Chemicals in Skin Care Products

Women especially care about their skin, more so when it concerns their face. We at Living Jungle know this. That is why we include 7 natural active ingredients in all our skin care products: licorice root, apple stem cell, orange stem cell, rice bran, aloe vera, green tea leaf and diamond powder or dust. We also know that some women are particular about not just the active ingredients but also all the other ingredients in their skin care products.

Face photo courtesy of David Robert Bliwas under Creative Commons license

Then of course they read the list of ingredients and come across big-sounding words such as tocopheryl acetate, hydroxyphenyl propamidobenzoic acid, sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, potassium chloride, aluminum chloride, zinc chloride, manganese chloride, copper sulfate, ethylparaben, propylparaben, methylparaben, butylparaben, isobutylparaben ... the list goes on. You must be thinking, "What are these chemicals for?" and most importantly, "Are they safe to use on my precious skin?"

We understand your concern. Thus, we feel a little bit of education is needed in order to understand the function of these chemicals in our skin care products. Words such as acetate, chloride and paraben might scare you off. But, the listed chemicals above have specific use in personal care products in general and skin care products in particular.

1. Tocopheryl Acetate – Another name for it is Vitamin E Acetate, and it is often used in dermatological products such as skin cream (Wikipedia).

2. Hydroxyphenyl Propamidobenzoic Acid – According to cosmeticanalysis.com, this chemical ingredient is used as skin conditioning and is included in the International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients.

3. Sodium Chloride, Magnesium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Aluminum Chloride, Zinc Chloride & Manganese Chloride – sodium chloride is your basic table salt, but in skin care products, it is used as a viscosity agent, as a thickener and a binding agent.According to cosmeticsinfo.org, magnesium chloride is used in products that include hair care, eye makeup, cleansers, hand & body lotions, and soaps & detergents, among others. Information gleaned from cosmeticsinfo.org, as per truthinaging.com, says that potassium chloride is used as viscosity increasing agent or a thickening agent in cosmetics and skin care formulas. Cosmeticsinfo.org also says that aluminum chloride is applied to the skin to curb the production of sweat at the site of application, and is also used to protect the formulation of unpleasant smells. It is not stated on the site, but based on the description, aluminum chloride is probably used in deodorants. Also according to cosmeticsinfo.org, zinc chloride is used in the prevention of odour by suppressing the growth of microorganisms. Its most common application is in oral cavity products such as mouthwashes, but is also can be found in skin care products. According to truthinaging.com, ethylbisiminomethylguaiacol manganese chloride is an active ingredient in sunscreen products.

4. Based on info taken from paulaschoice.com, copper sulfate does not have any impact in skin care product as there is no research to back it up. However, copper sulfate has an effect on wound healing when applied topically.

5. Parabens are the most widely used preservatives in personal care products, according to besthealthmag.ca. If you keep your cosmetics and skin care products in the bathroom, where the likelihood of growth for fungi, bacteria and other microbes is high due to the moisture and warmth in the environment, parabens in those products inhibit the growth of such microrganisms. However, for more information on parabens and its possible effects, search for the keyword 'paraben' at besthealthmag.ca.

We hope that you have become at least a little well-informed as to why these chemicals are in your skin care and personal care products. Thus, don't be alarmed when you come across them in the list of ingredients for any of Living Jungle's skin care products.