Ingredients that should NOT be in your skincare and why

When we made our products, we wanted to give more safety profile and less stress for you while buying a product. With more and more brands coming up on the shelf, it gets confusing which ingredient is actually good and bad. Well, some ingredients are subjective to an individual’s skin type but some of them are just a straight no for your skin. So we listed down these ingredients and swore off them. Let us tell you which ingredients you will not find in our products and why!

 1. What are the ingredients that we don’t have in our products and why?

We have a strict no-no list of ingredients for our products and we want to tell you why did we reject these ingredients:

• Parabens: Generally you can spot parabens in cosmetic products’ ingredient lists with these names- Ethyl Paraben, Methyl Paraben, Butyl Paraben, Propyl Paraben. While the FDA has approved Paraben usage in skincare and makeup in the smallest quantity, we still decided to ban it from our ingredient list. The reason is some studies have mentioned how Paraben was found in breast cancer tissue and hence they could be endocrine disruptors (mimicking estrogen to disrupt the reproductive cycle and even risk of cancer). Parabens are also not safe for those with sensitive skin types since they can irritate your skin.
• Phthalates (DBP, DEHP, DEP, DMP): They are used to increase the shelf life of a product but they leave your body in a bad shape. Phthalates are known to be endocrine disruptors (disrupt the hormone balance) and certain Phthalates like DHEP are even linked to the occurrence of cancer.
• Sulphates, Sodium Lauryl Sulphate & Sodium Laureth Sulphate (SLS) & Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulphate (SLES): It is known that SLES is less irritating than SLS but then they both do irritate your skin. They are popular surfactants that are commonly found in personal care products like face wash, toothpaste, shampoo, etc. If you find our products, you know you don’t have to worry about any kind of sulphates.
• Heavy Metals: Heavy metals like Mercury & Mercury compounds, Lead, and Arsenic are not ideal since they are proven to be absorbed through the skin barrier and can lead to hypersensitive reactions. No wonder, FDA has minimised the amount of its content that can be found in products. Although, we have completely banned it from our list.
• Aluminium Chlorohydrate: It is commonly used in deodorants since it is an antiperspirant. Antiperspirants work by clogging the pores and so this ingredient is known to irritate, rash, or swell your skin.
• Chemical Sunscreens (Oxybenzone/ Benzophenone- 3): Chemical sunscreen filters like these are a big threat to the environment. Many studies have shown that Oxybenzone definitely contributes to coral reef bleaching. Both Oxybenzone and Benzophenone-3 have implications in the food chain since they’re found in fish in the area where tourists go to visit.
• Resorcinol: It is commonly used in cosmetics products like hair dye. They are also used to treat certain skin conditions since they have antifungal and antibacterial properties but they also do irritate the skin. It’s also an endocrine disruptor which compels us to avoid its usage in our products.
• Animal fat: Why would we want animal byproducts on our face? No thanks. We know sophisticated science exists that allows us to make good products without harming animals.
• Coal tar: Coal tar has proven to be cancerous after a study published the results on how dermal application of coal tar led to cancer in rodents. It can lead to skin, scrotum and lung cancer.
• Toluene: It is used in making paints and is commonly found in nail paints. But when inhaled they can cause health implications. Since we’re into making meaningful skincare products, we had no reason to add this irritant.

 It was a two year long process of making our products and validating the formulations till we got them right. We wanted it to be a safe cushion for you that you can fall on blindly. We will continue to do the same for you and your skin!

Written by: Divya Salvi