Great Post Worth Reading from Future Derm February 16, 2012

Though I highlight great posts from other blogs in my blog I can’t remember the last time I devoted an entire post in this blog to a post from another beauty blog.  I just finished reading the following post from Future Derm, one of my favorite beauty blogs, entitled: How Do You Estimate the Amount of an Ingredient in a Skin Care or Beauty Product? and realized the post was just too good not to share with my readers.

I’ve already blogged about how to read a skincare label, but this post takes the subject a whole step further by actually explaining how to you may be able to figure out the percentages of ingredients in skincare products from the ingredient list and has in-depth information about ins and outs of reading a skincare label including what “active ingredients” means on a product label.  The post also explains how companies are able to misrepresent the percentage of ingredients in their products for their own benefit.

An informed consumer is the best consumer so taking a few minutes to read this post will truly help you expand your skincare product knowledge.  You’ll feel better prepared the next time you are faced with making a skincare product decision.

And for further information on the same subject see the following post from The Beauty Brains:  How Can I Tell the Percentage of Ingredients in Cosmetics?

My Related Posts:

• Decoding Skincare Ingredients – What They Really Mean
• Truth in Beauty Advertising – There Isn’t Much Out There
• How to Read a Skincare Product Label
• Buyer Beware: Skincare Claims to Look Out For

Image from sodahead.com

Taking on the EWG and Their Attempts to Scare October 31, 2011

On October 19th The Beauty Brains (one of my favorite beauty related blogs) published a great post about how the EWG scares consumers needlessly over the safety of sunscreens and cosmetics.  Numerous times I’ve written in my blog about how I think the EWG’s sunscreen report does more harm than good in the end and that their fear mongering could potentially lead many people to stop using sunscreen thus contributing to the national epidemic of (truly preventable) skin cancer.  (The EWG also enjoys widespread media coverage in the popular press every time they come out with a new and ridiculous sunscreen report.)

Luckily, it turns out that I am not alone in my feelings about the EWG, and someone is actually doing something about this issue.  The main group taking on the EWG is called the Competitive Enterprise Institute a group who calls themselves:

a non-profit public policy organization dedicated to advancing the principles of limited government, free enterprise, and individual liberty. Our mission is to promote both freedom and fairness by making good policy good politics. We make the uncompromising case for economic freedom because we believe it is essential for entrepreneurship, innovation, and prosperity to flourish.

In an article from October 18th, 2011, on CEI’s website, called The True Story of Cosmetics Dana Joel Gattuso writes the following about the EWG:

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and its partner, the Environmental Working Group (EWG), are on a crusade to scare consumers away from using cosmetics and hygiene products that contain preservatives and other useful chemicals. As part of their effort to ban the use of synthetic ingredients from skin products, these environmental extremist groups are working to incite fear among consumers, making outrageous and bogus claims that we are poisoning ourselves by using lipstick, makeup, deodorants, skin creams, and even baby products. Specifically, they claim that the additives can cause cancer, create neurological disorders, or cause hormone disruption—even though they are present in trace amounts.

In fact, these preservatives protect users from bacteria. Present in quantities so small—typically, less than 1 percent of a product’s total weight—they are added to prevent contamination and to protect consumers from the buildup of dangerous bacteria that can cause eye infections, skin rashes, and even deadly infections such as E. coli and Salmonella.

Parabens, for example, are added to makeup, deodorants, moisturizers, and body creams to prevent bacteria, fungi, and mold. According to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, parabens are linked to breast cancer and can cause hormone dysfunction. Yet scientists have refuted the claims, arguing that concentrations of parabens in cosmetics are too small to have an adverse effect, and are at levels in our body thousands to millions of times lower than naturally produced estrogens.

Another example is the chemical oxybenzone, used in sunscreens to protect users from the ultraviolet rays that can cause skin cancer. The Environmental Working Group warns consumers to stay away from oxybenzone because it “contaminates the body” and can cause hormone disruption and cell damage. Yet cancer research organizations such as the Skin Cancer Foundation refute EWG’s assertions, arguing that there is no evidence to back the claims of oxybenzone risks. These cancer foundations worry that such fear mongering will scare consumers away from using sun block products that protect consumers from the risks of skin cancer from the sun’s rays.

