Arbutin is an active ingredient extracted from a rhododendron plant, that is, bearberry leaves. Its main function is to inhibit pigment and whiten the skin. The specific mechanism is that it can bind to the tyrosinase of melanocytes in the skin and inhibit the activity of tyrosinase. Tyrosinase is a key enzyme in the synthesis of melanin by skin melanocytes. If the function is inhibited, melanin cannot be produced. The reduction of melanin in the skin has the effect of whitening and lightening, so arbutin is mainly used in skin beauty and lightening.

Arbutin also has other effects, such as antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects, and can be used in urinary tract infections. In addition, there are antitussive, antiasthmatic, expectorant effects, and sometimes combined with other traditional Chinese medicines such as Campanulaceae, can treat cough, phlegm, asthma and other respiratory diseases. Therefore, arbutin has many functions and effects, but the most widely used role in medicine is to whiten and lighten spots. For example, arbutin is widely added in many cosmetics.

Arbutin can quickly penetrate into the skin of the human body, and prevent the synthesis of melanin in the human body by inhibiting the activity of tyrosinase in the human body, thereby reducing the deposition of pigment in the human body, and does not have harmful effects on normal human melanocytes such as toxicity. It can achieve the effect of freckle. At the same time, it also has the effect of bactericidal and anti-inflammatory, and is mostly used as an intestinal anti-inflammatory drug in clinical practice. In addition, arbutin also has the effect of brightening the skin, and is widely used in cosmetics, such as freckle cream, skin cream, etc.