Natural Skin and Hair Care-Products

Natural Skin and Hair Care Products

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Emollients and Their Importance
An emollient is a substance that lubricates and softens the skin. A good emollient gives flexible, smooth skin and gets rid of flaking and hard skin. A high quality emollient hydrate and moistens the skin.

The most effective emollient is water. Oil does not moisten the skin unless it helps to hold in more moisture on the skin. Emollients help to protect the skin and they also stop dryness, which can help to heal the skin. An emollient helps dry skin and also prevents dry skin. It give protection to the skin from synthetic chemicals in make-up and other and sun damage.

Substances that are used as a natural emollient are olive oil, castor oil, coconut oil, avocado oil and other vegetable oils. Substances that act as an emollient derived from animal products are cod liver oil and lanolin. Often supposed natural emollients may be sued with synthetics and hydrocarbons.

The best emollients are phospholipids, phytoglycols (plant oils), fatty acids, fatty acid esters, plant sterols, fatty alcohols, lanolin and items derived from lanolin. The first three are the best. Lecithin is a phospholipids and is a good emollient. Lucithin is also a good surfactant and natural emulsifier.

Mineral oil (a petroleum product) and its derivatives are also used as an emollient in skin care products Mineral cannot be absorbed properly by the body and it is phototoxic, allergenic and it stops the skin from its using its own moisture-producing capacity, which causes dry skin. It is not good to use mineral oil or it derivatives in any cosmetics. The only reason they are used is because they are cheap.

Essential fatty acids work well in emollients and absorption bases as they are similar to the skin’s sebum or lipids.

Sebum is a substance that is made in the sebaceous gland in the epidermis level of the skin. There are around 100 sebaceous glands per square inch of the skin. Sebum lubricates the skin and keeps moisture from evaporating from the skin. It helps preserve the stratum carneum, which is the outer layer of theskin. It protects the skin and is a natural emollient.

Oil-Solubel Emollients Used in Natural Products.
Wax Esters - Beeswax, Lanolin (wool), Jojoba, Candelilla, Carnauba
Steroid Alcohols - Lanolin, Alcohols, Cholesterol
Fatty Alcohols - Cetyl, Stearyl, Oleyl, Lauryl
Triglyceride Esters, Cocao Butter, Vegetable or Animals Oils, African Butter (Shea or Karite Butter)
Phospholipids - Lecithin
Polyhydric Alcohol Esters - Sorbitol, Glycerin, mannitol
Fatty Alcohol, Ethers - Cetyl, Stearyl, Oleyl
Hydrophilic
Lanolin Derivatives - Natural Lanolin.

Emollient Waxes and Oils Not to Use
Wax Ester - Spermacati is sperm whale oil. (Banned in the US), but may be found in products from other countries.
Hydrocarbon Oils & Waxes - Mineral Oil, Paraffin, Petrolaum Silicone Waxes, Caresin, Silicone Oils, Ozokerite.
Polyhydric Alcohol Esters - Propylene Clycol, , Polyethylene Glycol (PEG), Sorbitan (Tweens), Mono and Di-Fatty Acid Esters of Ethylene Glycols, Polyoxyethylene Sorbitol, Propylene Glycol, Diethylene Glycol, Polyethylene Glycol (PEG).

Weakness of Petrolatum in Moisturizers & Cleansers
Silicons and hydrocarbons are often used in moisturizers and in cleansers used for the hair and skin. They do temporarily hydrate and moisterize the skin, as they keep the moisture under them from evaporating because of the barrier caused by the hydrocarbon that they contain.

Petrolatum is greasy and does not wash off easily. Hydrocarbon oils and waxes stop the pentration of emollients. They don’t soften the epidermal upper layer of the skin.

If you regularly use mineral oil it removes the sebum from the skin. For this reason mineral oil should not be used in moisturizing or for skin care products.

Unsaponifiables
Coconut oil is used in most natural soaps because it has the least amount of unsaponifiables. Soy bean and avocado are often used in moisturizers because of their relative big amount of unsaponifiables. Karite Butter has a higher level than Avocado and Soy Bean.

Humectants
Humectants keep the skin moist and they adjust the exchange of moisture between the product and the air. A humectant makes it so the product can gradually release water. Adding glycerine to water makes it wetter.

Some humectants are sorbitol (natural) propylene glycol (a petrochemical) or glycerol or glycerine (either natural or chemical).

Many so-called natural cosmetics and mass produced cosmetics use propylene glycol which is a petrochemical which actually can do harm to the skin. It gives a cream a firmer, consistent consistency which consumers believe should be the texture of a cosmetic cream, which in actually has nothing to do with the actual quality of the product.

Moisturizers
A good natural moisturizer contains essential fatty acids and herbs that lock in moisture and help to fortify the skin’s natural lipid moisture barrier. It should help balance hydrations to lock in moisture and protects the skin from environmental elements.

One ingredients that vegetarian should look out for in moisturizers is collagen, which is derived from cows. There is also vegetarian collagen which is a good moisturizer which is made from an essential fatty acid base mixed with herbs.

Another ingredient that vegetarians should look out for is elastin, which is a dermal protein like collagen that is usually derived from cows. There are also herbal substitutes for elastin.

Also it is good if a moisturizer contain a healing agent that can help with chapping and dry skin. Allontoin is an example of a healing agent that is derived from comfrey root or glyoxylic acid.

Hair Conditioners
To make a hair conditioners manufactures basically used the same chemicals: stearalkonium chloride or stearyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride. They often use the same chemicals used in fabric softeners.

Astringents
It is advised to use an astringent after the skin is cleaned. A good item to use in a natural astringent is Witch Hazel with no alcohol added. It clears the skin of dead skin cells, soap film and oil. An astringent or toner should not contain alcohol, synthetic chemicals or acetone. It is best to use one with a witch hazel base and that also contains aloe vera.

A normal substance used in a synthetic chemical astringent is SD 40 alcohol, which is a type of alcohol used because it does not have a strong “alcohol” odor and the odor it has can easily be covered up by perfume.

Astringents are also used for persons with “oily skin” and they often contain isopropyl alcohol or acetone. Manufacturers often use a herbal smelling type fragrance to cover up the smell which is not derived from any natural herbs.

It may be a good idea to keep an astringent in a refrigerator to keep it fresh.

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