Travel to Chile to discover Antü’s Origin Story
Take a journey with us to Chile to discover the truly remarkable healing power of Patagonian plants, marvel at the wisdom of the Mapuche people, and learn more about the plant origins behind The Antü Collection.
As devotees of The Antü Collection love and appreciate, our entire line helps skin bounce back from exposome (the measure of all exposure to UV rays, oxidative stress, and pollution) to fight the effects of inflammaging and soothe irritated skin.
Developed to restore and protect the skin barrier—our potent AntüComplex™ formulation stems from three Patagonian plants with a rich healing history respected by Chileans and the Mapuche (indigenous inhabitants of present-day south-central Chile, including parts of present-day Patagonia). Recognized as the largest ethnic group in Chile, The Mapuche people have such profound respect for the planet (Mapuche means “man of the earth”) that they dedicate themselves to understanding and caring for nature and the healing power of plants.
Ancient Mapuche Tribal Knowledge
The study of plants and herbs and their healing properties strongly characterizes ancestral Mapuche therapeutic medicine—which combines plant knowledge passed down from generations via beautiful rituals to address the condition at the root, not just treat symptoms. The Mapuche people have long recognized the benefit of three miraculous plants known as Maqui, Matico, and Murtilla. They use these plants individually and together to treat allergies, heal wounds, treat headaches, muscle aches, arthritis, scars, fractures, sprains, bronchitis, and many other ailments.
The Birth of The AntüComplex™
Discovering the skin-saving capability of these indigenous plants, we combined them with modern biotechnology to develop our state-of-the-art AntüComplex™ formulation to reduce redness and skin barrier damage, especially from sun exposure and pollution. Packed with the power of bio-actives from these three medicinal plants from the San Fernando Mountain range, each plant uniquely soothes irritation and addresses inflammation in distinct yet synergistic ways.
Here’s how: The Maqui, Matico, and Murtilla work together to soothe irritation and allow sensitized skin to recover from inflammaging. Focused on reducing reactive oxidative stress (ROS) in both the stratum corneum and epidermis—our Antü products help restore the skin barrier to lock in moisture and reduce flakiness for added luminosity, and calm the skin so that it can re-densify or rebuild collagen for a smoother, more youthful radiance—while supporting the microbiome.
The Power of Plants
Chile, the southernmost country in the world, is home to a vast array of interesting plants with rich history and legendary medicinal power with the capacity to cure. Below we’ll discuss the “three sacred trees” of the Mapuche, recognized as a symbol of peace, benevolent intention, and widely used in ethnic herbal medicine.
The Plant: Matico
Matico contains powerful antioxidants such as flavonoids which help soothe irritated skin. Its naming origin is quite fascinating as well! Matico was the name of a Spanish soldier who received quite a deep cut in battle, but had his very fatal wound treated with Buddleja globosa (Matico’s scientific name) and managed to survive as the result of the plant; thus originating the name of the plant.
As a result, the bio-actives of Matico are well-regarded for use in wound healing, the treatment of ulcers, and pain. It also has compounds to help reduce erythema or redness of the skin produced by irritants or environmental aggressions and delivers a calming effect due to anti-inflammatory properties.
The Plant: Maqui
Maqui is an interesting large plant known widely in ethnomedicine to treat sore throats, burns, and heal wounds. Aristotelia chilensis (as it is recognized in the scientific world) is traditionally used to treat inflammation and contains polyphenols with high anthocyanin content. It can help boost sun protection by inhibiting UVB-induced cell damage. It is so powerful that together with the help of Matico and Murtilla, it is known to regenerate Chile’s native forest and repair the earth.
In addition, Maqui also contains quercetin, which provides antioxidant protection against free radicals. It also contains phenolic acids such as caffeic acid, ferulic acid, and coumaric acid, which together with the rich antioxidant phyto-complex play many important roles in the skin, including reducing damage to cellular DNA.
The Plant Murtilla
Murtilla is traditionally used to treat inflammatory conditions, containing polyphenols such as flavonols, and is a powerful source of antioxidants. It has many particularities and is one of the few plants that besides having a high compound of phenolic and flavonoids it also has an antibacterial compound known as saponin. Murta contains triterpenes with a pentacyclic structure which have significant topical analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity.
Extracts prepared with Murtilla leaves, that contain triterpenes and flavonoids, present a significant healing activity. It also an inhibitor of the inflammatory phase of hypertrophic scars and keloids.
All three of these powerfully reparative plants complement one another and are so effective when used together that they even give life to the earth after volcanic eruptions and fires.
We hope you enjoyed reading about the miraculous plants that help make up our patent-pending AntüComplexTM. As always, we remain not only dedicated to protecting, restoring, and strengthening your skin barrier but also educating you on the power of plants and our processes.
