Do You Have a Natural Standard?
With a show of hands, how many of you have a clear understanding of what natural skincare/cosmetics are? If I were to show you an ingredient list, would you be able to tell me with certainty that: yes this is a natural product or no it’s “traditional”? Hmm, let’s see:
Product A
Purified Water, Saccharide Isomerate, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Pseudoalteromonas Ferment Extract (and) Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein (and) Hydrolyzed Soy Protein (and) Tripeptide-10 Citrulline (and) Tripeptide-1 (and) Lecithin (and) Xanthan Gum (and) Carbomer (and) Triethanolamine, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Stearic Acid, Glycerine, Glycerol Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Hematite Extract, Alpha Arbutin, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E), Oleth-10, Diazolidinyl Urea/Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, Disodium EDTA
Product B
Organic Juice Solution Of Pyrus Malus (Apple) Juice, Vitis Vinifera (White Grape) Juice, Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Juice & Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Organic Cucumis Sativus (Cucumber) Extract, Organic Botanical Extracts Of Taraxacum Officinale (Dandelion) Leaf, Melissa Offficinalis (Lemon Balm) Leaf & Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Leaf, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Alkyl Benzoate, Retinyl Palmitate (Vitamin A), Panthenol (Vitamin B5), Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E), Organic Algae Extract, Organic Cera Alba (Beeswax), Ascorbyl Palmitate (Vitamin C), Ethylhexyl (Octyl) Palmitate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetearyl Glucoside, Sodium Pca, Sodium Hyaluronate, Xanthan Gum, Methylisothiazolinone, Disodium Edta, Sodium Hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, Citrus Aurantium (Sweet Orange & Petitgrain) & Cinnamomum Camphora (Ho Wood) Pure Essential Oils
Product C
Water, Triethylhexanoin, Butylene Glycol, Squalane, Sorbitan Stearate, Caprylic/Capric/Myristic/Stearic Triglyceride, Dimethicone, Pentylene Glycol, Polysorbate 60, Behenyl Alcohol, Epilobium Angustifolium (Willowherb) Extract, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Leaf Extract, Jujube Fruit Extract, Althaea Officinalis Root Extract, Rosa Canina Fruit Oil, Serine, Sodium Hyaluronate, Paeonia Suffruticosa Root Extract, Mulberry Extract, Citrus Junos Peel Oil, Anthemis Nobilis (Roman Chamomile) Flower Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter) Fruit, Stearic Acid, Sucrose Cocoate, Potassium Carbomer, Glycerin, Sodium Carboxymethyl Dextran
Ok, so, which ones are natural and which ones are “traditional” (organic is not a choice)…. Do you have the answer? Product A is traditional, Product B is natural and Product C is traditional- just kidding- they are all classified as natural skin care products. Is it what you expected? Do you have a standard in mind when you purchase natural products?
Whenever one of my clients ask me to create a natural formula for them, my automatic response is “what is your definition of natural?” Do you mean extracted or pressed from a tree/fruit/flower into the bottle, extracted or pressed then reacted with something else but still has a part of the natural molecule intact, or it started out natural but has undergone many reactions and is a completely different molecule. Most of them right away will go for the first scenario until they receive the first set of samples that are not aesthetically pleasing to the eye (or nose or even to the touch). Then they say, well maybe you can throw a “chemical” in there to improve the feel and by the time the formula is complete, it resembles one of the products above.
You know what, this post is getting way too long… It looks like we will be doing a two-parter. In the next part I will take about agencies that have set natural standards and the difference between them!