There Is a Vergence in the Cosmetics Aisle

When I tried to re-examine the connection between lamellar reorganization and witch hazel, I couldn't find the source that told me gallic acid was even present in the astringent. The Wikipedia entry hadn't been edited for a month, it said, but it kinda creeped me out, because I thought it had been listed there. I guess I could have found gallic acid from a different source, then gone back to Wikipedia...

But then I noticed another weird thing today. Looking at a book source, a specific "gallotannin," hamamelitannin, was mentioned as a major constituent of the distillate, along with the gallic acid by name. Named after the plant, but that didn't make the Wikipedia entry, either? That's weird. In German Wikipedia, it has an entry, so we can at least see what it is.
https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamamelitannin

And from that, it's pretty easy to imagine the time-delay effect of metabolism, as the gallates could break off after penetrating to the dermis, and the astringent property give way to toning. Coordinating most excellently with the cocoa butter's emollient property, theoretically giving way to moisturizing through metabolism to moisture-eliciting ester signals.

Is the chemical composition of witch hazel, USP being kept secret? What is the force driving this information underground? Could it be the hugely successful, Connecticut-based producers? The medical profession, having lost control over it to common pharmacies and dollar stores, as an OTC medication? Or, most insidious of all, agents of the aspiring cosmeceutical industry? (There are always two, if the Lucas model holds true.)

I missed my aftershave today, so after a shave with Noxzema, oil, and Arko, I mixed a little witch hazel with just-like Brut, and splashed atop alum. I can't say I'm thrilled with my skin texture, but it's definitely the natural me. I like the dry feel to the touch, the comfort, and the hair standing up nice for shaving, but there is still an ever-present temptation to apply moisturizer. Luckily for me, Master Jojoba arrived in the mail today!