The beauty industry loves drama. Every few years, a skincare ingredient bursts onto the scene like it just invented hydration. Beauty editors proclaim it “the next retinol.” TikTok discovers it approximately twelve years after dermatologists did. Everyone loses their minds for six months before collectively moving on to the next shiny bottle. Meanwhile, gluconolactone has been sitting quietly in the corner doing excellent work without demanding applause. It is the coworker who never misses a deadline. The middle child of exfoliating acids. The person at the party who doesn’t tell anyone they’re a doctor until someone starts choking. If glycolic