Living Without (LW)
Are all-natural cosmetics the safest choice?

Paula Begoun (PB)
Almost without exception, there are no such things as all-natural cosmetics. They don't exist.

LW
Then what is a "natural" cosmetic?

PB
The definition of "natural" is hazy and the term isn't regulated. It can mean anything and nothing, and each cosmetics company can use it to mean something different. There's no medical basis to describing a product as natural. "Natural" does not tell you anything about the efficacy of the ingredients in a product. For most cosmetics companies, it means including plant extracts in their formulations along with an array of synthetic ingredients.

Even if a truly "all-natural" product did exist, you wouldn't want to use it on your skin, at least not for very long. Think about a bunch of plants, fruits or vegetables sitting in your refrigerator. What would happen if they didn't contain preservatives? In just a few days they'd become moldy and disgusting. In contrast, most skin-care products contain very ?unnatural?-sounding preservatives, and that's great. According to many cosmetics chemists, a reliable preservative system helps avoid the risk of microbial contamination, which could cause problems for the eyes, lips, and skin.

I'm not saying there aren't some natural ingredients that are exceptional for the skin, because there are — lots of them — but the idea that they are the best option or are still natural once they've been extracted from their source and mixed into a cosmetic is ludicrous.

LW
But aren't natural ingredients better than synthetic?

PB
Many natural ingredients can cause allergies, irritation and skin sensitivities. Look at poison ivy. Just think of how many people have a hay fever response to a wide variety of plants, and these plants often show up in cosmetics. Citrus often shows up in skin-care products, but most of us have gotten lemon on a slight cut while cooking and know it burns like crazy because it's irritating to skin. Hanging on to the notion that 'natural' equals good skin care or a better makeup product will waste your money and probably hurt your skin.

Furthermore, the notion that natural ingredients are better than synthetic is even more distressing, because it just isn't true. While vegetable or plant oils may sound better for the skin, varying forms of silicones (i.e., siloxanes, dimethicones, cyclomethicones) are just as beneficial and offer impressive benefits for the skin. Silicones show up in over 80 percent of all skin-care, makeup, and hair-care products you buy. Yet you rarely hear about them because the cosmetics companies think consumers won't find them as sexy or alluring as plants, or oxygen therapy (which is actually a problem for healthy skin), or cellular repair, or a thousand other marketing angles that have nothing to do with what really works for your skin. It's hard to glamorize and advertise a synthetic, unnatural-sounding ingredient.

LW
What about hypoallergenic products or those designed for sensitive skin?

PB
"Hypoallergenic" and "designed for sensitive skin" are nonsense words that imply a product is unlikely to cause allergic reactions. Without firm standards, every company can make its own determination of what those words mean. The same goes for terms like "noncomedogenic," "dermatologist tested" and "laboratory tested." There are no FDA regulations for the use of these terms and none for the claims that some cosmetics companies make about them. I've seen lots of products that claim to be "safer for sensitive skin," yet they contain problematic plants, fragrance, camphor, alcohol and a myriad of other ingredients that are known to cause skin reactions.