For a beauty product to be called truly natural, the bulk of its contents, that is close to 100% of its ingredients, must be derived from natural origin, and it must contain only minor amounts of synthetic additives. In replacement of synthetic chemicals, natural beauty products make use of ingredients such as essential oils and vegetable oils, herbal extracts, floral waters, fruit and vegetable extracts, plant and flower waxes, and essential nutrients like vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, and amino acids. Based on this, they can have real therapeutic power, and have great healing and nourishing properties to offer the skin. Brands that are allowed to call themselves natural because they contain a small fraction of natural ingredients, but are made from a largely synthehetic base, are not considered by us to be natural, and brands like these are not available in our store.
What is organic beauty care?
For a product to be called organic, its botanical ingredients must be grown without the use of any toxic pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, hormones, fertilisers, or genetically modified organisms. The plant material must also be harvested, stored, transported and processed according to strict regulations without the use of any toxic substances, and care must be taken to preserve the beneficial properties of the plants. The product may only contain a minimal amount of synthetic chemicals, with the most toxic chemicals being strictly prohibited. It should contain as few animal derived ingredients as possible, no artificial flavours or colours can be added, and only the gentlest preservatives possible should be chosen.
How do you know if a product is truly natural?
The only way to ascertain that a product is truly natural is to read the ingredients list that appears by law at the back of the container the product is sold in. If all the ingredients in the ingredients list, except for maybe a few exceptions, appear to be of natural origin you can feel safe knowing you have a natural product at your hands. Be wary of marketing claims that claim a product is all natural, because this is no proof of it being a truly natural product - you need to study the ingredients list to find out whether these claims are true. Another way of knowing you are buying or using an all natural product is to pick a product that carries a certified organic seal: a product that has been certified by an organic certification agency is guaranteed to be truly natural. All products sold through our store have their full ingredients lists published, you can view them by clicking on the Details button underneath each product.
What is organic certification?
Products that live up to the criteria set for organic beauty products may apply for approval from a public registration office and gain status as a certified organic brand. Different countries have their own certification agencies. The UK has The Soil Association, Germany has BdiH and Demeter, France has Ecocert and Cosmebio, Italy has AIAB and Ecocert. Australia has ACO and BFA, and in the US the USDA organic seal offers some merit. These are the seals you should look for when you wish to find a truly certified organic product.
Are all your produts certified organic?
A large number of our brands have organic certification, but we also stock uncertified brands. In some cases, these can be just as pure and natural as the certified brands are, but may for some reason have declined to apply for organic certification, or have not received their certification yet. In the case of a new brand, it may not have had the time or been able to afford to apply for organic certification. However, an uncertified brand can still be all natural and use mostly organic ingredients in their products, and there are many uncertified brands of excellent quality.
Why do some of your brands contain synthetic ingredients?
Nearly all commercial beauty products contain some form of synthetic ingredients, as these may be necessary to make a stable cosmetic emulsion that is properly preserved. Most of our products contain extremely low amounts of synthetic ingredients however, although we also stock some brands that have a slightly higher percentage of synthetic ingredients in order to give you a greater selection. If you wish avoid synthetic ingredients as much as possible, you should read the ingredients list or pick a certified organic product. Alternatively, you can make your own products from our selection of natural raw materials which of course will be completely natural. At the same time, it’s important to be aware that not all synthetic ingredients are toxic. Many synthetic ingredients are completely harmless, and just there to help improve a product’s stability, texture, and performance. In this regard, a synthetic ingredient can be superior to a natural ingredient. So just because you see an ingredient with a synthetic sounding name on the ingredients list it doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s harmful to your health, and you should first look it up before making a judgement.
How do I read ingredients lists?
Ingredients lists are written in descending order, which means that the ingredients present in the highest concentration are placed at the top of the list, and the ingredients present in the lowest concentration are placed at the bottom of the list. It’s easier to read ingredients lists if you keep in mind that the first third of the list makes up the main bulk of the product, or approximately 90% of a product’s ingredients, the second third makes up about 10% of a product’s ingredients, and the last third only makes up about 1% of a product’s ingredients. So for a product to qualify as truly natural. the first third should contain predominantly natural ingredients. If the first part is made of mostly synthetic ingredients, with the natural ingredients only in the last part of the list, it’s essentially a synthetic product, no matter how many natural ingredients have been added at the end of the list. In the same way, to judge the efficiency of the active ingredients in a product, you need to look at where it’s placed on the ingredients list. If, for instance, you know that vitamin C needs to be present in a concentration of at least 10% in order to be effective, and it appears as one of the last ingredients on the list, you can know that it has no therapeutic value in that product. You should also be aware that ingredients that are present in low enough concentrations don't have to be listed. This can be the case with dyes, fragrances, and preservatives that only need to be present in a small amount to take effect. Another thing to be aware of is when a product has a very long list of botanicals at the top of the ingredients list, next to water. This will be a combination of hydrosols or plant extracts dissolved in water, where the botanical ingredients can be present in a very diluted concentration, despite of being placed at the top of the list.