I was happy to read what CEI wrote about the EWG, their tactics, and shoddy research, but then I found out a bit more about the CEI and was pretty upset.  It turns out the CEI is supported by and partners with very conservative groups (like Philip Morris) and furthermore (and this really upset me), according to the website Sourcewatch, they deny certain scientific facts like how greenhouse gases are causing climate problems:

 CEI is an outspoken anthropogenic (human-caused) climate change skeptic and an opponent of government action that would require limits on greenhouse gas emissions. It favors free-market environmentalism, claiming that market institutions are more effective in protecting the environment than is government In March 1992, CEI’s founder Fred Smith said of anthropogenic climate change: “Most of the indications right now are it looks pretty good. Warmer winters, warmer nights, no effects during the day because of clouding, sounds to me like we’re moving to a more benign planet, more rain, richer, easier productivity to agriculture.” [19]

In May 2006, CEI’s global warming policy activities attracted attention as it embarked upon an ad campaign with two television commercials. These ads promote carbon dioxide as a positive factor in the environment and argue that global warming is not a concern. One ad focuses on the message that CO2 is misrepresented as a pollutant, stating that “it’s essential to life. We breathe it out. Plants breathe it in… They call it pollution. We call it life.”^[17] The other states that the world’s glaciers are “growing, not melting… getting thicker, not thinner.”^[17] The other states that the world’s glaciers are “growing, not melting… getting thicker, not thinner.” It cites Science articles to support its claims. However, the editor for Science stated that the ad “misrepresents the conclusions of the two cited Science papers… by selective referencing”. The author of the articles, Curt Davis, director of the Center for Geospatial Intelligence at the University of Missouri-Columbia, said CEI was misrepresenting his previous research to inflate their claims. “These television ads are a deliberate effort to confuse and mislead the public about the global warming debate,” Davis said.  (From Sourcewatch)

Luckily it turns out that there is a way to support better oversight for the cosmetic industry without needlessly scaring consumers or compromising on your morals.  You can support the Safe Cosmetic Alliance which is:

comprised of leading beauty and personal care product and services industry trade organizations representing manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, retail owners, salon/spa owners, and licensed beauty professionals who support science-based legislative and regulatory policies that enhance consumer and product safety standards.

Together, Alliance members account for nearly 8.2 million U.S. jobs and contribute nearly $189 billion in U.S. GDP every year. The beauty and personal care industry is one of the fastest growing employment segments globally.

Members of the Safe Cosmetics Alliance touch people’s lives every day and reach virtually all Americans who use cosmetic and personal care products, as well as beauty salon services. We represent every aspect of the beauty and personal care industry, including:

• Your local salon and spa owners, employees and licensed beauty professionals
• Retail employees that sell cosmetics at your favorite store
• Independent business owners and direct sales representative agents who sell directly to consumers
• Companies ranging from small startups to global corporations

We believe it is critically important that laws and regulations reflect the current advances in science and technology, enable industry to innovate, meet consumer expectations, and continue to earn their confidence.

The Safe Cosmetic Alliance has created a petition that asks the FDA to update their oversight over the cosmetic industry.  According to the Safe Cosmetic Alliance website:

While the personal care product and services industry has exhibited an impeccable safety record going beyond the current requirements for safety, it is essential the law keeps pace with advances in science and technology. We must provide new tools for the FDA that modernize and strengthen oversight of personal care products, increase transparency, and enhance existing consumer safety measures.

We can keep our favorite cosmetics and personal care products at the highest level of safety by giving the FDA new tools that improve and strengthen their oversight of personal care products. That is why we must urge lawmakers to support science-based legislation that includes:

• New FDA review of the Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) Expert Panel findings.  CIR is a non-profit, independent panel of scientists and physicians who currently review ingredients used in cosmetics and personal care products in the U.S.

• New FDA process to review cosmetic ingredients, allowing the FDA to review and set safety levels for trace contaminants used in cosmetic and personal care products.

• Registration with the FDA by manufacturers of personal care products. This would make the current voluntary reporting program mandatory for all cosmetic manufacturers and would include the registration and reporting of facilities, product ingredients, and unexpected adverse events that may occur.

• Requiring the FDA to issue good manufacturing practices for personal care products.

You can sign the Safe Cosmetics Alliances petition here.

Bottom Line:  While I am glad to see that someone is taking on the EWG and refuting their claims I am saddened that the rest of CEI’s politics make me uncomfortable (why can’t people stop fighting the idea of global warming and start doing more about it?  If you don’t believe global warming is a real threat take a few hours out of your day to watch An Inconvenient Truth).  As such I was glad to hear about the Safe Cosmetics Alliance’s work and petition.  Better oversight from the FDA for cosmetic and beauty products will help all consumers, and I hope these efforts will succeed.  (And thanks to The Beauty Brains for doing a great job at keeping their readers updated on all these developments)

Book Review: Staging Your Comeback: A Complete Beauty Revival for Women Over 45 August 18, 2011

Staging Your Comeback:  A Complete Beauty Revival for Women Over 45 by Christopher Hopkins is not a book about skincare so you might wonder why I wanted to review it for my blog.  I wanted to review this book and own this book since I found that it was a great guide for helping women look and feel their best as they age.  I especially wanted to own the book for the chapter about make-up application since the majority of my clients at my job are over 45.  Applying make-up to someone over the age of 45 is a completely different ballgame than applying make-up to someone in their 20s.  Chapter 6:Make-up as Art and Spirit has proved invaluable to me for my job.

Clearly this book is meant for women of a certain age, but I did find that a lot of the tips would suit women of all ages – finding a flattering hair style, figuring out which clothes best suit your figure, and creating a make-up routine that enhances your appearance.  Though Hopkins has a specific segment of the population in mind when writing this book his tips can be used by everyone.  Hopkins really wrote this book for women who seem to have “given up” as they have aged.  So many of the make-over stories in the book focus on women who once took pride in their appearance and now invest little to no time in how they look.  This is not a book about being vain or superficial; this is a book that helps you match how you feel on the inside with how you look on the outside.  Furthermore, Hopkins repeatedly explains how devising and then maintaining a flattering hairstyle, wardrobe, and make-up look can boost your self-esteem and help the rest of the world see the real you thus helping you feel both more confident and happier.

I thought Hopkins clearly explained some of the key reasons why everyone should put some thought and care into their appearance:

I grew up in the rural Midwest, where belief systems are designed to keep you grounded.  If you were told “Don’t get too big for your britches,” “Remember where you came from,” or “Don’t reach for the moon,” you know the power of early belief-system training.  A belief system is a mindset that controls your behavior, and it can feel very uncomfortable to challenge some of those old ingrained beliefs.  If you want to blast those belief systems, you must first feel that you deserve the “self-indulgence” of looking great every day.  You have the power to express yourself not as expected but as amazing.  Voices of the past must be put out with the trash.  You can change your belief systems, and indeed you must, to move forward.  (page 11)

Excuses hinder.  In my business I’ve heard every excuse for why someone won’t make an effort to look better.  We look exactly how we look because of the choices we’ve made.  How we will look in the future comes from the choices we make today.  Once we reevaluate our belief systems, the next step is to expose the excuses that hold us back.  (page 12)

We all want to express our individuality.  When we are young, it is easier to be an individual because we experiment more with our look and get away with it.  We can give our messages about who we are by our choices of clothes and how we wer our hair and makeup.  We have more color.  We have more definition.  Our individuality shines through naturally.  As we age, we begin to see signs of change.  We begin to redefine ourselves as we mature.  We’re more experienced and seasoned, and hopefully our image reflects that.  We don’t want to go back.  We also don’t want to look outdated or “out of that loop.”  I often hear women say, “I like who I am, just as I am.”  Okay, great but do people see who you are when you walk into a room?  Being who you are is one thing, but letting others see who you are takes a little more thought.  If I took a photo of you right now and passed it around, asking for words that describe you, would they be adjectives you’d want to hear?  If you could list five qualities you’d want someone to know about you, what would they be?  If you want to be appreciated for who you are, it helps to present those qualities in how you look.  (pages 29 – 30)

