Amy asks: I am wondering if you know of somewhere to find an ingredients list for Yves Rocher products or if you know what else is in their stuff. They boast 150 botanical ingredients but do not provide a list of their other ingredients.

The Right Brain responds on Rocher:
Yves Rocher makes me want to vomit. Scientifically speaking, of course.

Rocher, in case you didn’t know, is the self proclaimed leader in botanical beauty care. (At least according to his website.) His claim to fame is the 150 different botanicals used in his formulations.

I took a peek at his website and couldn’t find any active ingredients listed but he is, as Amy points out, very quick to mention the key botanicals in his formulas. The first product I looked at was his Phytum Extra-Volume Long Lasting Hair Spray. The only ingredients I can find mentioned for this product are Chamomile, Corn Protein, Wheat Protein, Soy Protein.

Now look, Rocher: there’s nothing wrong with adding vegetable and grain proteins to your formulas. In fact, at a decent concentration, proteins can be effective film forming agents that can contribute to hair (and skin) moisturization. But there is NO way that these botanicals are really doing anything in a hair spray. Why not provide us with some USEFUL information? For example, here are three things a cosmetic company SHOULD tell us about their hairspray:

1. Does it contain water?

For aerosol hairsprays, it’s critical that you know whether or not the product contains water. Water is bad because it increases drying time and causes your style to droop. Why would a company add water to hairspray? Because (in the US) there are legal limits on how much of certain ingredients (known as volatile organic compounds, or VOCs) that can be be used in hair sprays. VOCs include propellants and solvents like alcohol. We don’t want to bore you with all the technicalities (we’ll leave that to the Left Brain), so all you have to know right now is that some companies have chosen to add water to their hair sprays to meet these VOC regulations. Other companies have decided to add more expensive chemicals in place of water. These product cost more, but they make the hairspray work much better. So, the bottom line is, you should be looking for aerosol hair sprays without water. (To be fair, this point doesn’t really apply to the Yves Rocher product because it’s a non-aerosol and all non-aerosol hairsprays contain water. But in general, this is an important point to understand.)

2. Type of hold

Hairspray formulas contain different holding agents (known as resins or polymers). Depending on the type of holding agent used, the product can give a very rigid, crispy hold, or it can provide a very flexible, soft, brushable hold. The type of resin also determines how water proof it will be.

3. Level of hold.

The hold level of a hair spray is not only determined by the type of resin, but how much of the resin is in the formula. Mega hold, or freeze hold formulas generally require more resin, which can increase the cost. You should know what the product is supposed to do so you can make an intelligent decision about buying it.

The Beauty Brains bottom line

Note to Yves Rocher: instead of hiding behind a façade of botanical ingredients, why not share some meaningful information with your consumers?

What do YOU think? Are you generally satisfied with the product information that cosmetic companies give you or would you like to see more? Share your comments with the rest of the Beauty Brains community.