Do clean and natural products actually work?

Skincare and beauty industry is on an all-time boom. In this digital age where social media and picture sharing platform are big entities in everyone’s lives, superficial has become very important. In this endeavor to look beautiful, men and women from all age groups invest heavily into makeup and skincare products. 

Companies have sprung all over the world that promise to make you look perfect. Some fix your skin conditions for you, others help you paint yourself to look more attractive. But as these products fix somethings, they also bring with them, problems of their own. 

Many of the beauty brands sell products laden with chemicals. Many countries also do not have strict laws, as a result of which, harmful agents like mercury are also being added to the beauty products. 

Consequently, many people complain about skin issues to their skin specialist in Islamabad after using certain products. From allergies to breakouts to even graver skin issues, the problems caused are aplenty.

Alongside toxic products being used, moral issues have also sprung up. Unsustainable practices, not paying their laborers minimum wage, animal testing are some of the things that are being practiced, and continue to perturb a certain subset of people. 

Clean and natural beauty products promise to break away from these unhealthy and immoral practices.

But what is clean beauty?

Clean beauty represents a niche that is found on the principle of having ecologically safe practices. An important dimension of this is the realization of the environmental impact of the companies, and thus their products are made using sustainable practices. The packaging used is also recyclable. 

Moreover, the clean brands also promise not to be blood-thirsty corporations, but have consciousness about working conditions etc. Basically, clean beauty is representative of an ethical brand. 

Natural beauty often goes hand in hand 

Natural beauty is an antithesis of the usual products that are laden with harmful chemicals. Chemicals like sulphates, paraben etc. are staple of most of the skin and hair products, despite the fact that their impact in the long term is rather harmful. 

Therefore, “natural beauty” uses more natural products that have a nurturing impact on the skin. Usually, both “clean” and “natural” are used interchangeably. 

What are the pros of clean and natural products?

Clean and natural products are mostly very expensive, especially when compared to their mass-produced alternatives. The million-dollar question then whether or not they actually deliver what they promise. Follows are some pros of using these products:

Nontoxic

People have become wary of chemicals. A big brand was sued as their talcum powder led to 

ovarian cancer in women. Another hair care company was ironically sued for causing hair fall. 

As natural products are void of these dangerous chemicals, they also do not come with these dangers. 

Prevents contact dermatitis

Ingredients found abundantly in the usual products include MO, MCI, fragrances, formaldehydes etc. These commonly result in contact dermatitis, a condition marked by rash and itching. 

Clean beauty, however, does not make use of these ingredients.  

Devoid of carcinogens 

Products commonly found in cosmetics that lead to cancer include formaldehyde, coal tar, petroleum distillates. Good thing is, clean beauty does not include these harmful chemicals. 

Another perspective 

Yet, there are some experts who are not convinced of the natural beauty. For them, while there is no harm in using clean product, they are not groundbreaking as well. Some legitimate counter narratives quoted include: 

Innocuous quantities 

Most of the chemicals like parabens that — considered toxic otherwise– are only dangerous if their quantity used is significant. In minuscule amount, they do not lead to endocrine disruption, and cancer by extension.  

As large dosage is not added to the makeup, the problem is not very relevant to begin with. 

The only caveat is that the regulatory authority is vigilant about the amount of ingredients being added!

Allergies

Fact of the matter is, natural products can also react with your skin, leading to allergies. Many flagbearers of clean beauty make this very claim against the usual products; since they are full of chemicals, they cause reactions on the skin. 

However, natural beauty too can lead to sensitive skin as well, meriting a visit to the best Skin specialist in Islamabad regardless. So, while the research is still in infancy stage, no conclusive statement can be made about effectiveness of clean beauty. Therefore, consider the merits and demerits first without wholeheartedly commit to certain clean brands.