How to Read Beauty Labels: Your A-Z Guide to Skincare Labels
Beauty labels have undergone a lot of change. Due to the emergence of formerly non-existing phrases, as well as innovations in skincare, it has become quite difficult to know exactly what is contained in a beauty product. We have taken out time to put together a guide which will aid you in understanding the real meaning of the information which is contained on beauty labels.
Active ingredients
Active ingredients are simply ingredients which have a pronounced outcome on the skin. Popular examples of active ingredients are ingredients which are contained in products meant for fighting acne. All things being equal, active ingredients occupy the top of ingredients lists which come with beauty labels. Also, there is usually an indication of their proportion in percentage written next to them. The FDA always ensures that active ingredients are regulated. This helps in ensuring that no claim about them is false. PH levels are responsible for how effective active ingredients are. Products which are stronger are known to have negative effects on the skin. More often than not, products with active ingredients are bought because they contain that ingredient.
Alcohol
The sight of alcohol on your beauty label can spark up concerns. This is basically because alcohol is not regarded as something which is good for the skin. Regardless of this, the presence of alcohol in skincare products can be categorised into three parts. These parts are aromatic, simple, or fatty. Simple alcohols pose serious concerns when their concentration in a skincare product is high. The presence of simple alcohol in a skincare product can make the skin dry and this is a major challenge for people with dry skin. If you fall into the class of people with dry skin, make it a point of duty to avoid skincare products which have simple alcohol as a constituent ingredient. Aromatic alcohols play the role of solvents while fatty alcohols help in preventing the loss of moisture. As a result of this, if fatty alcohols and aromatic alcohols are found in the ingredient lists of your skincare products, you should not be worried.
Fragrance
You should pay special attention to this. There is no pronounced regulation on fragrance in the United States. Fragrance basically is regarded as a word which is suitable for ingredients which are used to add a good smell to a skincare product. The truth remains that harmful ingredients can be added to your skincare products and will be labelled as fragrance. For individuals that have sensitive skins, fragrance can bring about irritations. This makes it vital that you keep your eyes open when going through the ingredient lists of skincare products.
Hypoallergenic
You should know this. Products which are allergy-proof do not exist. Allergies are a complex phenomenon and are felt differently by various people. Due to this, there is no standard yardstick for measuring allergies. An ingredient which is considered safe for about 99% of people might bring about allergic reactions in just 1% of people and this definitely counts for something. Whenever you come across hypoallergenic written on any skincare product, it should be regarded as a guide and not necessarily a rule. There are no products which can be said to be a 100% allergy-proof. All products at BBGK have gone through top level dermatological tests to ensure absolute protection.
Natural
The word “natural” is another beauty term which can be said to be overused. Also, it has a federal regulation which is very close to zero. This is one reason why brands can include natural in their labels with no single proof to stand as backup. Due to the gradual increase in prominence of natural products, it has become absolutely important to go through labels carefully as far as the word “natural” is concerned. If the ingredients list which comes with a product is difficult to comprehend, there is a likelihood that such product is not a natural product. Always bear in mind that certain requirements will require certain plants to be written in Latin. This means you have to be wise and pay extra attention.
Organic
The word “organic” is one word that is very well regulated as far as the beauty industry is concerned. When a company claims to have an organic skincare product, the implication is 95% of its ingredients are organic. Organic ingredients are strictly regulated by the USDA and are therefore grown as well as processed under very strict guidelines. In addition to this, organic products are not supposed to have additives as one of their ingredients. If you purchase a beauty product which is certified as being organic, you can be certain that you have purchased a product of top quality.
Raw
Raw ingredients are ingredients that have not gone through any chemical treatment. Usually, ingredients are said to be raw when they have an element or an enzyme which can be easily damaged by processing or heat.
SPF Numbers
If you are of the idea that any substance which is as vital to the skin as SPF is will have a positive effect on federal guidelines, you are wrong. The process of rating which SPF products go through his one that can be easily tweaked. This means that the number which is contained on the label might not be right. A look at the percentage of the SPF ingredients which are active is a better sign of how much protection you are getting from the sun.
Unscented
Amazingly, unscented is not the same as fragrance free. It basically means that the scent in the product cannot be detected. A lot of companies apply fragrances on their products but say they are unscented. If your aim is to avoid fragrances, be on the lookout for ioeugenol, Eugenio geraniol, etc.