risk there is no reason to take during pregnancy, a period when liver function is already handling different demands. In external use, the risk of severe photosensitization documented by Mehta and colleagues (2024, Contact Dermatitis) also remains valid, with no particular pregnancy-specific feature but no reason to take that risk either at this time.

Product	Position during pregnancy	Why
Serum or cream with cosmetic bakuchiol	Suspend as a precaution	No pregnancy-specific safety data; same precautionary logic as for retinol
Bakuchi seed oil or powder, external use	Avoid	Documented photosensitization risk, no pregnancy-specific feature but no benefit to taking the risk
Bakuchi seed or tablet, internal use	Formally ruled out	Liver toxicity documented in the literature, never to be taken without medical supervision, all the more so during pregnancy

What about breastfeeding?

The same reservations apply during breastfeeding, since there is no published data on whether bakuchiol or the compounds in bakuchi seed pass into breast milk. As a precaution, it is best to suspend the bakuchiol serum and rule out the seed entirely, as during pregnancy, until breastfeeding ends.

What alternatives during pregnancy?

For facial skin care during pregnancy, simple routines built on gentle oils and actives better documented for this context remain preferable to renewing actives such as retinol or bakuchiol. For broader skin concerns during pregnancy (stretch marks, dryness), our Ayurveda and pregnancy guide details the options traditionally considered safer at this time.

Precautions

Suspend cosmetic bakuchiol use as soon as a pregnancy is known or planned, as with retinol, given the lack of reassuring data. Never use bakuchi seed, internally or externally, during pregnancy or breastfeeding, given the documented liver and photosensitization risks in the medical literature. If in doubt about a product already in use before pregnancy, ask your midwife or doctor for advice. For the site's full set of safety guidance, see our safety and precautions guide.