Natural vs Chemical Skin Care

[Maxxierie]

I think that having a balance between using chemical enhanced skincare and natural products could significantly improve ones skin.

 

[Serenity*Now]

I'm by no means an expert, but I do consider ingredients as well as environment toxin exposure, organic food, stress reduction and other health-related things. My skin (unfortunately) is not a reflection of my lifestyle or the care that goes into the products I choose/use.
I'm a living example of 'what works for some, does not work for all'. But I these threads bc it's about helping each other and sharing (positive) information.
No matter how much standing on my head I do (yoga) or plant-based products I apply topically or ingest etcetcetc...I DO NOT HAVE FLAWLESS SKIN. I will keep searching and keep researching with an open mind until I find what works for me --regardless of its source.

edit:What I also mean to say is: just like some people offset their carbon emissions by planting trees, for example, I not only try to be healthy in all areas of my life for many other reasons besides skin but...if it does so happen that I'm going to use something on my face that *might* be risky, I'm hoping all the other proven, non-risky, healthy things I do will offset it!

 

[modern jap]

lecturing? by you asking why i'm lecturing would be the same thing as me asking why you responded... it's because were all sharing info and in a conversation, it has nothing to do with a lecture.

to serenity- i think aside from the products you use, what you put into your body food wise- and your body's reaction, may be a result of what your skin may look like. not saying that you eat unhealhty, and i practice yoga as well so i could say from a broad sense we have similar beliefs. but you never know if you could be eating something that your body is allergic to and it comes out through your skin, or it could be related to hormones- just a thought when i am sick or feel out of whack in any way, i try to shock my body with an over-abundance of greens- go to whole foods and get the green super food powder (if you don't already have it) and try to drink it once or twice a day, in juice or a smoothie or water, idk, maybe it will offset something! unfortunately it's impossible to have control over EVERYTHING but good luck! xo!

 

[Serenity*Now]

Thank you, ModernJap
...it's hard to really know each other on these boards but what you are saying is totally valid and I've been there, done that. I've had blood testing for food allergies and hormones (still do yearly), skin testing for other allergens, I eat VERY clean and organic. Yup, do a super anti-oxidant shake with green foods every day...etc etc. I've have done or tried almost everything. So, what I was trying to say is, through a process of select and elimination, I'm doing everything darn possible. It is "your mileage may vary."
I console myself with the fact that my skin is nowhere near "nice" even (I'm under several derm's, medical aesth, and plastic surg's care) it would probably be a whole lot worse if I didn't do all those things.
(Thanks, mom & dad for those great skin genes )
But to those who haven't, doing little tweaks like diet and using a more simple skincare routine could be the missing piece! There are PLENTY of tfs-ers who report back that just becoming vegetarian, or non-dairy, or doing yoga, or cutting out this/that/theother or using tea tree oil has made significant differences.

 

[Drusilla_]

I guess I have a slightly different understanding of what "natural" skin care means, than what's been said on the thread so far....I grew up using a lot of natural ingredients directly on my skin instead of having them in lotion/cream form (ranging from coconut/olive oil for head massages, to Fuller's Earth/cucumber for face packs, to applying the pulp of papayas and other fruits to my skin to make it less dry). Even the face scrub I use in place of soap now is a homemade concoction. And I try to do a rosewater wipe whenever I can.

I know it sounds all holier than thou, but even though it's been great for my skin, it happens to be rather cumbersome- this stuff takes time, and lots of time. Apart from the scrubs and wipes which take only a couple of minutes to wipe off, it's just not doable on a daily basis, which is why modern skincare is necessary too. I use products from a line called Biotique, which work fine for me because they're light in texture and hypoallergenic, but ultimately it's important for your skincare routine to be something that suits your life. If what makes my skin feel best is a Shiseido moisturiser, I'm not going to refuse to use it because it isn't "natural". And even though moisturising is important, I still think what you put in your body is far more important- getting more green vegatables and drinking lots of water might go a much longer way towards keeping skin 'good' than any external skincare ever could

 

[Acid]

How Natural Is Natural

A cultural move toward "natural" and away from man-made chemicals is a current theme voiced by skincare consumers.

​

There is a considerable misinterpretation of the word "natural" when used in the skin care industry. It has become a popular feature on product labels of most companies, but, unfortunately this has no scientific basis. In the skin care industry "natural" describes products composed of botanical raw materials and from other earth derived elements found in nature.

From a physiological prospective, what is natural to plants is frequently foreign to the Human Body. Generally, active substances produced in plants do not physiologically exist in the human body. Although plants and humans are both part of Mother Nature, they are two different entities.

It is true that humans consume plants for nutritional purposes. However, the plants then undergo metabolic processes in the digestive system that decomposes, absorbs and synthesizes into new components and then the body eliminates what has not been used. The skin cannot undergo these metabolic processes and eliminate the excess nutrients, which results in clogging of intercommunication between skin cells and as an outcome, the negative impact on the skin in a long run. Therefore, these "natural products" are acting superficially and non-physiologically on the skin outer cellular level.

 

[michyed]

^Thank you for that - couldn't have put it any better!

 

[silk skin paws]

I don't use all natural product although I try to reduce my exposure to chemical laden products. It's about 1/2 and 1/2 for me.

Lots of products have the "all natural" label when it's far from being all natural and that's what annoys me the most.

 

[modern jap]

That's why you have to read the ingredients and do research on your own. labels are completely misleading, but if you look into exactly what is in the products, you will read very negative things about the harmful chemicals regular skin includes, rather than the less harsh and earth-derived ingredients in natural skin care. and not because someone says its natural skin care, because it is mostly false, you really have to make yourself knowledgeable about what is actually inside of the products.