Kalisa’s Quest:
The last time I was having my hair done, I asked my stylist to help me find some product for my hair. I told him that I’d tried several different things, but I just can’t achieve the look I’m going for. I want to know how to get that slightly wet, slightly “greasy” look, without it being “crunchy,” and he said, “You need a product with silicone” and sold me something [Bumble & Bumble defrizz] with “cyclopentasiloxane” as the main ingredient. Why do you suppose he recommended silicone and what purpose does it serve in a hair product?
The Right Brain Says:
We’re glad your stylist recommended this silicone because it’s one of our mostest favorite ingredients in the whole wide world! In fact, the Left Brain has even written a short musical tribute to Cyclopenatasiloxane (or ‘Siloxane, as we like to refer to it.) I’m not really supposed to share it with you, but what the heck….
(sung to the tune of the “Troggs’ Wild Thing”)
‘Siloxane…you make my hair shine…
You make everything
Shiny
I said ‘Siloxane…
‘Siloxane, I think I love you
But I wanna know for sure
Comb in, hair is bright
I love you
It kind of brings a tear to your eye, doesn’t it? Now, on to your answer.
Cyclopentasiloxane (or CPS for short) is one of many types of silicones. In general, silcones are known for their ability to lubricate, waterproof and provide shine. (Think “Armor All” for your head.) There are many types of silcones – some have a very heavy, sticky consistency and others are very lightweight. CPS is a water-thin so it’s very good at dispersing thicker, greasier silicones. For this reason it’s often used in combination with dimethicone. It is also volatile, which means it will evaporate. So, not only does it help spread heavier silicones but it doesn’t leave your hair feeling weighed down after it’s done.
In rinse off products CPS is used to create a very lubricious, wet slippery feel. In the kinds of leave on styling products that you asked about, it can give you the wet but not crunchy look you’re seeking. Of course, the other ingredients in the formula make a difference too, but that’s why your stylist recommended something based on CPS.
The Beauty Brains bottom line:
CPS is one of our fave ingredients – it provides a very elegant feel on the hair, it works well with other ingredients, and it can be used in leave on and rinse off products. What more could you ask for from an ingredient?
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I am wondering why this ingredient that is so marvelous for my hair and makes it oh so shiny, is also the 2nd ingredient listed for a night cream that I am thinking about using.
I have been researching these cosmetic ingredients. Cyclopentasiloxane is the first ingredient in Oil of Olay Regenerist. I think it’s in there mostly because it feels good. It coats the skin and gives it a silky feel. Get your hands on some pure rosehip seed oil and you will get the same effect with a natural product.
You won’t get the same effect because rosehip seed oil does not evaporate from the skin. Cyclopentasiloxane does so your skin won’t feel greasy.
Rosehip seed oil absorbs into the skin leaving the skin feeling soft and moisturized. It takes less than a minute. And it is plant based and natural.
Cyclopentasiloxane may evaporate without residue and leave the skin feeling silky, but it’s a chemical which is available by the 55 gallon drum from dozens of chemical companies. I’d rather use safe and natural substances on my skin.
You can buy a 55 gallon drum of rosehip oil too so I don’t see what that has to do with anything. And cyclomethicone is made from sand. What is more natural than sand?
Nothing is more natural than sand or poison ivy for that matter, neither of which I would intentionally rub on my face.
However, in the case of
cyclopentasiloxane which is what we are actually discussing, I personally would prefer to use natural,less refined, plant based products on my skin. I do realize that most big companies need to use preservatives and cheaper ingredients because they spend alot of money on advertising and packaging rather than quality ingredients and their products need to have a long shelf life.
See: marshallbrain.blogspot.com/2004/02/price-of-things-comparison-last.html
where he talks about Olay Regenerist.
well said Ann Marie! very suspicious website this one. i wonder who sponsors it!! apparently the delightful ‘cyclopentasiloxane’ so unscientifically described by Right Brain in lyrical terms easily understandable to us plebs can stay in your body for five years…i don’t need cheap unnecessary ingredients in my cosmetics/hair products that do nothing but give the appearance of effectiveness while possible leaving residual foreign substances in my body!! the two Brains completely missed Ann Marie’s point, which is that dear old Siloxane (along with all other silicones) only SEEMS to do something good for you (make your skin feel soft, your hair look healthy etc by creating an ILLUSION of softness), whereas there are natural products out there (such as rose hip oil) that actually DO moisturize your skin and protect it. that is why most cosmetic creams and conditioners never ever say “this product will DO this”, they say “this product will HELP your [hair, skin] FEEL LIKE this”. it’s totally absurd and transparent! and anyone who tries to convince us otherwise is doing the public a great disservice!!
