Banned from our blender: Ingredients we avoid
The blenders in our Newcastle-based Juice Lab operate daily. We like our Skin Juice products nice, nutritious and fresh – which means that our products are only ever produced in small batches. Often no more than 1000 at a time.
Our production team are a small but mighty (and meticulous) team, who have access to a wide array of wonderful ingredients, all of which we research and vigorously check before adding to our blender. All nutritious. All free from harmful chemicals.
We don’t like to compromise and therefore we have never and will NEVER add these following ingredients. Here’s why:
Polyethylene Glycol (PEGs)
These are petroleum-based compounds that are widely used in cosmetics as thickeners, softeners and solvents. They are humectants, meaning that they are also used to attract water molecules to the skin.
We avoid these ingredients as they have been found to contain impurities, including ethylene oxide and 1,4-dioxane. Both substances are known as potential carcinogens as well as skin irritants.
Silicones
Silicones are synthetic materials that are typically colourless oils or rubber-like substances. They’re used in beauty products as they are cheap and make the skin look and feel smooth, but are also water resistant allowing them to form a seal over the skin.
We avoid silicones as they can trap debris in pores, leading to acne and congestion. They can also inhibit other ingredients from absorbing and interfere with the skins’ natural cell renewal process. There is also evidence to suggest that silicones have a negative impact on the environment, in particular aquatic ecosystems.
Artificial colours
Artificial colours are used in skincare for the same reason they are used in many foods and beverages – to make products more appealing. But many of these artificial colours are made using coal tar, petroleum or heavy metal salts like arsenic and lead.
We avoid artificial colours as they can increase the risk of irritation, sensitivity, blocked pores and congestion.
We also don’t see the need to. There are plenty of natural colours and pigments that can do the job but also have other great benefits for the skin. A few of our favourites are spirulina (blue and green), chlorophyll (green) and alkanna tinctoria root (red).
Mineral Oil
Mineral Oils are colourless and odourless oils that are a by-product of the distillation process of petroleum. They have a greasy consistency, which gives the illusion of moisture (think petroleum jelly).
We avoid mineral oils as they are known to be an occlusive ingredient which means that it doesn’t penetrate the skin but instead can sit on top of the skin. This means it can seal off the pores, and prevent the skin from breathing, leading to skin irritations, clogged pores and allergic reactions.
They’re cheap ingredients, which is why they are so widely used, but we prefer to search for and use ingredients that are more harmonious and beneficial to the skin.
Parabens
Parabens are a group of related chemicals that are commonly used as preservatives in beauty products. Their role is to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria and mould within the product.
We realise this makes this ingredient sound positive, particularly when these ingredients are so often used. But in fact, these ingredients are heavily regulated in countries like the UK, EU and Japan – countries that are known to have extremely stringent rules in relation to ingredients – and only certain parabens are deemed OK for use, governed by strict rules as to how much can be used.
We avoid parabens as we prefer to use natural preservative systems instead. Some of these include Sodium Anisate which is obtained from anise and fennel and Sodium Levulinate which is derived from sugar cane.
Phenoxyethanol
Phenoxyethanol is another preservative that is used in beauty products to stabilise, prevent the growth of bacteria and extend shelf life.
This preservative increased in popularity once many brands moved away from using parabens.
This is another ingredient that has restricted use in the UK, EU and Japan. European regulations require its concentration in cosmetics to be limited to 1% in the formulas of finished products. They also restrict its use in products for babies and children.
Again, we avoid using it as we do not see the need when there are natural preservative systems available that have been deemed safe and won’t irritate sensitive skin.
Drying Alcohol
There are different types of alcohols that can appear in your skincare products, with most falling into one of two categories – fatty alcohols and simple or drying alcohols.
Skin Juice uses fatty alcohols in our products such as cetearyl alcohol (an emulsifier derived from coconut oil) and benzyl alcohol (a preservative found naturally in fruits), and cetyl alcohol (emollient, emulsifier and thickener).
We avoid drying alcohols, such as ethanol and isopropyl alcohol. These are often found in toners and gel moisturisers as they give a cooling and refreshing feeling. Drying alcohols can have a dehydrating effect on the skin and strip away the skin’s natural oils and compromise the skin’s natural barrier.