Category: Cosmetics

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SKIN AND THE FRENCH CONNECTION

 Lets look at the relationship between skin and the French connection.  What you need to know is that the French perception of beauty and skin care is much different from the American perspective.  Skin does not soley exist by itself, but by the personification of our actions.  Why is it that Americans have always looked toward the French with the anticipation that they hold the the secret to the fountain of youth of skin and its ageless existence.  Well for one thing that the French and Americans do not have in common is overbathing.  As I remembered in younger days are month trip to Europe, and our concerns with bathrooms and showers, which caught the attention of hotel attendees.  American’s so were preoccupied with cleanliness and showers, soaps, scrubs and why is it that the French don’t shower as much?  Maybe that it is naturally unconvenient or inaccessible or part of French culture and  or simply just not important.  But the contradiction of not bathing was that your skin would retain its natural oils and its visual heathiness.  I don’t condone not bathing, but simple smart bathing.  Smells are produced by bacteria.  Its not important to lather up or soap up your arms chest legs hands.  Simply because these areas just don’t get dirty. Showering or bathing daily, every other day etc. I only cleanse with mild soap as they would say my “private parts”.   Underarms, and you know the rest, if your male or female…  the other parts of your body do not need to be salt scrub, loofah’d, wash clothed to death or brushed to the perceived illusion of cleanliness.  Cleanliness is not about tearing and stripping your skin to oblivion.

When I was young my Father would make lite regarding the event of bathing, “It wasn’t Saturday”, he would say.  In other words bathing was a once a week event.  My father would work the fields and handle cattle on a ranch, you could only imagine, but this was acceptable part of society for that time, late 1930’s. Of course, during the rest of the week people would use a wash cloth or rinse off, in order to quick cleanse. But there was that one day, Saturday, that would be bathing day.  When you take a look at the past and analyze the present there is a difference.  It’s just important to be aware that there is a different truth and reality than what is mainstream marketed.

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MINERAL OIL: NATURAL OR NOT NATURAL, A MARKETING FALLACY?

I often am posed questions with regards to our products use of mineral oil, and how destructive it is to the skin. Though I have never seen studies to show otherwise. I found that representatives of the cosmetic industry have been passing the information of bad news of mineral oil. The perception that mineral oil as an undesirable ingredient continues through word of mouth, without any real basis in fact. Actually, mineral oil is a safe, effective, time-proven ingredient, preferred by many formulators. Yes, its inexpensive, but by far has effective characteristics that cannot be beat, the bottom line is that they work. Mineral Oil unfortunately gets a bad rap because it sounds so unnatural, but is actually as natural as any plant.  It is actually one of the most exceptional, least irritating, least problematic-causing ingredients for the skin.  Mineral Oil is of course a “natural” product, derived from purifying crude oil, and it’s  origins are derived from the degradation of plant material.  Therefore mineral oil in not sythesized, it occurs naturally in the earth, and is simply purified to the final state.

When mineral oil is incorporated into a cosmetic product, it requires less preservatives than using natural products. There is no doubt that there are impeccable qualities in “naturally” derived plant oils, but of course, need more preservatives to counteract growth of molds and bacteria, due to many nutrients that it contains.  In addition, mineral oil has little or no allergic reactions when compared to natural oils, and is number one recommended as a moisturizer for acne-prone skin.  Orally, mineral oil can be ingested with no side effects.  It is also known that hydrocarbons of a parafinic structure, such as mineral oil, exist naturally in human skin.

Mineral oil remains a key moisturizing ingredient due to (1) its well-documented reduction of transdermal water loss, and (2) its greater barrier to water vapor transmission than that of many other commonly used emollients.  In animal studies, it has been shown that mineral oil has no comedogenic potential.  More astonishing, when mineral oil was tested on humans, it was found to be completely non-comedogenic, compared to many plant derived oils.  Topical use of mineral oil does not represent a local or systemic toxicity risk to humans.  The most common function that mineral oil plays in cosmetics is one of moisturizing. It has been known for decades that efforts to overcome dry skin usually involve applying a moisture barrier to the skin surface which will retard the loss of water from the stratum corneum through evaporation. The reduction of this transepidermal water loss is what is meant by the term “moisturization”, even though no water is actually lost.

Remember, Petrolatum and Mineral Oil are natural products derived from degraded plant material from prehistoric times.  Be aware of mainstream marketing.  For example, just because a cosmetic company claims “oil free”, doesn’t mean it is.  Synthetic oils must be called “oil free”, because it was not derived naturally.  Only a natural derived products can be identified as an “oil”.  It is alway imperative not to believe everything that is mainstream marketed, but question and seek answers.