Bravo,
Thanks so much for your brilliant insights. You’ve really added a lot to the conversation…not.
You can see all of our sponsors on this site. We exist only because of the people that advertise on our blog. That doesn’t mean we endorse them. We are perfectly willing to tell people products are no good if we think that even if they are advertisers.
You’ve made a lot of points and haven’t provided any proof. Where is your proof that cyclomethicone will stay in your body for 5 years?
You seem to suggest that siloxane and cyclomethicone are the same ingredients. Where is your proof of this? I work with the materials and know the different properties of them. What science do you know that we don’t?
Where is your proof that it only SEEMS to be doing something for your skin? How about some proof that rose hip oil is any good?
How about proof of anything that doesn’t involve your own opinion?
We really like to have comments from people who have thought through their responses and aren’t just parroting things they learned in cosmetology school. Do you have any proof of anything?
Before you slather it on your skin, READ THE SECOND PARAGRAPH (from Wikipedia):
“Cyclopentasiloxane is a silicone fluid commonly used in cosmetics such as deodorants, sunblocks and hair sprays. It is becoming more common in hair conditioners, as it makes the hair easier to brush without breakage. It is also used as part of silicone based personal lubricants.
“However,if you use too much on your skin it can stay in your body tissue for over 5 years.”
I’m not sure I like the sound of that!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclopentasiloxane
Sarah,
You do realize that anyone can write anything in Wikipedia right? There are editors and mistakes (like this one) get corrected.
There is no proof that cyclomethicone (cyclopentasiloxane) can stay in your body tissue for over 5 years. Unless it’s hiding behind the chewing gum that stays in your body for 7 years. (That was a joke).
I appreciate all the comments to my inquiry about cyclopentasiloxane. Since my first comment about this ingredient, I have tried a few (skin products) with this ingredient, just to get an actual “feel” for it. A beauty consultant at a local CVS recommended a product from Lumene called beauty base. She said it was weightless and would make my foundation go on more evenly. I then looked at the ingredients and found that cyclopentasiloxane was the first one. The experience was exactly what I thought it would be. It was like I had put a silone hair product on my face, not a fresh and clean feeling at all. I will stick to the occasional use of this product on my hair.
Go to the Canadian site http://www.chemicalsubstanceschimiques.gc.ca/challenge-defi/541-02-6_e.html
and read why the canadian Gonverment tries to ban cyclopentasiloxane from the beauty industry. It is not only a skin & eye irritant but harms the enviroment too.
what do you think about the use of CYCLOPENTASILOXANE as nail dryer?
I went to that Canadian website and cyclopenasiloxane is classified as a high health priority for action. And I quote ”
Through the categorization exercise, the high health priorities for action were those substances identified by various agencies as representing a high health hazard on the basis of potential to induce cancer, and/or adversely affect reproduction and development, two critical determinants of the health of Canadians of all ages.”
Hmmm… Left Brain. What is more natural than sand? Apparently not CYCLOPENTASILOXANE.
Many thanks to Ann Marie, bravo and Investigator! When I reported some disturbing information regarding Cyclopentasiloxane, Left Brain immediately went to the Wikipedia site and removed the sentence which offended her (without providing any evidence to the justify its removal, I might add.)
Her reply to me (see above): “You do realize that anyone can write anything in Wikipedia right?”
Obviously, Left Brain has proven the point that ANYONE can write ANYTHING!
Thanks again to those contributors who have submitted scientific links regarding this chemical.
Yeah, that was my point. Why would you believe something written in Wikipedia without any further validation?
Where is the scientific link that says cyclomethicone can last in your skin for 5 years?
If you’re afraid of cyclomethicone and are convinced by the regulatory action of the Canadian government (who hasn’t banned the material incidentally) then don’t use it. Don’t use any chemical you’re not comfortable.