When you feel good, you exude confidence.  I often hear people say that they have nothing to dress up for – they work in the home and they never really go out.  I don’t know what has happened to us.  Seriously.  Why can’t you just look good for you?!  The minute you walk out the door of your house you are in the public eye.  When you’re in your house, you are in the eye of yourself and your family.  Be an inspiration, not a warning.  …  Create life events.  Whether it’s a dinner with your spouse, church, a meeting, work, play, a picnic, holiday, a wedding, or a party, it is the opportunity and motivation to make your entrance.  You’re the star in your show; look and feel like one!  (page 239)

So how exactly does one go about staging their comeback?  Hopkins has a process that one needs to go through in order to chang their appearance and their outlook.  That process involves more than just finding a hair stylist (though he shares tips on how to do that as well).  The process begins with some internal work – you need to take Hopkins’ quizzes and ask yourself some questions as well. Luckily the book makes the entire process very clear and concise, but it does take some time and effort on your part.  All the tips and tricks are great – from how to dress for your body type, to finding the right hair style, to make-up application.  And as I mentioned above many, many of these tips are good for women of all ages.  And if you aren’t convinced that Hopkins’ tips will work for you just skip ahead to the makeovers at the end of the book.  Amazing doesn’t even begin to describe some of the makeovers or all of them really.  Check out my favorite makeover below.

I definitely recommend looking at and then following the ideas and instructions in this book if you have started to feel like you are not looking and feeling your best.  It isn’t superficial or vain to want to look pretty and feel attractive.  When you look good you feel good so why not try?  Really you’ve got nothing to lose.  And now having said all that I am going to go put on a little eye make-up.  That always lifts my spirits.

Check out Hopkins’ website for more information and be sure to look at the stunning before and after photos from the book.

Online Sources for Skincare Information April 25, 2011

Knowledge is power and though I would love my readers to look to my blog first for all their skincare concerns and questions even I have to admit that sometimes you might find the information you are looking for via another online source.  Lately I’ve been noticing a lot of good online resources for information about skin and skincare.  So in no particular order here are some online resources:

• As I have mentioned too many times to count in my blog, Allure magazine is one of my favorite glossy magazines.  The magazine recently retooled their website and the “skin” section is definitely worth checking out.  Allure always has lots of up-to-date skincare and beauty information which they convey in a very easy to understand way.
• WebMD has quite a few resources for information about skincare and skin issues.  One section is all about skin conditions and another is all about skincare concerns, skincare products, cosmetic surgery, anti-aging, etc.  They even have a whole video channel for information about skincare.
• If you are interested and concerned about the ingredients and safety of your cosmetics you might want to check out the EWG’s Skin Deep Cosmetics Database which contains tons and tons of information about product safety.  Just be aware that not all experts agree with the EWG’s findings and advice.
• Paula Begoun’s Beautypedia is now free.  You’ll find all of Begoun’s product reviews on this site. 
• Check out Dr. Leslie Baumann’s online Skin Type Solution Library which is collection of her articles about skincare, ingredients, skin science, and skin typing.

If you have a favorite online resource for skincare information please let everyone know by posting a comment below.

The Paraben Controversy – An Article Well Worth Reading August 3, 2010

Skin Inc. just published a great article about the paraben controversy.  The article, entitled The Truth About Parabens , does a great job of breaking down the controversy, the research, and the options consumers and estheticians have in regards to this issue.

Though I already covered this issue in a post back in February, once I read this article I decided that it was well worth sharing with my readers.  The authors of the piece, Carol and Rob Trow, succinctly and thoroughly go through the different studies that raised consumer fears about parabens, and the authors also cite the opinions of The American Cancer Society, the FDA, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review, and  the Scandinavian Society of Cosmetic Chemists about the paraben issue.

