Ask the Beauty Brains - Beauty Questions Answered

What are lavender stem cells and 1% chlorella growth factor doing in this mystical potion?

rozy — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 02:11:15 -0500

It sounds real sciency but idk what it all means WHAT DOES IT MEAN??! Why do they say in the title 1% blabla but then not list it as an active ingredient.
http://www.acureorganics.com/Oil-Control-Day-Cream-p/009.htm

edit--- theres more stem cells on the loose RUN!---http://www.acureorganics.com/Argan-Stem-Cell-Leave-in-Conditioner-p/030.htm

Lubricant question (HPV prevention claims)...

yummyjellybelly — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 03:18:53 -0500

http://www.babeland.com/blnd/store/productdetails.aspx?productid=1655&categoryid=15
It says a certain ingrediant it contains prevents HPV transmission wondering if theres any truth behind this. I have seen 2 lube questions answered on your blog so dont even tell me to go somewhere else. You guys rule!

Opinions on Nancy Boy Ultramarine Night Cream?

NoahJenda — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 19:48:37 -0500

I'm very curious to know what the Beauty Brains think about Nancy Boy's Ultramarine Night Cream.

It's also sold as an eye cream. I find their descriptions of the product unusually frank. For example, when discussing eye creams, they say "None, including ours, do anything for dark circles or puffiness (even though some of them claim to) because no product can...The only under-eye problem that can be addressed with an over-the-counter product is fine lines and wrinkles."

I also find it interesting that they claim their cream has the same ingredients as other products costing ten times as much.

What do the Beauty Brains think of the ingredients, and of the claims for this product?

There are two different descriptions of the product on their site, and I suggest you look at both of them:

As a night cream: http://www.nancyboy.com/Ultramarine-Night-Cream-22p33.htm

As an eye cream: http://www.nancyboy.com/Ultramarine-Night-Cream-21p34.htm

Will beauty product companies ever run out of new names for new products?

bluecatbaby — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 17:43:42 -0500

At Walgreen's today I saw a new L'Oreal lipstick line called Colour Caresse. Nice name! It got me thinking, will companies ever have to start recycling names for products? Especially names for colors. There's only a finite number of ways you can describe the color red, isn't there? Or is the product-naming department where English majors go to get good-paying jobs?

What does pentapeptide -4 do?

ABWdana — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 18:21:00 -0500

Hi Right Brain-
I'd actually asked a question before about peptides in general and if they boost collagen production or if that was just marketing. Anyway I wondered if you were able to locate any studies that support that. On a similar note, what does the pentapeptide-4 do - if anything? It's in Olay Regenerist products and probably some other moisturizers have something similar called Matrixyl I think. Thanks very much

Clueless about skin care

hunkavolleyball5 — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 09:55:20 -0500

A recent trip to Sephora and even the drugstore beauty aisle has me completely overwhelmed. I turn 20 in a couple of months and have gone my whole life without taking actual care of my facial skin. I use sunscreen in the summer, and I use a makeup wipe to take my makeup off at night. That's it. No cleansers, no moisturizers, etc. My skin does not look bad but I'm sure it could look a lot better now and in the future if I start taking care of it. Unfortunately I have no idea how to. I don't know what type of products to use or in what order. Do I need to be using serums and toners and cleansers and moisturizers and oils and exfoliators and whatever else there is? If so, what gets applied first to last? I think my skin is dry but my nose can look a little oily and my forehead and chin
are prone to breakouts, so maybe it is combination. I exercise
frequently which means I sweat in the gym a lot and I drink a lot of
water. Help!!

How is mineral oil related to oil you put in a car?

rozy — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 20:16:14 -0500

I guess its probably a by product of the oil we put in our cars or is it? How does it go from industrial oil to cosmetic??

What are some beauty-related products that you think are good gifts?

bluecatbaby — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 11:30:52 -0500

Like, this year I'm giving my mom Paula's Choice AHA body lotion, which I have had great results with. I'm also going to give out Badger Balm cuticle cream, which is really popular on Makeup Alley. As you can probably guess, I haven't finished Christmas shopping.

Are the ingredients in the European versions of beauty products the same as the US versions?

Maryc9614 — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 17:40:23 -0500

Hello,
I wanted to ask this question mainly because I noticed the packaging is different and I am also aware that Europe has stricter policies in regards to cosmetics than the US. For example, does L'Oreal use different ingredients for their US version of their shampoo vs their European version of the same shampoo?

I apologize if this does not make any sense, I can explain better if needed. Some of my favorite YouTube beauty gurus use drugstore products but from European drugstores like Tesco and I was curious if there was a difference in their quality in comparison to their US versions. Especially since I live in the US and only have access to Target and Walgreen's :)

What are the main issues with Asian hair?