Are products made of natural ingredients as effective as products made of synthetic ingredients?
Yes, high quality natural products can be just as effective as products made from synthetic ingredients, and their effectiveness is especially apparent when used over time. Synthetic skin care products don’t have any therapeutic value, and also come with a range of undesirable effects. Although these products can help to clean, moisturise and exfoliate the skin, and you may see visible improvements from using them, these are only temporary surface improvements, and there are no deeper, long-term benefits. The long-term effects on the skin are rather harmful, and can result in problems like dry, congested and irritated skin, premature aging, and a general unhealthy appearance, in spite of sticking to a rigorous regime. Some may feel that products made from synthetic ingredients are more effective than those made from natural ingredients, and it’s true that these products can have impressive cleansing and moisturising properties, and may seem to give faster and more dramatic results. But but this only applies to the temporary, day-to-day effects. There are no substantial improvements made in the quality of the skin - the function of these products is more to help create an illusion of healthy skin. They may seem to be very effective as they contain very strong acting ingredients like strong cleansing agents and synthetic emollients, but the long term effects of natural skin care products are so much better for your skin in all ways. And as long as you choose high quality products and find the right products for you, you should be much happier with the results you get from products made from natural ingredients. By choosing natural beauty products to care for your appearance, you both avoid ingredients that are harmful to your skin and body and receive the many benefits natural ingredients have to offer. Over time, this can make a great difference, and you will see significant improvements in the health and appearance of your skin.
Will I experience any negative effects from switching to natural products?
It can take some time for your skin to adjust to products made from natural ingredients, and to learn how to use them to get the same results that you are used to from synthetic products. When you make the switch from synthetic to natural, there may be an adjustment period where your skin gets used to the new regime. You are now applying a whole different class of chemicals to your skin, and this will naturally have a different effect on it. You may go through a period where your skin is purging itself of toxins, where you may experience breakouts or irritation. Some natural products which are preserved with alcohols can also be a bit drying for your skin, while others can feel oily because of the rich oils they contain, and using the wrong product may have an undesirable effect on your skin. Your skin is also weaning itself of its dependency on the mineral oils, silicones, animal fats, and heavy emollients contained in synthetic products. This may initially cause some dryness, as these ingredients do have very impressive moisturising properties. It’s most essential to find products that suit your skin type, and if you experience adverse effects for too long stop using the product. But you can rest assured that any negative effects of natural skin care products are only superficial, and the deeper effects on your skin are very positive, so you should take an optimistic outlook on this.
How are products made from natural ingredients better for your skin?
True natural beauty products are made only from natural ingredients, and, unlike the industrial chemicals found in synthetic beauty products, natural ingredients are supportive to the skin. They can provide vital nourishment to our skin, and support the health and function of the skin and bodily tissues. Natural skin care is often described as bioactive, which means that the skin can recognise and work with these substances and make use of them in its daily effort to repair and maintain itself. It has therapeutic value, and can help our skin to rebuild, regenerate, and rejuvenate itself, and create measurable improvements in the structure and quality of our skin. This stands in great opposition to synthetic ingredients, which have no use for the cells of our body and can even be detrimental to their function. The chemicals found in plants and other living organisms are very similar to the chemicals found withing the human body, and because of this they can support the body in its work to keep itself balanced and healthy. Many feel that the substances that are health giving to the human body are also the ones that have the most value in beauty care, as the cells of our skin have very similar functions and requirements to the cells in the rest of the body. Natural beauty products are based on time tested ingredients with proven efficiency, which are not only less harmful, but also superior in terms of performance and results produced over time.
How are products made from synthetic ingredients harmful for your skin?