I found that the final section of the article did a great job of summing up the controversy and the options skincare professionals and consumers have when it comes to buying products with parabens:

A large number of consumer groups and environmental organizations are questioning the current research that attests to the safety of parabens in cosmetics. There is reasonable evidence that there is estrogenicity in parabens, both natural and synthetic, but the relevance of this link to breast cancer is tenuous without more research, which is urgently needed.

Spa professionals should educate their clients using the facts about parabens. After that, let clients make their own choices. Carry the best and most efficacious products, and consider carrying a line that does not contain parabens if you believe it will meet your clients’ needs.

There is no way to end the controversy about the safety of parabens without objective, controlled, double-blind research into the matter, which has yet to be published. The debate continues.

 

Obviously there will be much more to report about the whole issue of parabens in the future – stay tuned and stay educated.

Stress and Your Skin April 3, 2010

Last Saturday I spent the day at McCormick Place in Chicago attending the Face and Body Conference Midwest.  While there I had the opportunity to attend a few lectures on a variety of topics from skincare ingredients to treatment options to marketing strategies.

The first class I attended last Saturday was called “Cutting-Edge Ingredients” and the speaker was Rebecca James Gadberry from YG Laboratories.  The class covered numerous topics, and the first topic covered was stress and the skin.  At the end of the section of the lecture on stress Rebecca Gadberry recommended that everyone read the book The Mind-Beauty Connection by Dr. Amy Wechsler for further information about how stress affects the skin.  This is a book I’ve already read and recommended here on my blog (see my previous post with my review).  The information in this post is taken from both the lecture I heard and from Dr. Wechsler’s book.

As you probably already know stress is bad for you, very bad for you.  Stress is also terrible for your skin.  As a matter of fact too much stress triggers your skin to start the aging process prematurely leading to wrinkles and fine lines before you want to have them.  Stress can actually age you three to six years, at least.  And not only that – stress can create a vicious cycle that just continues to affect the way you look – stress affects your looks, you become unhappy with your appearance, this leads to you becoming unhappy in general and you can’t cope with stress well, and then your looks suffer yet again.  This holds true for both women and men. 

Stress causes the hormones in our body to begin to operate ineffectively and to become unbalanced.  When hormones do not work properly our bodies suffer in many ways – for example stress can lead to health problems and diseases.  In addition, skin conditions such as acne, psoriasis, eczema, and rosacea can all be affected and worsened by stress.  Stress can make us feel tired and weak and unable to cope with life.   Furthermore, when we are under stress our body release a number of hormones including adrenaline and cortisol that begin to wreak havoc on our skin when these hormones stay in our bodies for a long time (for instance when we are under chronic stress).  For a much more in-depth discussion of this topic see chapter 5 of Dr. Wechsler’s book “How Stress Gets Under Your Skin”.

There are a few different ways stress can affect your skin.  They include the following:

• Cortisol degrades collagen and directly leads to the formation of wrinkles in the skin.  When you live in a chronic state of stress your body finds it harder and harder to repair itself naturally and so you develop more wrinkles and fine lines. 
• The stress hormone CRH can fuel inflammation in the skin and that in turn can cause acne.  Since acne is an inflammatory disease all it takes is in increase in inflammation in the body to cause more acne.  And if you are stressed you are more likely to pick at your breakouts which could lead to even more breakouts. 
• Stress hormones can cause your body to release histamines which can cause a range of skin conditions like dermatitis, irritation, hives, or inflammation or aggravate existing skin conditions like psoriasis.             
• Stress can make your hair fall our and make your nails brittle
• Stress makes your eyes look tired.  This could be because you are not getting enough sleep since you are stressed out.  A chronic lack of sleep could lead to fluid stagnation under the eyes and then dark, puffy under-eye circles in the morning.
• Stress could cause your skin to enter mini-menopause.  A chronic flow of cortisol causes a drop in estrogen which means your skin produces less collagen and less moisture.  Your skin could end up looking dull and dry as a result.

 

So what can you do to prevent this seemingly endless flow of bad hormones and skin problems?  Learn ways to cope with stress better, try meditation, exercise, and find ways to get enough sleep.  Any of these behavior changes will cause your stress level to drop.  Nourishing your body and soul in a healthy way will go a long way to helping you cope better with stress and to attaining the healthy skin you desire. 