Just don’t tell other people that they shouldn’t use it either. Regulatory agencies are run by lawyers not scientists. So, the decisions made by governments are not scientific ones.
Personally, I find no convincing evidence of health issues caused by using cyclomthicone in cosmetics. But I’m always willing to read and learn more if you can point me in the right direction.
I notice nobody seemd to notice she said the rosehip will not disolve therefore it stays on your face ! Which means it will CLOG your pores – hello yuk ewwwww ! Therefore Cyclopentasiloxane works for me
Actually, the beauty brains said it does not “evaporate” not “dissolve”. Rosehip seed oil is absorbed by the skin. It is food for the skin and is also one of the “dryest” least oily oils. It can be used sparingly and often. It reminds of people who don’t want to know why junk food is bad for you because they want to keep eating it.
Personally I rarely put junk into or onto my body. However to each his/her own as they say.
Ann,
any recommendation for
body/face creams or oils for
psoriasis or dry sensitive skin?
I’m in Canada so looking if they ship products up there.
I have tried both EV coconut/olive oil but find them greasy.
Vit E oil irritates my skin, in cream it’s ok.
I just bought Avalon organics lavender oat lotion listed this silicon as the 2nd ingredient. Another that I thought was useful, Giovanni Hydrate lotion.
Both these have Dimethicon, another silicon!
What the heck?
? is not just for Ann,
anyone can recommend too!!
Will check my email for updates
Thanx!
I make my own creams and lotions.
See Rosemary Gladstar’s Family Herbal for recipes.(Published by Storey books)
I am a big fan of Weleda Products. I also have sensitive skin. Weleda’s Iris Day Cream was what I used exclusively for years before I started making my own.
Cyclopentasiloxane,Dimethicon, cyclomethicone all are organo-silicon. These compound NEVER occur naturally. All are manmade. It’s characteristic toward human body are still unknown. If it is safe, will you drink a teaspoon of it? Apparently not!
I bought a silky body and hand lotion form Bath and Body Works and it is new product. The best ever on my hands and legs….soooo silky. The first ingredient listed after water is CPS. This product is 19.00 dollars for small bottle. Can you suggest another way to buy CPS for my hands and legs…..
I recently got Tresemme No Frizz Shine Spray, and when I googled this ingredient, your site was the first to come up. I personally find it wonderful at protecting my against heat damage from flat ironing and have never had any problems with it feeling greasy as long as it’s used in moderation.
I love this site sooooooooooooooo much Thank you
anonim, try emu oil. it’s short of being a miracle oil =) google it up and find out its many health benefits. good luck!
check out this site:
http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/ingredient.php?ingred06=701741&refurl=/product.php?prod_id=4252&¬hanks=1#pb
Thank you to the Beauty Brains for this forum where we can hash it out about CPS. As I said I have sensitive skin and make my own face creams and body lotions. I don’t like the fragrance of many commercial products. Maybe CPS isn’t a “dangerous” product but I err on the side of caution as a general rule in my choice of food and cosmetics.
i too was looking up info on this ingredient and came acoss this site.
the beauty brain said “Just don’t tell other people that they shouldn’t use it either.”. hmmmm…why can’t someone say not to use a potentially harmful ingredient but you can tell them TO use it? everyone has a right to express their opinions, or so i thought. seems like you don’t want anyone to disagree with you on your site…
well since you didn’t commet on the emu oil, i guess i am free to add my thoughts on it. don’t use it. the emu is killed in order to get the oil. buy cruelty-free products.
People are free to express their opposing opinions here. We left your comment didn’t we?
Although, I’m not sure we disagree about emu oil. I’ve never seen any proof that it is a “miracle” ingredient.
I just love the people that have to have the PROOF. I would assume that they also can not believe in creation because there is no proof of it. Most of those people believe in evolution which is not proven factual hence it being a theory. thebeautybrains you just make me laugh!
People who require NO PROOF make me laugh. I wonder if they still believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny.
