Be a Label Sleuth

It was several years ago when I wrote a series of imaginary 'letters' titled, 'Dear Cosmetic World’   I was concerned about the absence of full ingredient listings on too many websites.  Here is an excerpt of that lament.

“I peruse your website and see: ‘Natural Ingredients,  ‘Active Ingredients,  ‘Main Ingredients,  ‘Active Naturals'. In these listings, I read delicious gifts from nature: honey, rose, peach, lime, almonds...Sounds good.  Yet sometimes, no matter how hard I search, I CANNOT FIND a complete listing.  Nowhere on the website. Please list all of the ingredients TOGETHER. Be upfront.”

Today searching is easier and faster.  If the website itself does NOT give the full listing we can usually still find it without too much angst. 

Recently I had a phone call from a customer in British Columbia. She exclaimed,  “I am on your website and I am looking at your ingredient listings.  Very impressive.  However I cannot find any secondary listings.  I am assuming there are other ingredients.  Are there?”

I was pleased to reply.  “They are no other ingredients.  Our products are handmade, from scratch and do have a shelf life.  They are free of chemical preservatives. We list the ingredients in order for each product.  Nothing is hidden.”

We list all ingredients on the label of course.  Law requires this.  We MUST list the INCI name  (International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients) but it is the choice of the company if they wish to add the English name.  The INCI name can allow anyone to find a translation into his or her own language.  This is good. We include INCI, English and French. 

There is another issue I often encounter.  The confusion as to whether an ingredient is OK or not can be so confusing. The Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep mission statement.

‘It's our mission at Environmental Working Group to use the power of information to protect human health and the environment. EWG's Skin Deep database gives you practical solutions to protect yourself and your family from everyday exposures to chemicals. We launched Skin Deep in 2004 to create online profiles for cosmetics and personal care products and their potential hazards and health concerns. Our aim is to fill in where industry and government leave off. Companies are allowed to use almost any ingredient they wish. The U.S. government doesn't review the safety of products before they're sold. Our staff scientists compare the ingredients on personal care product labels and websites to information in nearly 60 toxicity and regulatory databases. Now in its eighth year, EWG's Skin Deep database provides you with easy-to-navigate ratings for a wide range of products and ingredients on the market.’

Care about what you are ‘feeding your skin’. Check out the EWG website when you need to research if an ingredient is safe.  Be a 'sleuth' to ingredients.

Cosmetic World, we want to trust you.  Please continue to share with us all that you are putting into the products we so dearly need and love.

Please do visit us at a show, or at our shop or online.