Random Skincare Facts on Baking Soda

We've seen a lot of Youtubers and bloggers promoting the use of baking soda for facial skin care, usually as washes or as exfoliator. Popular as it may seem though, baking soda is one ingredient not meant for the face. especially if used on DIY skincare recipes. Today, we'll take a look on what baking soda is and how it affects the skin.

Good for baking, bad for skin.
(Image from Arm & Hammer website)

Review: Human Heart Nature Sunflower Beauty Oil (or any other sunflower oil)

Today, I will be reviewing a product which is quite intriguing for me, thanks to my office mate's very energetic raving and it's purported  "23 miracles in a single bottle". One miracle is enough to rouse the skeptic in me, but 23? Oh boy! This review for Human Heart Nature's Sunflower Beauty Oil is probably the  most exciting one I've done.

Review: Nature Republic - Bamboo of Damyang

For the financially average person like me, stocking up on products (especially Korean/Japanese) is not feasible. Which is why I sometimes run out of HG products - I run out of HG product X, I buy at the nearest product X retailer but end up with product Y because there's no stock at the store. Which is how I got to this product I will review: Nature Republic's Bamboo of Damyang.

I bought this product for around 900 php at the NR's SM Megamall branch. I bought it because it reminded me of my HG product wherein bamboo water is a main ingredient. It did not feel too heavy on the skin when I tested and it is absorbed fast enough without containing alcohol. So it was good enough for a purchase.

Essential and carrier oils you should be careful of (Part 2)

Phototoxicity is a chemically induced irritation which needs light. Phototoxic substances undergo molecular changes when they absorb light particles - and these transformed chemicals are what causes burn-like patches such as this.

From vitiligosupport.org

Now, most products I see which are catered towards natural ingredients contain essential oils. Some of these "brightening" oils increase the risk of photosensitivity and for skin care conscious individuals like me, care must be ensured that products using essential oils are well formulated.

Essential and carrier oils you should be careful of (Part 1)

I cringe at people who claim that all things "natural" are safe.

Because not everything synthetic or manufactured is unsafe, and not everything natural is safe. Take for example essential oils and carrier oils. Such ingredients derived from plants have benefits and unwanted effects, just like other "chemicals" - and it is the way these ingredients are mixed which determine their performance.

Today, I'll be naming a few of the essential and carrier oils which may be dangerous (especially on the hands on unsuspecting DIY-ers or chemical-hating consumers who fail to check their facts).

I hope lavender is not on the list

Natural abortifacient

User /u/valentinedoux from /r/SkincareAddiction did a good job of enumerating herbs and oils which may be abortaficient. Anise, Basil, Bay, Bitter Melon, Camphor, Cinnamon, Coriander, French Lavender, Lavender Cotton, Lemongrass, Neem, Nutmeg, Parsley, Peppermint, Sage, Rosemary, Thyme and Wormwood are some which I've heard of.

Anise seeds
(Image credit to http://www.livingherbaltea.com)

Essential oils for aromatherapy (Not!)

According to a review on toxicology of essential oils written by Anthony Dweck, consultant on natural products for cosmetics, toiletries and pharmaceuticals, some essential oils may be dangerous even for aromatherapy. Bitter almond oil, Armoise oil, Boldo leaf, Calamus oil, Chenopodium oil, Croton oil, Horseradish oil, Lanyana oil, Mustard oil, Parsley herb oil, Pennyroyal oil, