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How important are ingredients in your beauty products?
How important are ingredients in your beauty products? Do you read ingredient lists?
I’m most concerned about ingredients when they’re being applied to face/cheeks, but I usually scan the ingredient lists for most products these days. I watch out for fear mongering, though, and focus on avoiding or limiting ingredients I know my skin seems to have sensitivity to.
Thanks to Laura for today’s question! Got a question idea? Submit yours here.
I’ve never paid special attention to the ingredients because I don’t understand anything… Are there certain ingredients that we have go avoid??? :/
I’m fairly similar. And I hate fear mongering. Seriously, if a product wasn’t safe it wouldn’t be for sale.
Pretty important! Beyond trying to avoid the usual baddies (parabens, phlatates, etc.) I like to check and see how much of the advertised ingredients actually make it into products.
Particularly for eye serums and face creams — I want to see ingredients that are known to be effective (AHAs, Retinol, Vitamin C, hyaluronic acid) and minimal fillers, emulsifiers, and preservatives. And they should be high on the ingredient listing. Value for money!
I don’t necessarily budget myself when I buy products, but I won’t buy something I don’t consider good value for the money. I’d probably never buy a lipstick for more than $30 because I know MAC is decent quality — that sort of thing.
Perfume is trickier because when you find one you love, there’s usually not a good dupe out there. And buying larger bottles is more economical, but you don’t want to end up being sick of the stuff before you’ve finished it!
Christine, is there a way to submit questions without using Outlook? My copy of it expired and I can’t buy another one right now.
You can do so any method – you just need to make it so Outlook is not your default email application. The link merely opens up a blank email with the proper email address, it has nothing to do with Outlook. 🙂
I’m not very sensitive to anything at all, so I guess I draw the line at safety. For example, neon pigments will not get anywhere near my eyes. I do tend to avoid eyeshadows with kaolin as a filler, since it applies and blends crummy.
I’m against fear-mongering above everything, though! Parabens ARE safe. MUCH safer than preservative-free products (which tends to have very, very short shelf life, and becomes dangerously rancid after)
As far as ingredients, I try to keep everything except makeup as chemically simple as possible. I did a good deal of research and spoke with a neurologist that I know. We made a list of chemicals that really don’t need to be in personal care items. I started by getting rid of anything with 1,4 dioxane, because they find that particular chemical in tumors. Guess what – it was in my son’s baby shampoo. I then cut anything ending in “-eth”, like Sodium Laureth Sulfate out of my cabinets. SLS makes things like shampoo foamy. I kept cutting until I had things that I knew wouldn’t harm my family. Basically, I shop at Whole Foods and neither husband nor son has complained. Be sure to read the labels, though, even there.
For makeup, I look to be sure that mineral oil is either absent or not on the list of ingredients at all. I have oily lids and mineral oil decreases my makeup’s staying power.
As far as budgeting, I don’t spend the mortgage or the gas money. Aside from that? Nope, all my clothing, shoe and jewelry money gets spent on makeup.
I’d love to know WHAT I am sensitive to. I think there is an ingredient in Estee Lauder double wear foundation which really is just terrible for my skin, but I’d have no idea how to pinpoint what ingredient that was so I could look out for it in the future.
I always read the ingredients lists. I don’t think my skin is too sensitive to any one ingredient or maybe I just don’t know but if a product irritates me then I just wont’ use it. I usually avoid parabens, silicones, mineral oil (but it’s also shown to help lock in moisture and I look to high-rating products even if it has this and test it out myself) and physical blockers in sunscreen. I prefer the “natural” ingredients but not everything natural or mineral is good. I have phases though. Sometimes I feel life’s too short to care too much and sometimes I go for an all-natural phase. 😀
When i look at ingredients, i dont understand a word, so i tend not to worry about whats inside them, all i know ia, if i keep getting breakouts or a reaction after using a product, then i shouldnt use it.
I found that my skin usually rebels against any ingredient at the top of the list that ends with ‘cone. Silicone primer breaks my skin out so bad I get deep lumps under the skin. Which is mindboggling because I will be 50 yrs old in mid december. Yes even at my age I have to be careful of ingredients. Even sunscreens with a ‘cone it them will leave my skin in havoc.
Sadly, your skin doesn’t care how old you are; just what your hormones order it to do. XD
Nope! I have no allergies, so I don’t have to look out for anything. And I’ve read that there’s no proof that parabens cause any problems in skin, so I don’t care if it’s in them. Basically, I just want to know if the product works. Whether it contains parabens, mineral oil, silicone, doesn’t matter to me.
i always read ingredients lists because i am vegan and don’t use any animal products. i also try to avoid phthalates, parabens, and other yucky ingredients.
I totally pay attention to the ingredient lists on my makeup & beauty products!! I have really sensitive skin and I’m allergic to a couple of things that are pretty common in a lot of beauty products. I was actually jumping for joy when the Canadian FDA announced that all makeup and beauty products had to have the ingredients listed somewhere on the packaging. 🙂 I don’t think it’s so much about fear mongering as it is about personal safety.
That’s not fear-mongering — totally different 🙂
Very, very important. I *have* to avoid silicones in any formulation and any amount. Otherwise it’s breakout city. Also, I don’t bother with products that contain mostly fillers. You know, the ones that claim they have all these awesome butters and oils and you find them listed down below the fragrance? Yeah, none of that crap ever comes home with me.
I’m also not a fan of fear mongering. And I can’t stand when someone gets on a rant and claims “if you can’t pronounce it, it’s bad for you”, which is absolute nonsense. If you bother to educate yourself (it’s not hard with the internet) a little, you’d know that everything *is* a chemical and *has* a chemical name. Sure there really are some things out there to avoid, but learn to differentiate the actual problem ingredients from the benign. I definitely believe in educating yourself about the crap you stick in, on, or around your body as much as possible. And experimenting to find out what works best.
Even though I have allergies and Eczema, the only things that have so far triggered a nasty reaction are Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, and Oxybismuth Chloride.
A short list, yes, but a list of ingredients that are in 95% of the things out there.
I avoid sulfates in shampoo and alcohol in toners. I almost always read ingredients labels, especially when shopping high-end to see if there are similar formulas to drugstore products. I’m not big into scare-mongering either, especially with parabens — there is no concrete evidence they cause cancer, so I’m not worried.
I don’t even check unless I’m getting something for my mom; she’s allergic to fragrance.
¡Muy importante para mí! I have acne-prone skin that is also sensitive and oily to boot. So I have a laundry list of ingredients I need to avoid to maintain homeostasis for my skin. It sucks at times.
Knowing ingredients is critical for me. I react too easily to certain ingredients, so I read everything for skincare, makeup, and hair products. With much trial and error over the years – I now know what will tend to break me out or make me red or cause itching.