Regular application of toxic cosmetics chemicals can greatly impair the health of your skin. It can interfere with the skin’s natural functions, lead to deterioration of the skin and underlying tissue, and increase the skin’s burden of waste and toxic material, which visibly affects the structure, clarity, and vitality of your skin. The harsh detergents commonly used in synthetic products strip all natural moisture from the skin, leading to excessive dryness and destruction of the acid mantle, which is vital for the skin to be able to protect itself and keep itself healthy. Mineral oils, the most common emollients used in synthetic products, can dry out the underlayer of the skin so it loses its ability to moisturise itself and becomes dependent on moisture being constantly replaced from an external source. Mineral oils and mineral oil derivatives are occlusive, clogging pores and making it difficult for your skin to breathe. Over time, the oils turn rancid and start forming free radicals, whose effects on the skin are very harmful. Most commercial skin care products contain silicones, plastic-like substances responsible for the smooth, rich texture you can find in more high-end moisturisers. Silicones, mineral oils, and other plasticisers form a layer like a coat of plastic on top of your skin, not allowing it to respire and interferring with normal waste elimenation and nutrients absorption. As a result, your skin is deprived of oxygen and unable to expel toxins and draw nutrients into its cells. There is also evidence to indicate that many of the toxic ingredients employed in synthetic cosmetics contribute to premature aging of the skin, which defeats some of the purpose of using anti-aging skin care products. Toxic chemicals increase the production of free radicals, one of the main causes of aging, and poison skin cells, leading to a deterioration and slowing down of the cell renewal process. Make-up can have a very corrosive effect on the skin due to its high content of heavy metals and preservatives, and used regularly can lead to skin and tissue damage, something which can often be seen in women who regularly wear large amounts of make-up.
What ingredients are most valuable in beauty care?
There are basically two classes of ingredients that are of value in beauty care. One is nourishing ingredients, ingredients extracted from food based raw materials like fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains, bee products and sea weed, that contain nutrients essential to our bodies. Products based on these ingredients will help to nourish the skin and underlying tissue, something which can be especially valuable to people who have suffered from poor nutrition as this can be a cause of many beauty complaints (such as dry skin, premature aging, and hair loss). The other main class of ingredients is plant-based ingredients, botanical substances derived from plants, flowers, grass, trees and roots. These contain powerfully therapeutic substances and can be very healing, regenerating, and rejuvenating and also possess great cleansing and detoxifying qualities. Substances extracted from plants may also be used to cure a wide range of health conditions, like infections, hormonal imbalances and cellular abnormalities, which can be the underlying cause of many hair and skin problems. These are the main ingredients natural beauty products are based on, and a natural beauty regime will be even more successful if you also supplement these substances internally. Common ingredients to be found in natural beauty products include essential and vegetable oils, herbs, extracts, floral waters, plant and flower waxes, honey, bee pollen, royal jelly, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and essential fatty acids. All these vibrant, living, nourishing substances have great gifts to offer when used in beauty care.
What ingredients should I avoid?
One of the better known toxic ingredients are parabens, commonly used preservatives that can act as oestrogen mimics, and have been shown to disrupt hormone balance and decrease sperm production in males. After a group of British researchers found measurable concentrations of parabens in 20 human breast tumours it has also become a suspected cause of cancer, although this is yet to be conclusively proved. As many other cosmetic ingredients, parabens can break down to release Formaldehyde, a proven carcigonen and highly toxic substance which has been banned from nail polish, but can still be released by many ingredients commonly used in cosmetic products. A group of chemicals called phthalates, which are present in very small amounts in many personal care products, have been shown to harm reproductive capacity and foetal development. They work as hormone disruptors, and have been blamed for feminising young boys and causing birth defects in the male reproductive organs. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS), the most commonly used foaming detergent in cosmetic products, is a very harsh substance also used as an industrial cleaner and found in garage floor cleaners and engine degreasers. It is used as a primary skin irritant in clinical testing, and used in laboratories to deliberately provoke skin irritation in order to test the effectiveness of healing agents. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is connected to eye damage, and has been shown to lead to central nervous system depression and be damaging to the immune system. It can be transformed into nitrosamines, a potent class of carcinogens. Lead and Mercury can both be found in miniscule amounts in many cosmetic products (too small to have to be listed in the ingredients’ list) and are both potent neurotoxins. Lead is also a known reproductive toxin and has long been connected with infertility in humans. Propylene Glycol, an ingredient used in cosmetic products to facilitate the absorption of other ingredients, is highly degenerating to bodily tissue and has been linked to liver and kidney damage. It is suspected of respiratory toxicity, immunotoxicity, and neurotoxicity. Several commonly used cosmetics ingredients can also be converted to dioxins, some of the most toxic chemicals known to science. Dioxins interrupt fundamental biological systems in the body, which may in turn trigger cancers, immune system suppression, diabetes, hormonal disruptions, and developmental and reproductive harm.
