We spend an estimated £6.4 billion on beauty products every year but now it seems we could be doing more harm than good. How true are products that are labelled as 'organic', 'natural', and 'pure'. The documentary shown on Channel 4 on Thursday 11th October 2007, How Toxic Are You, outlines the dangerous number of chemicals we use every day, from washing our face, brushing our teeth or applying lipstick.

As a nation, we are becoming increasingly concerned with what goes into our bodies as food, and now we may indeed have to do the same for skincare products. As a consumer, we have to start examining exactly what is in the products that we buy. We are now beginning to read food labels - why shouldn't do this for a moisturiser? It doesn't seem worth while spending obscene amounts of money on diet products if they don't work, so why should we do the same for beauty products, especially if they are harmful to our bodies.

One example of this is the chemical 'petrolatum', in other words, 'petroleum jelly', a mineral oil. Used in personal care products to moisturise the skin, it inhibits the skins natural moisturising abilities making it difficult to absorb and therefore clogging the pores of our skin, which in turn will slow the skin's ability to eliminate toxins, making skin conditions like acne worsen. The total opposite to what this product is advertising! Petrolatum is listed as a probable human carcinogen in the European Union's Dangerous Substances Directive (UNECE 2004).

Some of the chemicals which have been outlined in the Channel 4 documentary are Parabens, Triclosan, Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS), Formaldehyde and Aluminium, which are found in thousands of beauty products. Shampoo's, body washes, toothpastes, hair gels, moisturisers, deodorants, to name but a few. We buy these products because of what they say on the label, but if they do the opposite why do we spend so much money?

Maybe its because we are not well enough informed as to what goes into these products. Some may suggest ignorant or maybe it is simply because we do not even know what these chemicals are or what they do to our bodies, let alone even how to pronounce them.

Parabens, or para-hydroxybenzoic acids, are one of the chemicals that may be of more primary concern. It can also be found on labels as methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben or butylparaben and used to preserve products against moulds, yeasts and some bacteria but also to extend the shelf life of products.
British studies have shown a link to Parabens and cancer although their link to cancer is not conclusive and many more definitive studies still need to be done to establish their health risk.

Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS), or any ingredient with 'lauryl' or 'laureth' in its name, is a carcinogen, or skin irritant, and may be contaminated with many toxins. It is a harsh detergent or degreaser with foaming agents, used in many shampoos and body washes. And because of its low molecular weight is easily absorbed by the body. In the same way as it dissolves the grease on car engines, sodium lauryl sulphate also dissolves the oils on your skin!

Imidazolidinyl Urea is a preservative that releases Formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is known as a preservative for embalming but is also used as an ingredient in many beauty products including nail varnish and anti perspirants. It can cause irritation of the eyes and skin but also of the respiratory system.

Many large cosmetic firms argue that there is not sufficient amounts or high concentrations of these chemicals in our products to cause damage, although, when you think of how many of these different chemicals are in each one of these products that we put on our skin every day, how can we be sure that we are safe?

If you picked up a bottle of any beauty product on your shelf, then guaranteed it will contain some, if not all, of the fraction of chemicals listed above.

The truth is, we do not know enough about these chemicals to say if they are as harmful as protested, but there is sufficient evidence to suggest that there may be a link. Why would we want to take that chance. Would there be anyone who would put a neat chemical on their skin without asking what it will do?

Browse our Skincare section to see the products we would recommend for natural & organic skincare.