Here at the Beauty Brains, we get asked about preservatives in cosmetics all the time. People wonder why compounds with potential safety issues like formaldehyde or parabens are used. Should they use self-preserving cosmetics? They also ask why cosmetic companies don’t get rid of preservatives.
Wouldn’t it be great if we could? Cosmetic chemists, cosmetic manufacturers and certainly cosmetic
marketers would love to get rid of preservatives. Unfortunately, the disease-causing microbes would love it too. There are some companies that offer preservative free products
7 Reasons Preservative Free Cosmetics are Rare
1. Preservative free cosmetics don’t last as long.
A standard cosmetic can have a shelf life of 1 or even 2 years or more. This is great for those products you have stuffed in your medicine cabinet or bathroom drawers. You can feel confident that if you open them up tomorrow you won’t get Tetanus or Gangrene. A preservative-free cosmetic won’t last more than a couple of weeks. It’ll spoil just about as fast as milk and become dangerous.
2. Because they need to be refrigerated
Unless it is put in some special packaging, preservative free cosmetics need to be refrigerated to keep them safe. You wouldn’t eat fish you left out on the counter overnight so you shouldn’t use unpreserved cosmetics that haven’t been refrigerated either. This refrigeration step is a huge inconvenience for people so manufacturers just don’t think people will want to do it. Consumer research has proven them right.
3. Because they can easily get contaminated
You know how there is the common, good advice that you shouldn’t share your cosmetics with anyone? Do you know why? Because each time you use cosmetics, you expose yourself to microbial contamination. Even when there are preservatives the microbes can live in small numbers. Your body is used to your bacteria but other people may not be. Preservative free cosmetics are even more prone to contamination and can pick up any sinister microbe that happens to be floating in the air. When people get sick using cosmetics, it’s bad for product’s manufacturer.
4. Because they are more expensive to make
It is possible to make preservative free cosmetics. You can use special packaging or make them anhydrous (water-free). Unfortunately, both of these options can double, triple, or quadruple the cost for manufacturing. And while most people don’t mind spending $5 on a lip balm, spending $20 for the same thing that is merely preservative free is harder to get them to accept. The other problem is that these cosmetics typically don’t work as well. They are more greasy, sticky and just less appealing.
5. Because natural preservatives don’t work as well
One strategy for creating preservative free cosmetics is to use natural preservatives. Technically the products aren’t preservative free but from an advertising and legal standpoint, they are. In the EU there is a list of ingredients you can use for product preservation. If you don’t use any of those ingredients, you can call yourself “preservative free”. Unfortunately, as this article points out, natural preservatives do not work as well as the standard ones.
6. Because natural preservatives aren’t approved
The article also points out the second major problem with natural preservatives. They are too expensive to get approved. A natural preservative manufacturer would have to spend millions of dollars on their new ingredient and there is no guarantee it would get on the approved list of preservatives. No company wants to take that chance. Therefore, don’t look for natural preservatives anytime soon.
7. Because preserved cosmetics are safe
Probably the most important reason you don’t see more preservative free cosmetics is because the preserved products work great and are perfectly safe. True, some of the compounds used to preserve products can be nasty stuff but when used at low enough levels they are harmless. Cosmetic marketers just don’t find people willing enough to spend extra money for a benefit that is imperceptible. And if people aren’t going to buy the product, cosmetic companies aren’t going to make it.
Are you concerned about preservatives in your cosmetics? Leave a comment and let the Beauty Brains community know.
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Medicine » Blog Archive » 7 Reseasons There Aren’t More Preservative Free Cosmetics Says:
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Chictique Says:
I know, I tried to purchase some natural porducts last year, but found they went “off” very quickly and I had to bin most of it. I would really like to go more natural, but it’s expensive and difficult!
Janis Says:
Imperceptible. Sorry.
*backs out of Annoying Pedant mode*
—-edit. All fixed! Thanks.
Jessica D Says:
I understand, but what about companies like Boscia who say they’re preservative free (besides the usual and obvious answer that: they’re simply lying?)
Non Ame Says:
Tetanus and gangrene aren’t very good examples, because the bacteria that cause them are anaerobic. They wouldn’t reproduce well in an open container or on skin.
Emily Skin Soothers Says:
Thanks for the very informative post on preservatives. There are numerous companies who choose to make water-free products that keep quite well and are not necessarily as expensive as you imply.
I’ve always found it annoying when you buy a product that has “aqua” or “water” as one of the first ingredients.
rach Says:
I find all the talk about ‘organic’ and ‘natural’ cosmetics really galling and disingenuous. It really just strikes me as green-washing. I just don’t get *why* ‘organic’ is meant to be better. Is it meant to be better for the environment? If so, why are so many ‘organic’ products swathed in layers of packaging? Is it meant to be better for your skin? Personally, I’d rather use something that wasn’t contaminated with bacteria.
As far as my skin is concerned all it wants is to be kept clean, hydrated and protected from sun exposure. It hates irritating, volatile plant oils. The only time I’ve ever had a strong reaction to a skincare product was with something ‘natural.’
Okay, end rant! This is a great article, thanks.
Bren Says:
What about the Body shops Aloe products? They say they’re preservative-free and the aloe very they’re using is ground into a powder that preserves itself. Any insight into how that works or if it works at all? Or do I have to store my Body Shop Aloe line in the refrigerator and use within two days?
Beckie Temple Says:
Very informative post. With it being “green” month, a lot of people are feeling the pressure of going green, without really understanding the science behind the beauty. Thanks.
CindyM Says:
Great post. As a former hairstylist and soap maker I know all too well that if you don’t get that perservative ratio just right it can spell trouble.
Emily mentioned that there are products out there that don’t use water so they keep well on their own. That’s well and fine as long as you, the end user, also keeps water out of it entirely. Hard to do with a shower gel, no?
I think what it boils down to is–is a little preservative really that bad? If so then maybe you should stick to straight cold processed soaps and skip the bath goodies and make up all together.
N Says:
Many people I talk to about the Paraben Free products, say they are doing it for hormone regulation reasons, or to cut down on the harmful preservatives cuz everything has it. Can we really get too many of these parabens in our system to disrupt our hormones and/or creat a toxic body system??
Ioana Says:
This article is ridiculous. It sounds like an add for the big cosmetic industry/ corporations. We’ve been fooled into believing that the more chemicals the better. Eat them, apply them all over your skin, spread them all over your house, spray your lawn with pesticides…but you’ll be just “fine” because they are safe. And about the growing cancer rates, asthma and allergies? Hmmm…How about the high doses of parabens isolated from breast tumors? Really, it is common sense to try and reduce exposure to preservatives and chemicals. But this article does not seem to have any common sense. It’s insane to suggest that you can get tetanus from cosmetics gone bad!
thebeautybrains Says:
Thanks for your input. Do you have anything to back up your assertion that cancer rates are rising? Any proof from legitimate scientific resources?
Perhaps the suggestion that you get tetanus was a bit over the top, but the problem of contaminated cosmetics causing problems is real. Problems with contaminated cosmetics
I fail to see the lack of common sense. You provide no proof of anything you say and merely launch insults. We have no love for big cosmetic companies. But small cosmetic companies peddle junk science and fear just so they can convince people to buy their product.
We here at the Beauty Brains focus on science. And the science says that using preservatives in cosmetics is safer than not using them. You engage in a common “straw man” logical fallacy when you imply that we said that more chemicals are better. I never said that and don’t believe it.
Parabens were also isolated from non-tumorous breast tissue. They also found water in breast tumors. Should people stop drinking it? There has not been a proven link between parabens in cosmetics and cancer. You might want to believe there is one but the best science says different. Certainly more studies need to be done but the weight of the evidence suggests there is no problem.
Elena Lumen Says:
I totally agree with the previous post. When you say you focus on science, do you actually question anything that the “science” say, or you simply take it as a final truth? As we know, the science’s views change as new data becomes available, and what was considered “safe” yesterday is not anymore today. I think there is more research linking parabens and negative effects now then it was a year ago. Check here on the scientifically demonstrated negative effects of the parabens.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6T6P-46YXHCB-1&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=d9db5441ee679ae877ff8e375495b299