How does cosmetics impact your health?
The skin, our body’s largest organ, is a porous and permeable membrane by nature able to absorb a large portion of anything that is applied to it. Hair follicles and sebaceous glands are as small holes in the dermal layer, and in addition cosmetic products often contain substances that serve to make the skin even more permeable to their ingredients. Research shows that up to 60% of what we put on our skin is absorbed into the bloodstream, and this can make up a substantial amount of chemicals on a daily basis. Most of us use 15 or more cosmetic and personal care products each day, which means we can absorb up to 200 different chemicals in one day. One person can absorb as much as 2 kg of chemicals a year from cosmetic products alone. In this way, significant amounts of very unnatural and toxic chemicals, including carcinogenic substances, penetrate the skin and end up in the blood stream. Anything that is absorbed by our skin is bypassed by the liver and delivered directly into the bloodstream, so there is much less protection against it than something that is ingested by mouth. Single exposures are unlikely to cause any harm, and chemicals present in cosmetic products rarely cause any obvious signs of toxicity, but in this day and age we are exposed to chemicals from many different sources all of the time, and there are strong indications that harm can be done over time through frequent and repeated use. There are now studies being done on the connection between the use of cosmetic products and health problems common in today’s society. Several of the chemicals commonly used in cosmetic products have now been linked to cancer, birth defects, nervous system damage, hormone disruption, and developmental and behavioural problems. The hormonal imbalance caused by environmental toxins can potentially lead to infertility, and there has long been a suspected connection between infertility and environmental toxins. Infants are about 100 times more sensitive to carcinogens and toxic chemicals than adults, and especially at risk. Reports of contamination of breast milk with chemicals that work as neurotoxins, developmental toxins, and hormone disruptors are also becoming increasingly common.
How does cosmetics impact the environment?
All the chemicals in our personal products get flushed down the drain and gets into our soil, water and air. In this way, they greatly contribute to the environmental pollution and increase the toxic burden on the environment substantially. The manufacturing of products based on petrochemicals also depletes the planet’s natural resources, and in comparison products based on agricultural ingredients are much more sustainable. There is also a price to pay for animals, and animal welfare groups say 38,000 animals die needlessly in the EU every year in tests for new products. Animal ingredients, like tallow, collagen, animal fats, gelatin and lanolin are also extensively employed in synthetic cosmetics. There is no need to test natural ingredients on animals, so choosing to buy products made from all natural ingredients will help take a great burden off them. In addition, manufacturers of green skin care products abide by green business ethics, respecting the environment. They emphasise minimal packaging, which means less waste, and makes use of biodegradable or recyclable materials such as glass, recycled paper and vegetable inks. On the whole, products made from natural ingredients are much more environmentally friendly, and by choosing to use these products for your personal care you are not only protecting your health, but the environment as well.
Can your products provoke allergies?
Although natural ingredients have very little potential for provoking allergic reactions compared to synthetic chemicals, all chemical compunds have the potential to provoke allergies, whether natural or synthetic. And certain natural ingredents like essential oils, nut oils, and bee products can cause allergic reactions in some people. If one of our products appear to give you a reaction you need to stop using it right away. For babies and young children it's best to choose products that contain very mild and unscented ingredients, as they have delicate skin that can be easily irritated. Having said that, most of our products, being based on botanical ingredients, are extremely gentle and unlikely to cause reactions or irritation even to the most sensitive skin.
Why do your products contain preservatives?
Without proper preservation all cosmetic products will begin to grow fungus, bacteria, parasites, and other harmful micro organisms. Although most preservatives have been shown to be somewhat toxic to our health, you can't make a commercial product without them, so if you want a product without any preservatives you have to make it yourself. Our products are preserved with the gentlest and most natural preservatives available, and since natural products have a shorter shelf life than synthetic ones so they don't need as much preservatives added to them. And if you are using true natural and organic body care products you are taking in a very low amounts of toxic chemicals, compared to if you were using regular synthetic products. Our body is well equipped to rid itself of toxins, so a small amount of exposure isn’t so much of a problem. It's when our system is overloaded with environmental toxins that it becomes too much for the body to handle.