Zealous — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 09:33:21 -0500

My name is Hollie and I am taking part in a L'oréal competition and our brief is to market both an existing and new product in South East Asia and part of that journey is to do research into hair trends, hair types, hair problems and popular hair products within the Asian market.

Therefore, we are trying to find out more about the issues or problems with Asian hair types (when we use the term Asian is references all those from Asia or who have Asian heritage).

One main issue would have unearthed is hair thinning despite Asian hair being strong Asia is known for being a pollutant city and therefore, this has a direct affect on the health of their hair.

What is your opinions on this too?

Does MSM really make the Anogen phase last longer?

bebelyn86 — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 02:45:07 -0500

Is it true that by takeing MSM the anogen phase of the hair will last longer in turn causing longer hair?

Is there a specific chemical sunscreen ingredient that can cause sensitivity?

Susan — Sun, 16 Dec 2012 17:00:33 -0500

I have tried several moisturizers with sunscreen - Clinique's SuperDefense, Mary Kay Timewise Day Solution spf 35, and Olay Rengenerist UV Defense lotion spf 15. In each case, I've developed a burning sensation on my cheeks after a few hours that disappears once I've washed my face or discontinued use of the product. I checked the Mary Kay and Olay ingredients and noticed both contain Octisalate at 5%. Could that be the only ingredient that is causing this reaction, or should I steer clear of all chemical sunscreens?

Hormonal Acne: The Oil Cleansing Method and/or Supplements

saraburson — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 16:09:35 -0500

Like a few other posters, I recently developed hormonal acne after giving up birth control. There doesn't seem to be much consistent advice, but I'm willing to try anything at this point! These breakouts are worse than I ever had in puberty.

I read that fermented cod liver oil could solve the problem, but I've taken the highest allowable dose for a couple weeks and the problem has gotten worse than better. I'm curious if this may be due to the high amount of Vitamin A. (Would be possible to take more if the % of A was lower).

I've also read that evening primrose oil helps, but I'd love to get the Beauty Brains take on that. (I've only seen it mentioned once in another discussion thread.)

I've tried OCM and haven't had much success, but I still really love it more than regular cleansing. The Beauty Brains have addressed the OCM in the past, but it didn't look like many comments came about or that it's really been looked at much since then (2008ish). With the recent rise in popularity of OCM (Thanks, Pinterest!) I'd love to hear if you've learned any more. Most of what I can find seems to be positive, but there are some (who have a stake in it) who believe it's all nonsense: http://www.paulaschoice.com/expert-advice/oily-skin/_/the-oil-cleansing-method

I just don't know what to believe -- but my skin isn't getting better! Can anyone help?

Any topical antioxiants that work?

rozy — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 21:23:37 -0500

Anyone know of any antioxidant products that are effect topically I read the beauty brains article on topical antioxidants but I wonder if anything has changed since then.

Best Moisturizing Ingredients for Dry Skin

ABWdana — Sun, 16 Dec 2012 01:32:26 -0500

Is there a way to to tell by reading the ingredient list if one moisturizer will likely hydrate more than another? What about diminishing or 'plumping up' lines? For example,

Olay Regenerist Micro-sculpting cream's ingredient list: Water, Glycerin, Isohexadecane, Niacinamide, Isopropyl Isostearate, Alluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate, Nylon-12, Dimethicone, Panthenol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Sodium Hyalironate, Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4, etc.

L'Oreal Age Perfect's ingredient list: Water, Cyclohexasiloxane, Glycerin, Paraffinum, Mineral Oil, Octydodecanol, Myristyl Myristate, Shea Butter, Stearic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Ammonium Polyacryloydimethyl Taurate, PEG 100 Stearate, Beeswax, Glyceryl Stearate, Ethylhexl Palmitate, Rosa Canna Fruit Oil, Capryloyl Salicylic Acid, and further down on the list, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, etc.

The Olay moisturizer has peptides and antioxidants, vitamins and appears to be a well made moisturizer. L'Oreal - I'm not so sure about although with shea butter and mineral oil, it may actually hydrate more effectively.

Thanks -

Will this eyecream provide a noticeable difference?

kokochoc — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 03:46:36 -0500

Is it worth the price and are the claims true? Thanks I love your site and finally have the nerve to ask my own question.
http://www.anastasia.net/dramatically-nourishing-antioxidant-eye-creme.html

Drugstore shampoos vs Salon Brands

chica1 — Sat, 08 Dec 2012 09:37:48 -0500

Hi -

I remember reading a posting awhile back regarding the performance of some drugstore shampoos and how they rate against high-end salon brands. If I remember correctly, a poster (who is also a stylist) objected to your analysis and stated that she "hates" when her clients use drug store brands and she could peel the silicones off their hair before shampooing. The Brains challenged the stylist to a "feel" test. Did that ever happen? I did a search but I couldn't find the original posting.