 

Further Reading

 

As I already mentioned most of the information in this post was taken from The Mind-Beauty Connection by Dr. Amy Wechsler.     

• Chapter 4: Nine Days to a Younger-Looking (and feeling) You – will help you figure out which stress profile you are and will give you great tips on how to cope with and even overcome the stress in your life.  The chapter includes skincare advice, food tips, and lifestyle suggestions.
• Chapter 5: How Stress Gets Under Your Skin - goes into great detail about what happens to your body when you are under stress.
• Chapter 6: Skinology - explains how the skin works and behaves and how stress affects the skin.         

  Also read this article:  Managing Stress Can Help Clients Improve Their Skin Conditions - Skin Inc.                                              

Attitudes about Aging March 20, 2010

I was once told by someone that I need not worry about finding clients for my esthetic services because there are “always vain people out there”.  Of course I would beg to differ with this point on many levels, first and foremost since I think that most people who seek esthetic services are just trying to look their best and that doesn’t mean that they are vain.  I see part of my job as an esthetician as a way to help people look and feel their best.  Just getting your eyebrows waxed and shaped can change a person’s appearance entirely.  Why not invest in making your skin look great?  Is that really so vain?

This whole idea of who seeks esthetic services and why ties into an article I read this week in The New York Times.  The article is entitled Appreciating Your Value as You Age, and it is an interview with Drs.Vivian Diller and Jill Muir-Sukenick who just wrote a book called Face It: What Women Really Feel as Their Looks Change.  (This post is about the article in The New York Times, not the book since I haven’t read the book yet)  Drs. Diller and Muir-Sukenick are now psychotherapists but both used to model so they have an interesting perspective on the whole idea of how women perceive aging.  (There is also a brief interview with the authors in the April issue of Allure but I couldn’t find the interview online)

Instead of paraphrasing the article I will instead just quote a part of it:

After decades of counseling patients, Dr. Vivian Diller and Dr. Jill Muir-Sukenick say that dread about growing older can spur an existential crisis of sorts. Such dread isn’t about vanity per se, but has more to do with a loss of potential and questioning one’s place in the world. It can lead to depression, alcohol abuse or sleep disorders, they say.

Yet, therapy isn’t usually on the short list of solutions for those bothered by an aesthetic “problem.” A lunchtime laser treatment or a $180 face cream is.

Dr. Diller, 56, and Dr. Muir-Sukenick, 57, are here to tell American women — no matter how stellar their accomplishments — that it’s not superficial to admit that aging is upsetting. They encourage their readers to figure out what’s driving them to have daydreams about a refined face-lift rather than scheduling one.

At a time when cosmetic surgery is increasingly seen as a casual endeavor, and anti-aging injections as inevitable, “Face It” gives women practical steps to parse how they feel about this beauty paradox. “Should women simply grow old naturally, since their looks don’t define them, or should they fight the signs of aging, since beauty and youth are their currency and power?” the authors ask in their book.

I think this quote from the article perfectly captures the paradox women in this country find themselves in.  We hope that our looks will not define us, but we also know that how we look is important.  Women are under more pressure than ever to not look their age.  Certainly as an esthetician I can help people look their best at any age, but sometimes the issue is more than that.  What do they define as looking their best?  If a client is not bothered by her wrinkles than suggesting laser facial resurfacing isn’t a good idea.  But giving that same client a relaxing, thorough facial so she leaves with a smile and glowing skin is a great idea. 

I think it is great that the Drs. Diller and Muir-Sukenick advocate introspection before injections but also recognize the true price of aging.  Having to redefine yourself as you age is a struggle for many, many women, and I am glad to see that someone is addressing these issues.

New Hope for Melanoma? March 8, 2010

The New York Times just published a series of three articles about the trial of a new drug that researchers hoped would help cure melanoma.  Melanoma is the most serious form of skin cancer; if it is not recognized and treated in its earliest stages it is most likely fatal.  In a nutshell the drug  ”PLX4032 held off the cancer by blocking a particular protein in its cells that was spurring them to multiply.” 

