The Natural vs the Chemical
The Natural vs The Chemical
What’s the Difference Between Natural & Chemical Ingredients?
Natural
A product that includes ingredients from natural sources within the product listing.
Chemical
A product that includes ingredients not derived from natural sources but made in a lab to mimic the functions of the skin.
Your natural-based skincare products are made up of non-artificial ingredients such as honey, propolis, vegetable and fruit oils, plants, fruit extracts and fruit acids. The natural skincare product is known to nourish and treat your skin in a natural way. Most of your natural products are high in anti-oxidants. They assist your body in slowing down the ageing process, which creates younger, vibrant looking skin.
Even though there are a lot of products out there that claim that they are a natural skincare range, you need to keep in mind that not all-natural products are created equal. The formulations used vary from brand to brand.
Many of the brands are still using silicone in their products to make their creams and lotions feel more luxurious. Even though silicone feels nice on the skin once it is applied, it does not add any real value to the product.
Chemical-based products are made up of synthetic and chemical ingredients. Some of the chemicals used in these products can make the product more effective, but it increases the chances of you developing skin allergies, rashes, irritations and side effects. The chemicals used are often very harsh on the skin and too abrasive for people with sensitive skin.
Most of the times chemical-based products can cause more harm than good! You are at risk of premature ageing if you use chemicals on your skin continuously. When using chemicals it tends to exhaust your skin over time and cause your skin to sag. This is caused by the chemicals breaking down your natural elastin in your body.
Finally, chemical-based skin care products can in fact cause acne. Most of the chemicals used in the products can cause impurities in the skin which results in an acne-like breakout.
One of the most common ingredients is mineral oil. Mineral oil has been known to attract free radicals. Free radicals cause the skin to break out, can cause early ageing and can damage the skin to the point where it is irreversible.
The main differences between natural and chemical based products
Natural
- Better for your skin and is not likely to cause skin allergies.
- The shelf life decrease as the product is natural and does not contain parabens.
- Not toxic to the skin.
- Helps your skin slow down the ageing process due to the anti-oxidants in the product.
- Safe to use on children and people with sensitive skin.
- Results take longer to see however, it is longer lasting.
Chemical
- The chemicals and synthetic ingredients are likely to cause skin allergies and reactions.
- Has a longer shelf life due to the preservatives in the products.
Can be toxic to the skin depending on the ingredients. - Damages your skin when used long term and depletes the skin’s natural elastin production.
- Not safe to use on sensitive skin types or on children.
- Results are seen in a shorter period of time however, the effects are not long-lasting.
So where do I stand?
We always tell our customers that your body is natural, so it will respond better to natural products rather than chemical-based products. Once they move onto natural-based skincare products, their skin looks healthier and stays healthier for longer.
There are times where chemicals are needed to take care of severe skin conditions and/or disorders. Having said that, people who do not have severe skin conditions, are better off using natural skincare products, because your skin will react better to natural products than chemical products.
Our skin is the largest organ of our body and when we use chemicals on it, we are busy poisoning it and our other organs. It is of utmost importance that we take extra care of our skin and treat it properly. More and more people are becoming more conscious of what type of food they eat, making sure that we do enough exercise each day to keep our heart healthy, wanting to adopt a healthier lifestyle, but we tend to forget about our skin.
We tend to want something which is a ‘quick fix for our skin but forget the long term effects this may present.
Whether it is a body lotion, face wash, anti-ageing serums or acne routine, your skin absorbs over half of the product we put onto it. This in turn takes 26 seconds to pass into our bloodstream and onto vital organs! Why do we punish our skin by exposing it to toxins that will damage it?
- What type of product do you use today?
- What type of product will you use tomorrow?
You now have all the tools you need to make an informed decision about which skincare products you are going to buy and why. Just remember, the products we use on your skin today, are going to affect the way our skin looks in the future.
Let us know if this article has helped you make an informed choice.
