Uguisu no Fun’s main effect – that being bleaching and exfoliating the skin – is a result of Guanine, a naturally occurring enzyme found in nightingale droppings. Kabuki actors and high-ranking geisha girls have always prized it as the best way to remove their heavy makeup while leaving their high-priced skin smooth and supple.
The link with photos is here and for the pointer I thank Scott Rogers.
Guanine is not an enzyme…
I looked up the product out of curiosity and found this on potential reasons why it works (although the actual mechanism is not completely known): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uguisu_no_fun#Mechanism_of_facial
Note that the Wikipedia article has no Japanese version. Not sure what to make of that, though it does seem to be a real product.
I assumed that this would be written as うぐいすの糞 (nightingale excrement), but it’s actually written as うぐいすの粉 (pronounced the same, but means nightingale powder). I guess this tested better with focus groups.
Ahhh, kanji puns, always so fun to sort out.
Interesting. Guanine is a component of DNA.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guanine
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