Thanks!

Carol's Daughter Monoi Line promises a 96% reduction after the first use

chica1 — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 20:47:26 -0500

I know this is all hype but I did buy the product because of the smell then I began to wonder how could one know if there was a 96% reduction in breakage after one use. I'm guessing the hydrolyzed silk is supposed to help prevent breakage. After one use I noticed a lot of dryness but I did try the product a few more times to ensure it wasn't a fluke. Here's the advertised hype from their website:
http://www.carolsdaughter.com/Portal.aspx?CN=FF6E2FC82BA6

96% LESS BREAKAGE AFTER 1 USE!

This deeply repairing treatment nourishes your hair from the root to ends to undo unwanted damage and prevent it in the future.

Strengthening your hair is the only way to lengthen it so you can do
whatever you want with it. To really fortify fine, fragile or chemically
treated hair requires major nourishment found in the Monoi Repairing
Hair Mask. Added to the rejuvenating Monoi Oil – a repairing Tahitian
blend of the Tiare Gardenia Flower and Coprah Coconut Oil – is
rebuilding Bamboo Water and protective Hydrolyzed Silk.

PLUS, No Parabens, No Petroleum, No Mineral Oil, No Artificial Colors

Is there a difference between leave-in conditioner and styling cream?

bluecatbaby — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 01:14:01 -0500

For a long time I have used a leave-in conditioner, and then a styling cream, before either heat styling or air-drying. But it occurred to me that they look and feel almost the same in my hand, maybe the styling cream is redundant. Do they each have different benefits? My conditioner is Garnier Fructis Sleek and Shine Leave-In conditioner. My styling cream is either Sebastian Potion 9, Beyond the Zone Gettin' Creamed, or Kinky-Curly Curling Custard (say THAT five times fast!).

my hair problem

koki — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 19:06:22 -0500

hii . i realy would like to ask i bleach my hair one and it tottaly damaged so i started to treat it with nature henna and now it's ok so i really cant live without my flat iron so i flat iron it once a week and i use heat protection spray Tresemme defense heat up to 230 c and i so regularly oil treatment every week also and i need to will my hair grow longer and that's ok what i am doing ?!

Smelly Armpits

walmart — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 20:58:31 -0500

I have a coworker who says her armpits smell but it is not a result of sweat. She has used scrubs and anti perspirant/ deodorant and nothing seems to work. She has been to the Dr but since it is not a result of sweat they cant seem to help. Please help.

Three Step Skincare Systems - (i.e. Proactiv, Clinique, etc...)

RazzleFrazzle — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 12:57:06 -0500

I recently purchased some odds and ends from Sephora, and with my purchase I received a sample of Clinique's three step skin care line for dry skin. I've had the worst time with dry skin on my face this season, and I've always had dandruffy eyebrows. I thought I might have psoriasis, but after I used this my skin was soft, it wasn't irritated, and all of my flakiness was gone. It was amazing. I loved it until I noticed the $65 price tag.

I'm not a talented ingredient scout, but I just can't imagine this line of products contains a slew of things that other product lines do not. Could you point me in the direction of more cost effective solutions? Or is Clinique really just that darn good?

Any thoughts?

Eco friendly products?

Kaldary — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 23:33:59 -0500

Are there any eco friendly beauty products that exist? And I guess by eco friendly I mean biodegradablity, packaging, production, and farming. I tried to do a google search on this and I got a ton of fear mongering about how all man made products are going to kill me. (I roll my eyes when I see "chemical free" claims) I wasn't able to find the info that I was looking for.

So, do eco friendly beauty products exist or is it pointless to look for such things? Is there an eco friendly company out there or is it all just fraud? I don't care if the materials are natural or synthetic.

Questions for my 8th Grade Research Project

Imastudent — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 18:25:04 -0500

Hello Beauty Brains,

I'm an 8th grade student working on a research project about animal testing in the cosmetic industry. I read your article about a student asking similar questions in an eariler post. The information you presented was very informative and explained alot. If I may, I'd like to ask the following questions.

1. Why do people test cosmetics on animals?

2. What re the disadvantages of animal testing?

3. Do you think animal experimentation is good?

4. What type of animals are tested?

5. Can any animal be tested?

6. Is it safe to test cosmetics on animals? Why or why not?

7. Have animals always been used for cosmetic testing?

8. Ay young or baby animals ever used?

9. Are pregant animals ever tested? Does testing ever affect their offspring?

10. Are animals used for cosmetic testing ever used for other chemical testing?

11. Would you allow your pet to be used for testing?

12. What other test subjects could be used instead of animals?

13. Do you know what the first animal ever tested was?

14. Should cloned animals be used?

15. Should genetically modified animals be used as test subjects?

Thank you so much. My project will help me learn more about cosmetics and how good companies like yours handles such sensitive issues.