What about parabens?
Parabens, the most common preservatives in cosmetic products, are highly toxic chemicals, suspected of being carcigonens, and has been shown to work as a hormone disruptors and to decrease sperm count in males. It can also release Formaldehyde, which is a highly toxic substance. Most natural skin care products are preserved with more natural preservative systems, like grape alcohol, essential oils, and herbal extracts, or milder synthetic preservatives, although some may contain low levels of parabens. The controversy over parabens is a little bit exagerrated, however, in the sense that the synthetic preservatives used in place of parabens are often not that much less harmful. In addition, when parabens are added under a certain percentage it doesn't have to be mentioned on the ingredients list, meaning that some products that don't list parabens may still have parabens in them, as they only need to be present in very small amounts in order to be effective. This means the difference between brands that are using parabens and brands that aren’t are not necessarily that great. You need to look at what other ingredients the products contain, as there are chemicals used in cosmetic products that are more harmful than parabens. You should also be wary of the "No parabens" claim being used as a marketing ploy, where a product may not contain arabens, but is still essentially a synthetic product and may be much more toxic than a naturally based product containing low amounts of parabens. Not that we are trying to underplay the danger of parabens, ideally all toxic chemicals would be banned from cosmetics, but we need to look at banning all harmful chemicals and not just a single one. If every single toxic chemical is going to be singled out one at a time, it will take a very long time for personal care products to be free of harmful ingredients. We, as consumers, need to educate ourselves about unsafe cosmetic ingredients and demand that all unsafe ingredients are removed from our products.
Have your products been safety tested?
All of our products have undergone standard safety testing to ensure against skin irritation and immediate health damage. Unfortunately, there has traditionally been very low safety requirements for cosmetics, and this is one reason to choose products based on natural ingredients, as it’s the only way to know that the products you use are safe. All of our products are made of safe and natural ingredients that gives you very low toxic exposure. More generally, the only way for you to be sure that a product is really safe is to learn to read the ingredients list and know which ingredients are safe and which are harmful, or to make it easier, you can pick a certified brand, all of which are extremely safe.
Have the products or any of the ingredients ever been tested on animals?
None of our products have been tested on animals. When products are made of only natural ingredients there is no need for them to be tested on animals as they will be automatically safe for humans. Making cruelty free products without animal testing is one of the major causes for the natural skin care companies, and also one of the requirements for a product to be certified as organic. Unfortunately animal testing is still carried out extensively in the cosmetic industry in some way or other, and there is no way to know a product isn’t connected with animal testing in some indirect way.
Are your products suitable for vegetarians and vegans?
The vast majority of the products we sell are suitable for vegetarians and vegans, with the exception of beeswax which is a common ingredient in creams and moisturisers. Natural beauty brands don’t make use of animal ingredients such as animal fat and collagen, although some may contain small amounts of animal derived ingredients like bee products, lanolin, or insect dye. But as we list the ingredients of each of our products in full, you are able to check if a product you want to buy contains any unsuitable ingredients.
Are your products suitable for use during pregnancy?
While most of our products are very safe, it's a good rule to be more careful with what you put on your body during preganancy. There may be small amounts of toxic synthetic chemicals in commercially produced products, and there are certain natural ingredients that can have an unfortunate effect on a child's development. Although natural products are extremely safe in comparison to regular synthetic products, it is still a good idea to read ingredients list and inform yourself about the substances you are putting on your body. A great option is to make your own products with ingredients that you have researched and know are safe, or from recipes from an authority you trust.
Are your products suitable for babies and children?
Our products are some of the best choice for babies and children, as the the level of toxic ingredients in our products are very low to none at all. There is a great difference compared to regular cosmetics, and this can have a real impact your child's health and development. Many of the chemicals commonly used in modern cosmetics have been proven to contain neurotoxins and hormone disruptors that can cause various problems in children and young adults. Natural and organic personal care products is a gentle and healthy way to care for children, with minimal exposure to chemicals along with the benefits of natural ingredients. If you prefer, can also make your own natural products for your children from the ingredients offered in our raw material section.
How long will your products keep once opened?
Natural skin care products have a variable shelf life. Some can keep for as little as six months, but most will keep for a year at least, and there are those that will keep even longer. A shorter expirary date is generally a good sign, as this means there has been minimal amounts of preservatives added and the natural ingredients will be fresher and more effective.
