Developments and Issues in Skincare

The Trend Towards Chemical Free Beauty Products

Anna-Marie Solowij, a contributing editor at Vogue, has given us an interesting tour d'horizon of the trend in the Beauty sector, to "remove the haul of chemicals in formulations". Ms Solowij notes "any new brand had better be formulated with a green consumer in mind because lately, it seems, what has been taken out of a beauty product is more important than what has been put in".

Katie May formulated the Yin Yang range of Skincare products back in 1972 paying attention to both sides of this argument - what went in: botanical and mineral ingredients from nature, and what did not go in: unnecessary chemicals and detergents. See the description of Yin Yang Skin Cleanser.

But safety is an issue too and Ms Solowij notes that products have to be formulated to avoid the growth of bacteria. We know all about this at Yin Yang, having become specialists in using the Biovert enzymatic preservative system that has enabled us to avoid using parabens preservatives - described by Ms Solowij as being "at the top of Britain's public enemy number one list".

What goes in to products is of vital importance however - as women who care about their skin know - because the active ingredients are the key to the effectiveness of a product. And sometimes those unnecessary chemicals - preservatives and buffers - actually work against the active ingredients and do harm to the skin. pH is a case in point - keeping the pH levels of the skin in the range that is most suitable for the defensive microflora of bacteria that inhabit our skin - 4,0 - 5,0 is easily disturbed by poorly formulated products.

Anna- Marie Solowij's article can be found at page 7 of the Life & Arts section, Financial Times, Saturday 4th October.