When we see new clients and they tell us they are using a branded skin care product sold retail or from a doctor, we often tell them to throw the products away. Why? Because they are garbage! Likely they are loaded with preservatives so they can have a five-year shelf life. Contain chemicals that are bad for your skin’s health, and are not responsive to the needs of the skin. These products often use the cheapest ingredients (such as fat re-rendered and collected from fast food restaurants). That way the manufacturer can sell the product at a markup to pay for the pretty packaging and the advertising. Many manufacturers will add perfume, which can irritate sensitive skin, to make the product more attractive. Also, they tailor branded products for average skin, not necessarily dry, combination, sensitive, or oily skin.
Look at the list of ingredients on retail skin products and see the ingredients included in the product:
- Ethanol, ethyl alcohol, methanol, benzyl alcohol, isopropyl alcohol or SD alcohol: they can cause excessive dryness and irritation, leave the skin vulnerable to infection, and cause age spots.
- Isopropyl mysitrate, mineral oil, petrolatum, Vaseline, paraffin wax are all derived from petroleum based products. These ingredients will clog the pores, causing pimples, blackheads, blemishes, and whiteheads (milia).
- Fragrance, which is a common allergen.
- Artificial preservatives, common allergens, that may contribute to health problems.
- Branded skin products for cleansing often contain triclosan, an antibacterial agent that’s bad for the environment. When combined with the chlorine present in publicly treated tap water, chloroform gas, expected to be a human carcinogen, forms.
If the branded skin care products are moisturizers, mineral oil or petrolatum is likely to be among the ingredients. These ingredients are not moisturizing. They just coat the top layer and do not penetrate to the lower layers and plump the skin. They are the same thing as petroleum jelly. It helps prevent diaper rash, but that is about it. Over time this stuff packs on layer after layer on your skin’s surface. The skin will not be able to slough off dead skin cells that it loses daily. As a result the skin will become dehydrated, lined, saggy, dull, congested pores, and look like a saggy old prune.
Another fact about branded products we will point out, is that the underlying damage to the skin’s cells does not show until you are older. When it begins to show, it is much harder to repair.
For these reasons we never use the above-mentioned ingredients in our products. We use only natural and botanical ingredients and some that are even organic. Ingredients such as grape seed oil, coenzyme Q10, natural vitamin E, peptides, green tea and hyaluronic acid. These ingredients help the skin and make it healthier.