We are all well-versed on why we should favour cleaner skincare, but with so much on the market, how do we decipher what’s the correct approach? For starters, we need to differentiate between “organic” and “natural”, two words often used in tandem, and become adept at reading labels, which according to the law, are required to state the truth.
Organic products undertake stricter more stringent testing and face tougher regulations. As such, they must have a 95-100% chemical-free ingredient list, as such, whereas natural products can “get away” with being 50-70% chemical free.
Organic uses ingredients free from pesticides, artificial fertilisers and chemicals. A play with words can also make all the difference: a label reading “certified organic” must have at least 95% organic ingredients, while “made with organic ingredients” only requires 70% organic ingredients.
From this, we can expect organic products to be pricier, but is it worth the splurge? Considering your epidermis is your largest (and most absorbent) organ, I’d say it certainly is. As technology and science develop, more innovative products have emerged on the market than ever before, but not all of them will do us good in the long-term. There are plenty of questionable chemicals in today’s products and it’s simply up to us to educate ourselves about the difference between these labels and know when to go organic and when we don’t have to.
The 8Shades Primer to Reading Labels:
Organic beauty products:
- 95-100% chemical-free;
- free from pesticides;
- free from artificial fertilisers;
- free from chemicals.
Natural beauty products:
- 50-70% chemical-free ingredients;
- Typically refers to plant-based ingredients, rather than strictly organic ones.
- Remember, a natural product with a label that reads “organic ingredients” only needs to contain 70% organic ingredients.