Toiletries and Cosmetics: ingredients to watch?

[The Sonar Chicken]

Hey, I'm sure everyone uses at least some toiletries or if not, cosmetics on a daily basis. What ingredients do you watch out for when buying them?

For me:

Triclosan --- using this too frequently might cause certain strains of bacteria to become resistant
Sodium lauryl sulfate -- not the "laureth sulfate" but this one 'cos it's a major skin irritant
Anything with long and undecipherable names I don't understand yet.

[Glance A'Lot]

Anything with long and undecipherable names I don't understand yet.


The European union solved that problem for us - by allowing producers to simply put the European catalog number on the product.

So it says E300reds, E400reds - supposedly that makes it easier for the consumer - because each of us has remembered the E-number catalog, or carries the substantial volume around...

And, mind you, anything has an E number, even Vitamine C (if it is from synthetical production - *ahem* which, of course is called 'nature identical'!

Just watch out for the 600 series - that's herbicides...

[kitty]

Polydimethylsiloxane. On cremes, shampoos and the like, often just called "Dimethycone".

ANYthing having a -cone ending is silicon and silicon has two problems:

In shampoos and conditioners it lays a thin layer around the single hair and makes it appear smoother, sadly, it also works as a wall, so any potentially repairing substances can't go in the hair.

And the second problem is, with fine and/or thin hair, it makes them heavy and therefore takes away all volume.

Silicons in cremes do the same (problem 1) for the skin.
(and on a personal note, I simply have too sensitive skin & hair to deal with that)

I also look out for parfums. Again my skin/scalp is hypersensitive and parfums make it itchy.

I also stay away from Benzol.

And I look that the products aren't animal tested. But by my list of ingriedients I don't want, it is in 99% of all cases not animal tested anyway.

PS: it's more likely to find siliconfree shampoos in the cheap category then in the expensive section. Simpy because silicons are expensive and the big brands need to make the customer think he has prettier hair after using their products.

Being a frequent user of suncreme here in Aussieland:

Expensive brands put parfums, coloring (for a taning effect) and proclaimed vitamins in their products. Those are unneccessary. A cheap brand with nothing of that sort and a SPF of +30 is exactly as effective (and don't bring so much insects near you!) as the most expensive brand with all those extra ingriendts and +30 SPF.

BTW the SPF factor is the same in all countries but numbered differently. In Europe the upper limit is +50, in AUstralia the limit is +30 and in the US, the producers are free to claim whatever they like but can not label teir product as "all day protection". ALl of those products, no matter if it says an aussie 30 or a european 50, have the same level of protection and must be reapplied every 3 hours. (I kinda became a sunexpert since being in Australia with european skin )

[fughawzi]

I avoid most of the stuff you lot do as well, but also all animal products (Including anything from bees!). I think I'm going to have to start watching out for wheat/gluten products as well. I try to keep my products having as few ingredients as humanly possible, and they have to be more natural and earth friendly.

Animal testing really pisses me off.

[kitty]

^ But honey is so GREAT for the skin ^^ But I won't start to argue, promise

[Cat]

I don't watch out for anything tbh. If it works, I use it, and I'm not really bothered where it comes from (in cosmetics anyway, not in food products).
For high school, I once had to do an article on animal testing and animal products in cosmetics. There was a load of horrific stuff that came out of it. As well as finding some good products. I still, however, buy what I want regardless of ingredients, because well, life's too short to care if there are cow brains in your lipstick. Or NH4 in your liquid foundation. (and more often shampoos).
Last year in chemistry we did a lot of work with products that go into personal care products nowadays. So it's not because I'm ignorant. I just don't care about it.

Although if I'm allergic to it or something I'm not going to buy it. Obviously.
(:

[fughawzi]

Aug 4, 2009 15:16:50 GMT kitty said:

^ But honey is so GREAT for the skin ^^ But I won't start to argue, promise

Everyone says that but honey has never done anything kind for my skin, I don't know why. I think I was born to be vegan, haha.

[kitty]

^ well, tofu and soy always made me nauseated, I guess I was born to be an eat-it-all ;D

[The Sonar Chicken]

Aug 23, 2009 21:02:49 GMT fughawzi said:

Aug 4, 2009 15:16:50 GMT kitty said:

^ But honey is so GREAT for the skin ^^ But I won't start to argue, promise

Everyone says that but honey has never done anything kind for my skin, I don't know why. I think I was born to be vegan, haha.

Just curious: do you mix the honey with water that's at room temperature? Because mixing it with hot water completely destroys all the enzymes.

Edit: Btw, speaking about food... I'm about to start ordering some kefir grains and start growing them. I think it's about high time I do something about my stomach issues before they make me even more sick.

[Galadriel]

I barely use any toiletries that are tested on animals. Make up, hmm, I went to the Bodyshop and Yves Rocher, they are known for not testing their products on animals either. I'm not allergic to anything in that genre, I just don't want to look good or smell good if I know a rabbit or a cat had to suffer for it first.
The only issue I have is with not animal tested shampoo and shower gels, they tend to dry out my skin more then the ones you can buy everywhere. But for that I have a solution, a moisturizing body creme and the problem is solved.

[The Sonar Chicken]

Well, I just bought this brand: Skin Blossom Milk Cream and Moisturiser(88% organic for both). It is pretty good, provided I apply it very sparingly. ;D Having oily skin, I was in for a rude surprise when I decided to apply the milk and cream generously this morning. This brand btw... is certified by the Soil Association(UK) and is supposedly suitable for vegans. Reason why I got it? Enough of Eucerin, Cetaphil and all those brands which're supposedly mild but which hurt my eyes and burn my face when I apply them or they're so mild, they don't clean the dirt at all. ;P

Yes, I've been a bad girl... I went ahead and bought some organics stuffz even though I shouldn't have. But it's either make my health worse or do organics sparingly.