We live in the era on ready-made, mass produced products, and often flirt with all things artificial, but what do we do when it comes to our health? More and more people are turning to old ways: clothes made from organic materials, hair care that includes homemade masks of egg yolks and coconut oil, and natural skincare. Without a doubt, these would not be prominent movements if they didn’t make a difference; so let’s take a look at natural skincare trend and how it can help us become healthier.
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How natural is natural cosmetics?
Of course, it would be practically impossible to use skincare products that come directly from nature and are not processed at all, but there should be a label that indicates when an ingredient is too altered to be considered natural. As long as ingredients have been obtained through natural processes (physical and biological processing only), or created through use of simple technologies, they can be considered ‘natural’. The latter only applies to those technologies that can be found in any kitchen, thus keeping things as simple and natural as possible. Anything that is not biodegradable should be considered synthetic, and thus avoided.
You will be looking at brighter future
Many big companies in cosmetics industry realised the potential of natural cosmetics and have started making such products. These skin care products may not have the immediate ‘wow’ effect the synthetic ones do, but their effects last longer because they are natural. Your skin will become smoother over time, your hair healthier, your nails stronger, and your face will get the natural and healthy youthful glow. Without additional fragrances, fillers, and irritants found in synthetic cosmetics, your skin will recover and stay healthy for a long time.
What you see is what you get
With these cosmetic products, the golden rule applies: what you see is what you get, and there will be no unpleasant surprises later on. In my opinion you’ll never lose by investing in products such as Ultraceuticals, 100% Pure or One Love Organics. Unless you are allergic to one of the ingredients listed on the label, you will not be experiencing any of the strange side effects no matter how long you use the product. Without parabens that can mimic some of your body’s natural hormones and mess with your endocrine system, you are free to use the product for as long as you want without fear. There are plenty of natural preservatives that are completely harmless and do the job just fine.
Steer clear of…
Not all synthetic ingredients are necessarily bad; most of them add pleasant smells and make the product last longer, but there are some you should definitely avoid. Petrolatum is one of those ingredients, and can be found in many lip products. It is said to protect the sensitive lip skin from chapping and sunburn, while it actually leads to dry skin and chapping because lip skin stops moisturizing. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is another common ingredients found in shampoos because it makes great foam, but it also causes dandruff and skin irritation. A list of ingredients to avoid can be found here. The best thing to do is to check the ingredients on the product you are looking to buy: the fewer there are the more likely it is that the product is natural, and therefore good for you.
It seems that if you decide to use natural cosmetics you will be spending plenty of time reading labels and trying to decipher the ingredients listed, but it is worth it. What is more, you may even try out some face masks you can easily make in your own kitchen; this way you will be sure that there are no artificial fragrances and harmful chemicals inside. Going ‘green’ and using natural products is the best way to take good care of yourself and of your health, and getting long-lasting good results is much better than getting immediate good results that wear off after a while.