Respectfully,

Iamastudent

Are Botantical/Herbal Extracts in Hair Products Really Effective?

Kusanagi — Sun, 02 Dec 2012 13:35:07 -0500

I'm considering getting a "Twist Defining Cream" and it has a bunch of extracts listed near the top of the list. Are they delivering the promise of the product or are they just pixie dust? I note they aren't listed as "Active Ingredients" but "Key Ingredients". Your site has been so helpful. I give thanks to Kwan Yin for the Beauty Brains!

Key Ingredients: Sunflower Oil, Castor Oil, Amla, Sugar Beet Root and Phytosterols

Aqueous (Water, Aqua Purificada, Purified) Extracts: Cocos Nucifera (Coconut)¹ and Phyllanthus Emblica (Amla)¹ and Citrus Reticulata (Tangerine)¹ and Beta Vulgaris (Beet) Root¹, Glycerin¹, Acetamide MEA, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil1, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil¹, Triethanolamine, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil¹, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter)¹, Carbomer, Phytosterols², Disodium Ethylene Dicocamide PEG-15 Disulfate, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Behenyl Alcohol¹, Glyceryl Stearate, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Trideceth-12, TBHQ, Diazolidinyl Urea, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, Potassium Sorbate, Fragrance/Parfum, Limonene.

Source: 1-Natural; 2-Canola Oil derived

I bought makeup with an expiry date on it!

rozy — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 19:44:18 -0500

Hey BBs so I bought a BB cream by Maybelline and it has and expiring date on it why is this?

Will Bremenn Research Labs Hylexin get rid of my dark under eye cirkels?

rutiga — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 20:48:19 -0500

I have really bad under eye cirkels and nothing I have tried so far has helped. I fell a bit sceptic to it because of olive and dimitrecone beeing so high on the ingridient list I do not se how they would do anything. And I do not know what any other of the ingridients are.

Will this product help me?

The ingredients are:

Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Unsaponifiables, Dimethicone, Glyceryl Stearate, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Hordeum Distichon/Barley Extract, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Titanium Dioxide (CI77891), Hesperidin Methyl Chalcone, N-Hydroxysuccinimide, Dipeptide-2, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Chrysin, Pfaffia Paniculata Root Extract, Ptychopetalum Olaciodes Bark/Stem Extract, Santalum Album (Sandlewood) Extract, Phellopendron Amurense Bark Extract, Lilium Candidum Flower Extract, Allantoin, Medicago Sativa (Alfalfa) Seed Extract, Glycine Soja (Soygbean) Seed Extract, Camellia Oleifera Leaf Extract, Evodia Rutaecarpa Fruit Extract, Caprylyl Glycol, Carbomer, Xanthan Gum, Pantheyl Triacetate, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Stearoyl Lactylate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Hydrolyzed Lupine Protein, Potassium Sorbate, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Ergothioneine, Chlorphenesin, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Retinyl Palmitate, DisodiumEDTa, Hexyl Cinnamal, Benzyl Benzoate, Hydroxyisohexyl 3-Cyclohexene Carboxaldehyde, Phenoxyethanol, Tocopheyl Acetate, Benzyl Salicylate, Calcium Chloride, Hexylene Glycol, Chlorhexidine Digluconate, Linalool, Steareth-20, BHT, Fragrance (Parfum).

Will summer heat ruin my make up?

jokohhl — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 12:16:15 -0500

I am on a 3 month vacation escaping the hot Australian summer. My make up is stored in the living room of my apartment, close to the front door. Today was 40 degrees Celsius there and more hot days are due to come. I'm worried for my foundations, lipsticks and other liquid based make up. Will they melt or turn bad by the time i'm back from my vacation? thanks.

Does the Aveda Invati System really work?

mrsanaluna — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 00:35:48 -0500

I know that anecdotally, there seems to be a lot of positive feedback on various beauty blogs, but I've read quite a few who've said they see no change. Does the Invati system really work in helping you lose less hair and grow thicker hair? And is it really essential to use all three products (shampoo, conditioner and revitalizing treatment) like Aveda insists it is? It's a lot of money and I want to know if scientifically, it's legit, before I drop $108 or so.

Can Apple Cider Vinegar really make me more beautiful?

magoosey — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 11:18:42 -0500

I have read (several different places) lately that taking a "shot" a day of raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar can help improve your beauty and overall health. It is supposed to help your skin glow, make your nails and hair healthier, boost weight loss, plus just make you feel healthier. Is there any truth to this at all? I'd like to know if this could actually do anything for my beauty routine before I choke this stuff down everymorning (followed by a glass of water to dilute it of course).