Cheat Sheet for Recognizing Toxins in Cosmetics:
- Read the labels on your skincare products before you buy them.
- SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate) and SLES (sodium laureth sulfate) are the common sulfates that you spot on the labels of your shampoos and other personal care.
- Chemicals under methyl, butyl, propyl classes fall under parabens.
- Toluene is often labelled as benzene, phenylmethane, toluol and methylbenzene.
- PEGs can be spotted as numbers like 100, 120, 14M, 30, 32, 40, 75 and so on.
- Formalin, formaldehyde, glyoxal and bronopol on the labels of skincare products indicate formaldehyde.
- Diethanolamine is abbreviated as DEA on skincare products.
- Ethanol, methanol, denatured alcohol, ethyl alcohol are all drying alcohols.
- Mineral oil, benzene, paraffin wax and compounds that end in -eth are also petrolatum ingredients.
- FD&C or D&C represent artificial colors. F means food and D&C means drugs and cosmetics.
- Look for beauty brands that are transparent and disclose all their ingredients.
- Consider natural brands that are not just safe, but also contain potent ingredients.
- Don’t be quick in judging a natural brand as some of the natural, plant-derived ingredients can also turn out to be an irritant for you.
Source: https://skinkraft.com/blogs/articles/toxic-chemicals-in-cosmetics
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