Harmful/Toxic Ingredients That Can Be Found In Your Skin Care Products

Skin care products, we all use them, but some can be better than others. It’s getting to know what can be harmful is not something that simple.

Every skin care line on the market today will suggest waiting “at least 2 weeks before seeing results”. While this may be true, it gives skin care companies quite a bit of leeway as to the quality of what they are using in their products.
Many of the ingredients found in the most popular skin care labels contain harmful/toxic ingredients that can cause skin irritation, dermatitis, and can also inhibit skin cell growth, which is essential to maintaining a youthful appearance.
This is why it is very important to read the product label before you buy a skin care product. With all the anti aging products on the market today, it may be difficult to know which ones are harmful as a whole, so here is a list of toxic/Toxic ingredients to look for in a skin care product.

Known Harmful/Toxic Ingredients
Mineral Oil – Derived from petroleum (crude oil), mineral oil is commonly found as a main ingredient of face and body creams and cosmetics. Baby oil is 100% mineral oil! It coats the skin like a plastic film, clogging pores and stopping the skin from eliminating toxins, which can lead to acne and other skin disorders. Other petroleum based ingredients include paraffin wax, paraffin oil and petrolatum.

Parabens – Parabens are used as preservatives and ultimately mimic estrogen, which disrupts hormonal balance in the body.

Phenyl Carbolic Acid-Phenyl Carbolic acid can cause circulatory collapse, convulsions, and paralysis, possibly death due to respiratory failure.

Propylene Glycol– Propylene Glycol while used as carrier oil for fragrance opals and as humectants in skin care lines, has also been found in paint; brake fluid, and floor wax. It can cause inhibiting skin cell growth, dermatitis, skin irritation, and in severe cases kidney and liver damage.

Sodium Laureth Sulfate– Also known as Sodium laurel or Laurel Sulfate, this chemical is widely used in skin care products because of it’s ability to easily penetrate the skin, and break down other products making it easier for them to pass through the protective barrier of the skin.
In combination with other chemicals, it can cause hair loss. Along with Propylene Glycol, this is another chemical known to be used for industrial purposes, and can be found in engine degreasers and car shampoos.

Toulene – Also known as benzine/benzyl, this is a well-known poison that can be harmful or fatal if inhaled, swallowed, or absorbed through the skin. It used to be found in nail polish! But these days, you can find all kinds of indie brands that offer nail polish that is up to 10 free!

Talc – It is a soft mineral used in talcum powders and cosmetic powders. Scientific studies have shown that routine application of talcum powder to the genital area is linked with a three-to-fourfold increase in the development of ovarian cancer. Inhaling cosmetic powders containing talc may also be harmful to long term health. When it comes to talc, you will find that many of the major brands of makeup, use it. When you look at a list of ingredients on the back of your makeup, and see Talc listed as the first ingredient? That means, they are using it most. Many small brands, such as Overall Beauty Minerals, do not use talc at all in their mineral makeup products.

While this list may seem daunting, there is a website called Skin Deep that has a list of products that are broken down by brand that gives them a score as to how harmful they are to your skin. It is very user-friendly, and you can simply type in your favorite brand of moisturizer to see what kind of score it gets.

While you may be surprised at how many reputable skin care lines receive a high score as far as containing harmful products, rest assured that there have been great strides made in the Natural/Organic world of skin care. Actually, the modern world is just now realizing what people of old have known for hundreds of years. Not all products need to be created in a lab, that help us look and feel beautiful. Smaller brands of skincare are putting out their pure and all natural, even vegan skincare lines.

Using natural oils that are derived from plants and herbs are much closer to fitting the oils that our bodies produce naturally.
Although there are products that are on the market today that are produced in the laboratory which will be discussed along with the natural oils, it seems that some of nature’s ways that have stood the test of time might be the better choice in anti-aging products, but that is your decision to make.
How To Avoid These Toxins

Examine the labels of your cosmetics and skin care products carefully, and learn to recognize ingredients that are harmful to your skin and to your health. Many websites have lists of potentially harmful ingredients in addition to those shown above (e.g. Environmental Working Group).

Don’t be fooled by the words ‘natural’ or ‘organic’ on the front of the label. Many products contain at least one or two natural or organic ingredients, but they may also contain harmful synthetic chemicals as well.

What skincare product lines do you enjoy the most that are pure and all natural? I have been using Pacifica Beauty, a well-known vegan skincare brand you can buy at the drugstore at on Amazon.  I LOVE their Dreamy Youth Daytime Moisturizer!

Resources:
nlm.nih.gov
Mayoclinic.Com
EverydayHealth.Com
Image by Nika Akin from Pixabay