Skincare Hazards

Is soap bad for my face?

Soap can be bad for some people's faces. If you've got a tendency to eczema and to dry skin, then soap which is a detergent, a solid detergent, can degrease your skin even more and make it drier. If you find your skin is dry, your hands are dry, your face is dry, you should then stop using soap and use a moisturizing lotion as a gentle wash.

Are deodorants bad for my skin?

Deodorants are only bad for your skin if you happen to be sensitized or irritated by them. If the skin gets itchy or red then you're using it too often. Some people can only tolerate deodorant under the arm every second or third night, otherwise they get irritated, so it depends on your skin sensitivity. They're not dangerous for you, although there is this debate about certain ingredients and breast cancer in women. It's not proven, but that's an ongoing discussion.

What chemicals in cosmetics should I avoid using?

If the cosmetic or a cosmeceutical, such as our own creams - they should all comply as we do with EEC guidelines of what is the safe and allowed amounts of types of chemical that we're allowed to formulate with. So, if it's a company that follows those guidelines, you should be alright. Make sure that you look for the label that contains all the ingredients, and if you have any questions, don't use it. The other issue is that anybody can become sensitised to one of the ingredients. There's a great myth that preservatives are harmful. In fact, preservatives aren't necessarily harmful. Some of the preservatives, for example, Parabens is an excellent and very safe preservative. And, there's another myth that all botanicals are safe. They're not. Some of the botanicals can be some of the most common sensitisers. The secret is to get a product that's get EEC listed ingredients, EEC approved listed ingredients. Get one you like. If you get any irritancy from them, you can stop them. My own products, as I say, have been thoroughly tested, and they contain a combination of safe, effective botanicals plus safe, effective preservatives. And that's the key. But it depends on there are products out there that don't follow the guidelines. So, you have to be wary.

Are organic beauty products safer for my skin?

As with many things, this trend to think that anything organic is good for you, and while organically grown vegetables are a very good idea, and I am a big supporter of that, I'm not convinced that orgainically producd cream ingredients are that important. They're a clever marketing ploy and I don't think that they contain anywhere close to the chemicals that would be harmful to the skin. I think some of the botanicals are great. We incorporate, for example, some very important naturally occurring antioxidants as botanicals in our own range. So there are some very good botanicals, but I'm not convinced they have to be organic, and I'm also not convinced that they truly are organic.