The Importance of Clean Beauty

Written By Liz Patel

We see ‘Clean Beauty’ and ‘Ethical Beauty’ making its way through the world of skincare these days and for good reason too. People are more aware now of what goes into the ingredients of their skincare and makeup which is why the demand for cleaner and more eco-friendly products on the rise. 

Ingredients

  • Fragrance:  This is a catch all for proprietary ingredients that can run the gamut. They frequently contain phthalates, and phthalates are know carcinogens.  There are even loop holes that allow companies to use the word “unscented” to make it harder for their competition to copy scents.  Natural or not, you should stay away from any products with “fragrance” in the ingredients.
  • Comedogenic ingredients: These are refer to ingredients that can be pore-clogging, and you should definitely steered clear of them. There are nearly hundred and twenty comedogenic ingredients. Here is a list for you. LIST
  • Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) and Ammonium Laurel Sulfate(ALS): SLES and ALS makes your products lather up. Its molecular structure is built to suck up oil and water like a vacuum.  As a result, it will strip away the much-needed moisture in hair and skin. It will cause your skin and hair to become dry.
  • DMDM Hydantoin: This is a formaldehyde-releasing agent which can cause irritation and allergies.
  • Heavy metals: (lead arsenic, and mercury) These seem to find their way into cosmetics and some beauty products.  Heavy metals are dangerous. They are carcinogens.  Heavy metals cannot be processed out of the body. So, they accumulate. They can cause problems in different body systems.  
  • Siloxanes a.k.a Silicons: These add the ‘slip’ in your products, allowing them to glide nicely over your skin. Despite the nice feeling, they are considered toxic. They are linked to endocrine disruption. Avoid them as much as possible. Plus it isn’t too good for the environment either.
  • Preservatives: Methylchloroisothiazolinone (MCI), methylisothiazolinone (MI): These combined in higher concentrations are proven to be extremely irritating. They can potentially cause chemical burns. Despite parabens having a bad reputation, they’re actually safer to use than both of these. 
  • Talc: A very common component of baby powder, body care, and makeup. With highly carcinogenic effects, toxicity, and irritation, you should refrain from products containing it for your own good!

We’ve talked about ingredients, let's move on and discuss some of the other elements that also fall under clean beauty.  

Plastics

  • Packaging. Plastic packaging is everywhere. It is incredibly hard to avoid it. We put it in our recycling. Yet, it rarely ends up being recycled. There are many reason why.
  • Microplastics accumulating in our oceans and our landfills overflowing with non-biodegradable waste

It is imperative that we move towards zero-waste or fully recyclable packaging. Whether we switch to refillable jars, paper packaging, or metal pots, we must must take steps to reduce our impact on our planet. 

Animal Testing

  • Animal testing and Animal derived ingredients. This is an age-old practice to put it simply and is a big NO-NO in anyone’s book. Many cruelty-free brands have popped up (drugstore and high-end ones) that you can opt for to avoid such products.  There are a few ingredients that are still “on-the-fence” as to whether they are considered animal products.  One of them is beeswax and honey.  While considered vegetarian, some argue that it is not vegan.  We use beeswax in our products from a bee farm in North Dakota.  You can decide whether it’s a no-no for you.

Let’s all do our best, and use our money to help move the market to after beauty practices, and keep in mind all ethical beauty practices when purchasing your next beauty product!

As always, thanks for visiting and reading!

References:

Liz Patel
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