Harmful Ingredients To Avoid In Cosmetic Products

While cosmetics, hygiene, and beauty products are supposed to take care of our skin, they are full of ingredients with undesirable health effects. One in four beauty products contains harmful substances, which are already banned in the European Union. Here is a list of dangerous ingredients to avoid for happy and serene skin.

Sulfates: irritating substances to avoid

Surfactants that have very good detergent power can be found in many foaming cosmetics for the shower and the bath. They are criticized for their aggressive and irritating nature on the skin. Of course, it all depends on the frequency of use of the products that contain them and the amount used. Furthermore, sulfates exhibit very poor biodegradability. Do you want to know more about what ingredients to avoid in skincare? Visit on hyperlinked site.

Benzophenones

Synthetic sun filters are prohibited in organic cosmetics. These ingredients are suspected of being endocrine disruptors and allergens.

Synthetic antioxidants are used to prevent the oxidation and rancidity of vegetable oils (and fragrances). BHAs and BHTs are endocrine disruptors that can also cause allergic reactions on the skin.

BHA and BHT: harmful ingredients to avoid

Parabens

Absent from our range of organic and vegan cosmetic care, parabens are preservatives used in all types of cosmetics, some of which are accused of being endocrine disruptors. They are prohibited in organic cosmetics.

Silicones: polluting and uninteresting substances

Some types of silicone and Cyclopentasiloxane Cyclopentasiloxane, which are very volatile and used in a lot of care for the silky effect they provide or to protect the skin from dehydration, are considered endocrine disruptors and potentially carcinogenic.

Ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate

This synthetic sunscreen, banned in organic cosmetics, is considered to be an endocrine disruptor.

MIT and MCIT

These ingredients, used as preservatives, in particular in rinse-out products, are highly allergenic and irritating to the skin.

P-Phenylenediamine and its derivatives:

allergenic ingredients to avoid

They are so-called sensitizing ingredients, which can cause allergies.

Phenoxyethanol

Phenoxyethanol is a glycol ether suspected of being an endocrine disruptor. It is a synthetic preservative prohibited in organic cosmetics.

Triclosan: an endocrine-disrupting ingredient to avoid

Antibacterial, triclosan is suspected to be an endocrine disruptor that acts not only on estrogen hormones but also on thyroid function.

Cocamide DEA and other derivatives

They are found in foaming agents such as shower gels, shampoos, makeup removers, and soaps. These are synthetic compounds that tend to react with nitrites to form nitrosamines, a category of molecules that the International Agency for Research on Cancer describes as potentially carcinogenic substances. In addition, these synthetic ingredients can cause itchy skin and eyes.

Mineral oils are polluting and comedogenic.

Purely synthetic ingredients, resulting from a process of distillation and refining of fossil fuels, mineral oils are occlusive, without nutritional quality for the skin, which is why they are found everywhere: face and body cream, night cream, make-up, foundation, sunscreen. These are so-called comedogenic oils. They are irritating to the skin and very polluting (not biodegradable). They also present a problem of toxicity in the event of oral ingestion: they tend to accumulate in the stomach and our organs.

Dibutyl phthalate

Dibutyl phthalate (or DBP) is a solvent that has long been used in nail polish for its plasticizing properties. Considered a CMR substance, carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic for reproduction, DBP is now prohibited in cosmetics, plastics in contact with fatty foods, as well as in all toys and childcare articles. It is also harmful to the environment, fish, and wildlife.

Formaldehyde liberators: ingredients to avoid in cosmetics

We also speak of formalin liberators. These different ingredients, which are found in all categories of cosmetic products, are used as preservatives. Their particularity is their annoying tendency to decompose slowly and continuously release small amounts of formaldehyde, a substance considered carcinogenic and a powerful allergen to top it off.

PEGs

PEG is a derivative of a very commonly used oil in different families of cosmetics. Depending on the associated figure, they are used for their thickening, emulsifying, or surfactant properties. They are also good solvents, softeners, and humectants. Depending on their manufacturing process, PEGs may contain potentially carcinogenic 1,4-dioxane. Some PEGs are irritating when used in large amounts. PEGs are also not very biodegradable. They degrade poorly and accumulate in the environment.

Quaternary ammoniums

We find particularly quaternary ammonium compounds (also known as quats) in hair products, shampoos, and conditioners (hair conditioners) and all the lotions “harmful” for the hair (coloring hair, and hair straighteners). Ammoniums are criticized for being slightly irritating to the skin and partially or not biodegradable.

Aluminum salts

Aluminum salts are found in antiperspirants (or antiperspirants). Aluminum is considered to be an endocrine disruptor, responsible for the onset of Alzheimer’s disease and breast cancer.

Benzyl alcohol

Benzyl alcohol can be of natural/vegetable origin (it is naturally present in several plants and therefore in essential oils, eg cinnamon, jasmine, ylang-ylang, etc.) or synthetic. It is one of the rare preservatives of synthetic origin accepted by certain organic specifications, including that of Cosmébio/Ecocert.

Benzyl alcohol is not harmful or toxic to the skin. It is part of the list of 26 allergens. It is potentially irritant and allergenic. Its presence must be mentioned on the INCI list of your product if it exceeds a certain threshold.

Synthetic fragrances

Designated by the names “perfume” or “fragrance”, many synthetic substances are hidden behind their beautiful scents, the composition of which is unknown and kept secret by perfume laboratories.

In conclusion, we recommend that you favor organic cosmetics devoid of most of these ingredients, which represents a risk to your health and the sensitivity of your skin.