How do I choose good natural skin care products?

 It is difficult for a consumer who is not a chemist or otherwise involved in the beauty industry to distinguish a natural and conventional skin care product. And, in truth, there are very few brands that are 100% natural, in part because certain products, such as soap, cannot be made without a small amount of inorganic additive (sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide), and others, such as lotions, require an addition of an emulsifier that can be plant-derived but typically has a synthetic.

Here are a few guidelines to help you pick the most natural products:

Read product ingredients labels (or company website for details on their ingredients).  Look for terms “organic” or “ethically wild-crafted.”

The beginning of the ingredients listing indicates which ingredients are used in the highest quantities. You want as many ingredients as possible at the beginning of the ingredients list to be organic and you definitely want at least some of the essential oils used to be organic or wild-crafted.

In addition, look for terms such as “aromatherapy-grade” in reference to essential oils, “standardized extracts” regarding herbal extractions, and “unrefined cold- or expeller-pressed” in reference to plant oils.

Look for ingredients lists:

• Whose first 3–5 few ingredients are comprehensive in English. The 1st ingredient is often water, so you can skip it (it is natural). But how about the 2nd, 3rd, 4th ingredients? If they don’t aren’t understandable to a lay person, there are likely chemical emulsifiers.
• That don’t list “fragrance.” Fragrance means the product contains synthetic scents.
• That don’t list ingredients such as “D&C Red No. 22” or “FD&C Yellow No. 6.” If a color has a number, it is a synthetic dye.

  Remember that phrases “100% pure” or “all-natural” don’t mean the product is organic.
  Watch out for slogans “100% organic active ingredients”— this could mean that as little as 1% of all ingredients are organic, and the product may be far from all-natural.

  Look for products that contain many organic ingredients, a high percentage of natural content, and use no artificial fragrances, colors or petroleum ingredients.

Look for Products:

• Whose labels state “all-natural” or “100% natural.” Even if the label says the product is only 96–99% natural, these percentages are very high compared with conventional products.
• That claim they are free of synthetic or chemical preservatives.
• That are petroleum-free. Petroleum-derived ingredients such as mineral oil, petroleum jelly, or paraffin are handy inexpensive standbys of the traditional cosmetic industry and they offer no skin care benefits. It is a good sign if a company strives to replace the fillers with other, presumably natural ingredients.
• That are biodegradable. If a product is natural and petroleum-free, it will biodegrade.

Force yourself to disregard catchy marketing taglines, such as “inspired by natural ingredients,” “100% organic active ingredients,” “soap-free,” “sulfate-free,” “inspired by the idea that naturally crafted scent has the power to transform your living space” (I found this tagline on a product whose fragrance was synthetic!), “quadruple-milled,” “fragrance composed in Portugal.” Head straight for the ingredients lists.

Read about your chosen company’s philosophy and mission. From reading the website or printed literature, you will develop a feel for the company, whether the company seems to be really focused on being organic and natural, striving to include wholesome, pure, organic ingredients in their products; or if maybe the company’s main business is a large conventional product line with just a few trendy organic products.

Companies whose whole business is natural and organic do a lot of research to formulate products that conform to the many organic standards and at the same time deliver as promised and have a long shelf life.

All this is still very new to most manufacturers, so a lot of commitment, many rounds of tests, and patience are required. These manufacturers tend to know a lot about evaluating ingredients, and they are interested in following new developments in the organic movement.

Look for Brands: 

• Whose philosophy aligns with the green and organic movements. Large brands that suddenly appear converts to naturals may only be willing to reformulate a handful of products to natural but will most likely not conduct an expensive overhaul of their entire offering.
• That strive to be as natural as possible but ask the customer to change habits to help protect the precious food-like potions by refrigerating them, shaking or stirring to remix, or get used to products that aren’t bleach white but instead are honey brown, caramel, green, or off white (natural plant butters and herbal extracts are almost never colorless or stark white).
• That have the seal Certified Natural Cosmetics (though keep in mind that new or small companies may not have the seal because they can’t yet afford getting certified).
• That have been accepted for sale by reputable natural- and organic-minded retailers.