The articles are fascinating, enlightening, and ultimately disheartening since the drug only worked briefly.  The drug trial process is explained in the articles, and it is quite clear that the corporate and financial considerations of the pharmaceutical companies take precedence over human lives for the companies.  The main doctor featured in the articles is portrayed much like a clichéd Hollywood hero – he neglects his family life for the sake of his research and patients.  The idea behind the drug itself is fascinating – block the mutation and stop the cancer.  But in the end, the drug was only effective for a short time.  The doctors are continuing with their research and hope to find an effective combination of drugs in the future that will stop and cure melanoma.  The articles are definitely worth reading.

 

Link to the articles:

 

• Target Cancer

The Natural, Green, Organic Skincare Fallacy March 3, 2010

Nowadays a lot of people think that “natural” or “green” or “organic” skincare products are better for them than “regular” skincare products.  But these terms are pretty meaningless.  “Natural” and “green” are label terms that are not regulated by any government or non-government body.  The only label term that has any real meaning is “organic”. In an earlier post I already addressed the issue of parabens in skincare and cosmetic products, but I’ve also been thinking for quite some time about how I wanted to address the issue of organic, natural, and green skincare products in my blog since it is very common to see the issue brought up in all sorts of media (magazines, TV, etc.) and you hear people discussing the terms as well. 

Lucky for me Skin Inc. published a two-part article series about just these issues.  The first article in the series addresses many important issues when it comes to “natural”, “organic”, and “green” products.  For example the article points out that there is no global definition for the term “green” in skincare and cosmetic products.  In addition, the article points out that marketing professionals are savvy enough to know how to play on people’s fears of parabens even if there is little real evidence to suggest that parabens cause cancer.  Another important point the article makes is to explain the idea of “greenwashing”.  This is when words such as “organic”, “natural”, or “botanical” are used in an effort to make the product you are buying seem better for you and the enviroment.  In reality you are probably buying a product that as a very low concentration, too low of a concentration to do anything, of these “green” ingredients.  Furthermore, while a product may have some organic ingredients it also has chemical ingredients in its composition, but this information is purposely left off the advertising and label claims.

The second article in the series goes into greater detail about just what “organic” means on a skincare or cosmetic product label.  Things are not as straight forward as you would imagine.  Companies still have a lot of room to legally play around with the term “organic” so while a consumer may think they are buying a product that is both better for them and the environment that is not really the case.

The bottom line is you can’t believe the hype and you need to educate yourself about ingredients before buying products.

Click on the links below to read the articles mentioned in this post:

• Natural vs. Organic by  Carl Thornfeldt, MD  Skin Inc. February 2009 (a good introduction to the above mentioned issues)
• Deciphering Organic, Part I by Leslie Lyon and Marilyn Patterson, Skin Inc.  February 2010
• Deciphering Organic, Part II by Leslie Lyon and Marilyn Patterson, Skin Inc. March 2010

Even more reading:  Are Organic Products Better for Your Skin?  – blog post by Dr. Leslie Baumann

Test Your Label Knowledge February 28, 2010

Back in March, 2009 Shop Smart  published a quiz called:  What’s Your Beauty IQ? .  This quiz tested readers knowledge about label terms on cosmetic products such as “natural” and “cruelty free” and claims made by cosmetic and skincare companies about their products.  The quiz does a great job of debunking many myths about cosmetic and skincare labeling and really educates the consumer about what the government regulates and does not regulate in terms of cosmetic and skincare products.

This quiz ties in perfectly with my previous post - How to Be a Savvy Skincare Consumer so I thought it would be a good idea to share the quiz.  As I explained in my earlier post, the more you know how to read a product label the better choices you will make when it comes to buying cosmetic and skincare products.  This quiz is a great way to educate yourself.

 

Further Reading:

 

• What’s Your Beauty IQ?
• Hypoallergenic – GreenerChoices.org
• Hypoallergenic Cosmetics – fda.gov
• Cosmeceutical – fda.gov