For thousands of years, humans have relied on animal-based ingredients for skincare, healing, and overall health. Long before the rise of synthetic beauty products and pharmaceutical drugs, civilizations across the world turned to tallow, bone broth, colostrum, and other animal-derived substances to nourish the skin, protect against the elements, and support healing.
But as modern industrialization took over, natural, ancestral remedies were replaced by lab-made chemicals—many of which are now linked to hormone disruption, inflammation, and toxicity.
Now, as people rediscover ancestral health, we’re finally asking: Why did we abandon what worked for thousands of years? And more importantly—why should we bring it back?
Ancient Civilizations & Animal-Based Healing
From Ancient Egypt to medieval Europe, nearly every major civilization used animal-based compounds for skin protection, anti-aging, and medicine. These weren’t just folk remedies—they were scientifically effective solutions before we even had the words to explain why.
🐄 Tallow: The Original Skincare Superfood
- Used in Ancient Rome, Greece, and China as a deeply nourishing balm for dry skin, wounds, and aging.
- Nearly identical to human skin lipids, allowing deep penetration and long-lasting hydration.
- Rich in Vitamins A, D, E, and K2, which are essential for collagen production and skin repair.
🐄 Colostrum & Dairy-Based Skincare
- Ancient Egyptians and Greeks bathed in milk for its exfoliating and hydrating properties.
- Colostrum, the first milk from mammals after birth, was used to boost immunity and heal skin damage.
🐄 Bone Broth & Animal Fats in Healing
- Traditional Chinese Medicine used bone broth for gut health and skin elasticity.
- European healers applied bone marrow-based salves to speed up wound healing and scar reduction.
- Even medieval monks used rendered animal fats as protective balms against harsh climates.
For centuries, animal-derived skincare wasn’t just an option—it was the gold standard.
The Industrial Shift: Why Did We Stop Using Animal-Based Products?
So, if tallow, bone broth, and colostrum worked for thousands of years, why did we replace them with synthetic lotions, petroleum-based creams, and chemical-laden cosmetics?
The answer lies in profit, mass production, and misinformation.
- Mass Production & Cost Cutting → Large beauty brands switched to cheaper, lab-made alternatives like petroleum derivatives and synthetic emulsifiers because they were easier to scale and had longer shelf lives.
- The Anti-Fat Propaganda → Just as natural animal fats were demonized in food, they were also replaced in skincare by plant-based and synthetic oils—even though many of these don’t work as well for the skin.
- Marketing & Greenwashing → Consumers were told that lab-made was "more advanced", leading to the rise of "clean beauty" that still contains toxic preservatives and fillers.
The result? Today’s skincare industry is flooded with chemical-laden creams that strip the skin barrier, cause inflammation, and do more harm than good.
Why We Need to Return to Ancestral Skincare
The good news? People are waking up.
As more research emerges on ancestral diets, regenerative farming, and holistic wellness, we’re seeing a major return to animal-based products—not just in nutrition, but in skincare and health.
Why Animal-Based Skincare Works Better Than Synthetic Creams
✅ Tallow is biologically compatible with human skin, meaning it absorbs effortlessly without clogging pores.
✅ Grass-fed animal fats are rich in fat-soluble vitamins that are essential for skin elasticity and cell repair.
✅ Unlike plant oils, tallow naturally mimics sebum, providing long-lasting hydration and protection.
✅ No fillers, no parabens, no toxins—just pure, skin-loving nutrients.
This is why at Bone & Balm, we’ve returned to what worked for centuries—real, animal-based skincare without the chemicals, without the nonsense.
The Future of Skincare: Looking Back to Move Forward
For thousands of years, humans knew what worked. They didn’t need fancy marketing, lab-engineered ingredients, or endless shelves of synthetic creams. They used what nature provided—and their skin thrived.
It’s time to go back to ancestral wisdom.