Social media seems to churn out a never-ending stream of beauty hacks, from shaving facial peach fuzz to buccal fat removal.

The latest trend seems to be more organic; eating raw garlic cloves to cure hormonal acne.

Although TikTok is flooded with videos of users happily chomping down daily – or swallowing cloves whole to avoid bad breath – experts have warned there’s no scientific evidence to back the method.

Sinclair Dermatology director Rodney Sinclair told The New Daily there was “zero scientific merit in attempting to treat acne with raw garlic”.

@mymagichealer Garlic and honey combo 🍯🧄 for all of the cystic acne, sore throat, sinus infections, boils, UTIs, bacterial vag, & more. Of course for full healing you need to do more but this is definitely powerful to have in your routine #mymagichealer #staph #strep #boils #infections ♬ original sound – Makenzie Rencher

Skin and dermal therapist Isabella Loneragan said although garlic had “myriad” health benefits, there was “little evidence pointing to any scientific truth to this latest TikTok-spurred hack”.

She also said applying raw garlic to your skin might cause irritation.

“There are studies suggesting that garlic contains potent anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties,” Loneragan said.

“In theory, these studies could reasonably lead one to conclude that eating garlic may help acne – given that acne is an inflammatory skin condition that can have a bacterial cause – but there simply is not enough scientific backing of this claim.

“Treating acne with garlic is not a new notion to skin experts. There have been many studies, but the reality is that none have proven garlic to be an effective treatment and it’s simply not recommended by experts.”

TikTokers admit to acne ‘cure’ caveats

Even some of TikTok’s raw garlic enthusiasts admitted they haven’t left the fate of their skin entirely to the fragrant plant.

“It’s working, but like at the same time, I would not give garlic all the credit,” TikToker @gracemayugc said.

@gracemayugc Replying to @k_muslima the results are crazy 😳🫣 #fyp #viral #relatable #acne #garlic #hormonalacne #clearskin #acnetreatment ♬ original sound – Grace🫧

“Because … I have hormonal acne, so it cannot be fixed by just one thing. If [I] just eat garlic every day, and then I have a bad sleep, bad stress management, or like bad diet, it’s not gonna help.

“So I have to improve on the rest too for this to work … I’ve been trying out new skincare, and [the improvement] might also be because of that.”

Fellow TikTok user @misspeytonsmith agreed consuming raw garlic was just one part of the bigger picture when trying to cure acne; she said anyone trying the method should follow-up by eating gut-healthy foods and cutting out excess sugar.

How to treat acne

Loneragan said if you have acne, it’s not worth risking an adverse reaction by trying an unproven quick-fix doing the rounds on social media.

“There are a number of other clinically proven treatments for acne, with the best treatment dependant on the type and severity of acne,” she said.

“Mild acne can often be treated with an over-the-counter product that contains ingredients like benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid.

“However, it’s best to see a professional for more severe acne which may require a prescription, light therapy, cortisone shots or other form of treatment.”