CPS is a chemical…Period! Anything you put on your skin or hair, you should be willing to drink. Your skin and scalp suck in anything you put on it. The chemicals get into the bloodstream and travel around and deposit themselves in all your organs and glands. These are the major causes of all disease. They also makes you fat, as one major purpose of fat is to store toxins. Every body on this planet is overwhelmed with chemicals and heavy metals. Why add more when you can get good organic products? Chemicals will NEVER cause a positive reaction to our hair or skin. The chemical is making the skin or hair feel a certain way artifically,while poisoning you in the mean time. This info is so prevalent, I don’t understand why there is even a debate about it.
Whoever the ‘brains’ are that run this site have absolutely NO experience or knowledge regarding health/clinical nutrition. You really need to do YOUR research rather than asking for proof from others. It’s easy to find.
@DetoxPro…That’s just silly. If chemicals could go right through your skin you wouldn’t need to eat your food you could just rub it on your skin.
What isn’t a chemical?
I was reading these posts and laughing most of the way thru at the ignorance that is being displayed. DetosPro said it simply and the response from Left Brain shows who really needs an education. Your skin is your largest organ!!! Anything that is put on your skin gets into your bloodstream faster than ingesting it! WAKE THE HELL UP!!!
Your largest organ who’s function is to KEEP STUFF OUT OF YOUR BODY!
If it were true that anything you rub on your skin goes into your bloodstream, why do doctors give people shots? Why don’t tattoos dissolve into people’s bodies?
My God….please!!! Do not respond anymore until you educate yourself. Your public display of ignorance is off the charts for an adult. Every time you stroke your keyboard is it a view into your mind for all to see. Please… Please… I implore you to read some medical literature (i.e. New England Journal of Medicine) or just speak with a doctor before you publicly respond on this topic again or you will continue to go deeper and deeper into the hole of NO CREDIBILITY!
Sigh. Since you’re so much more brilliant than everyone else, could you please provide some source to back up your claims? Like what article, issue and date of the New England Journal of Medicine are you referring to?
To Anonim with psoriasis: Concur on Weleda products = great, also Aubrey Organics “Rosa Mosquetta” (spelling?)lotion or “Climb On” cream or chickweed infused into oil…also various medicated oils from Ayurveda…surf the net for these.
Look into Kangen water cures too…new and somewhat controversial but check out the claims in very interesting research from Japan.
“Beauty” and “Left”: You guys are going to have to drop the “brains” from your e-names if you don’t start to use your brains before you reply to your clients. I have to agree with Amazed and Detox Pro, please do simple research before responding because you are losing credibility…assuming you want any.
To your MAJOR credit, you are allowing this blog stream to stay online “as is.”
There are ways to reply that allow readers to decide for themselves following an honest statement like “It is a man-made chemical,currently FDA approved for the US cosmetic industry, but is not a natural ingredient. Each consumer has to make their own choice.”
Also…if you can’t make the simple leap that the skin is a digestive/absorptive surface by studying basic anatomy of the skin, try this: Do not drink any coffee for several days but brew up a few strong pots and pour them into a bathtub, cool to pleasant and then hop in for a 20-minute soak. Later that day your pee WILL smell like coffee pee even though you did not “drink” any coffee. It will enter your blood and urine through the skin…and exit out through urine, feces and sweat.
To your MAJOR credit, you are allowing this blog stream to stay online “as is.”
Thanks for the kudos although I still don’t understand the need for the ad hominem attacks. No matter.
Perhaps you might answer the question, where is your research from the New England Journal of Medicine? Anyone??
I didn’t think so.
Come on people – I walked up and down the aisle reading ingredients and trying to decide which was the least toxic combination. I use pure uncut coconut oil (smells delicious, btw)jojoba oil, palm kernel oil (aka “ojon”) and shea butter on my skin and hair, but the whole idea is to protect our hair from this very unnatural environment that we’ve all helped create, and those little plant oils and all that other health food store stuff weren’t created for that. We need to fight chemicals with chemicals, and the cosmetics safety database rates this one low on the hazard scale. Besides, it makes the hair so pretty, and isn’t that what we really want?
wow. how do you think the nicotine patch or birth control patch works?
They penetrate the skin.
But these compounds are exceptions to the general rule that chemicals don’t penetrate the skin. This is why doctors still have to give people shots. If all medicine could be absorbed through your skin, they would prescribe patches for everything. People with diabetes would love it if there was a patch that could deliver insulin. Unfortunately, insulin doesn’t penetrate the skin.
