Chemicals and How We Avoid Them
What Is A Chemical? The definition of a chemical is a compound or substance that has been purified or prepared, especially artificially. When an ingredient is made artificially it is “produced by human beings rather than occurring naturally, especially as a copy of something natural.” In the definition of artificial it clearly states that most times when an artificial item is made, it is based on a natural counterpart. So why don’t companies just use the natural counterpart instead of spending time finding an artificial resemblance? Because more often than not, artificial is cheaper and can be mass manufactured.
Why Should We Avoid Chemicals? God created humans naturally and he didn’t design our bodies to mix with artificial substances. We’re surrounded by toxins and allergens in our world today and the truth is we can’t completely avoid them. So how about we start with what we can avoid: chemicals in personal products such as beauty products. When we choose to switch to a more natural approach to skin health, it doesn’t have to affect anyone else and it can be an easy switch.
What Chemicals Should I Be Avoiding? The sections below will give you information on chemicals found in most beauty products, how they harm the skin, and what clean ingredients The Path Farms Skincare uses in our products instead.
Alcohols - (ethanol, isopropyl, alcohol, alcohol denat, methanol) These types of alcohols are found in many beauty products to bind the oil ingredients and to ensure the product does not leave a greasy feeling. The harm from this is that they complete their task of leaving the skin non greasy by drying out the skin completely. Drying out the skin can lead to irritation, redness, breakouts, and cracking skin. When our skin starts to be irritated or cracked it looses it’s ability to keep bacteria out of our bloodstream and this can lead to serious infection. We can avoid all alcohols in our products by using the emulsifying ingredient Olivem1000. Olivem1000 is a natural ingredient that is derived from olive oil. This ingredient binds the oil-based ingredients to water-based ingredients to form products such as lotions and creams. With binding the oil and water together, the greasy feeling disappears and your skin is left soft and nourished without feeling oily.
Polyethylene Glycol and Sulfates - These ingredients as used as cleansing agents. The compound buildup of Polyethylene Glycol attaches itself to other molecules making all ingredients loosen it’s hold on our skin and rinse off. The harm from Polyethylene Glycol is that it also has components that make this ingredient penetrate into our skin faster than normal. This means that all the bacteria it attaches itself to will also get absorbed through our skin and into our bloodstream which can lead to irritation and system toxicity. Sulfates not only attached themselves to bacteria but also to all of our natural oils and moisture, stripping away all of it. By stripping away all of our natural moisture our skin because dry and brittle. To avoid Polyethylene Glycol and Sulfates we use a natural counterpart, Decyl Glucoside or Coco Glucodise. These two ingredients are derived from Corn (decyl) or Coconut (coco). Both of these glucosides will create a sudsy feel and loosen bacterias from our skin to be then rinsed off.
Parrafins - Parrafins are used in products such as lotions and creams as an emollient. Emollients purpose is to soften the skin. However, Parrafins also clog our pores making our skin be unable to breathe and trap all dirt and bacteria into our skin. We use all natural butters and oils to soften, moisturize, and heal all at once while not clogging our skin.
Phalates - An ingredeint used to keep formulations stable and help artificial scents last longer. Phalates are a family of industrial chemicals that cause damage to your liver, kidneys, lungs, and reproductive systems. Since our products don’t contain chemicals, that lessens our chances of chemical reactions within the product meaning our item will naturally stay stable longer. We have our products undergo a series of stabilizing tests to ensure the chosen ingredients won’t react with each other and to learn how long the products will be stable and useable for. Our expiration dates will be sooner than many chemical containing products. Having clean products is more important to us than how long the products will last. We use smaller packaging to make sure you will be able to use up all product before the expiration date.
Fragrance - Fragrances are use to add scents to our beauty products but they are also a family of chemicals that classify as allergens, hormone disruptors, asthma triggers, neurotoxins, and carcinogens. These chemicals can easily pass from our skin into our bloodstream which leads to system toxicity. We understand that scents are one of the most enjoyable parts of beauty products so we don’t want you to miss out on that! The Path Farms Skincare uses only essential oils for all of our scents. Essential oils not only add amazing aromas to our products but they all have a variety of health benefits. Head over to our blog post on essential oils to learn more about what benefits each oil has.
Formaldehyde, Phenoxethanol, and Parabens - These ingredients are used as preservatives in cosmetics. Phenoxethanol funny enough is harmful if absorbed through skin and leads to skin troubles such as eczema and allergic reactions. It’s also harmful if inhaled because it affects the brain and central nervous system. Formaldehyde affects the nervous system, irritates the respiratory system, and is a known carcinogen. Parabens can cause a variety of health issues including hormonal imbalance, developmental disorders and are a known carcinogen. To avoid these dangerous ingredients we use a natural preservative mixture called Preservative Eco which is made up of Benzyl Alcohol, Salicylic Acid, Glycerine and Sorbic Acid. We understand that this mixture does contain an alcohol. However the small amount of alcohol present and the possible irritation that could come from it is far less worrisome than the dangers of using a product that turns rancid and starts to grow mold or other bacteria. We try our absolute best to keep our products chemical free but we will not sell any products containing a water-based ingredient to you without confirming they are stable and safe.
Hopefully this post gave you some new knowledge on how to take the best care of your skin you can!
Popular Chemicals To Avoid