I’m probably way late in responding to this comment roll, but I felt the need to defend the Beauty Brains. Yes, the natural ingredient (sand) must be processed in order to get silicone, but the natural ingredient (rosehip seeds) must also be processed to get rosehip seed oil. Rosehip seed oil is, in fact, a chemical, it has a molecular formula just like every other substance in existence because it’s made of atoms. Besides being a chemical, rosehip seed oil is a completely different chemical from CPS, with different properties. They aren’t even in the same family, so recommending one to replace the other is irrational.
There’s no reason to believe that a given substance is “evil” based on the fact that it’s origins are minerals rather than plants. That judgment should be made on a substance by substance basis. Chemicals that are refined from mineral sources are generally very pure with simple to understand properties, while those processed from plants can often contain impurities that cause unexpected skin reactions.
CPS is excellent at what it does, as described in the original post. There’s no reason to go looking for a substitute for it, especially one that is inferior for the purpose. Besides, I personally, without proof of any kind, believe that rosehip seed oil is full of toxins, and Ann Marie says it is absorbed by the skin! Ack! I’ll have to start checking labels to make sure that my skin isn’t absorbing that chemical-riffic rosehip seed oil! *end sarcasm*
Does anyone here understand anything,
let make this simple, science has been trying to mimic nature in cosmetics for years, good point on both sides,
Just add a little sodium hyaluronate (barnet.com) to the rose hip oil and it does contains bioflavonoids to protect your skin as well or any good cold pressed antioxidant oil will do and that will carry it into your skin cells within a few seconds and leave no residue. end of discussion, too much bla bla here! its organic chemistry 101 people! too much talk on 1 little stupid silicone do the research for proof first so you can back up yourselves before you waste all this time in life where does it come from & how is it process (with petro-chemicals, animal or not)we can choose, I personal choose the botanicals for better healh, better safe than sorry, See ya
Oh dear! What a catty debate! Ladies, SOME chemicals or elements will penetrate the skin and enter the blood stream and some cannot. Most cosmetics usually act only on the epidermis either through plumping skin cells with water or localised irritation that causes small-scale swelling. This is why cosmetic companies’ advertising speaks of reducing the **appearance** of wrinkles. They use pretendy scientific terms.
Big molecules such a collagen and elastin — the miracle skin-care ingredients of years gone by — cannot enter the dermal layers. Small molecules do enter the blood stream via the skin’s surface and are absorbed through the blood vessel wall through a physical process called osmosis which is why nicotine patches do work.
Anything applied to the skin that would actally alter the skin’s biochemistry is a drug and not a cosmetic. I understand that Retin-A, for an example, is available only on a doctor’s prescription for this very reason. Same with cortisone creams.
And I am not a doctor. This is just primary school (I think you guys call it elementary school) science class stuff here.
Yeah… the skin is semi-permeable. In particular, lipids (fats), which are non-polar, tend to penetrate the skin. Polar molecules, on the other hand (such as H2O, one of the most polar molecules of all time), cannot pentrate the skin and must therefore enter by several channels that exist to accept these molecules.
Cyclopentasiloxane is a non-polar molecule, according to this distributor:
http://www.gesilicones.com/silicones/americas/business/industries/personalcare/workshop/incicategorydescriptions.shtml
Hence you could postulate that cyclopentasiloxane passes through the dermal membrane.
So of course CPS is absorbed through the skin. Polar molecules go right through the phospholipid bilayer.
Hope this helps!
And hey, you’re right. You can use whatever products you want. But as a beauty advisor, why would you use anything of inferior quality? If “natural” is better, then why would you not use it? Even if it’s more expensive, I’m sure that cost has never been an object before.
Natural isn’t better so there is no reason to use it.
And while you could postulate CPS goes through your skin, actual tests have shown that it does not. Not all polar molecules go through your skin.
Omg you all are so ignorant and to the Brains people I know that the dumb song was fake and you guys should be more professional than what you are. In order for you to be administrators of a website you should be more humble and let morons post whatever they think. It seems to me you all must belong to a company and are desperately trying to defend this chemical in order to keep people buying it.
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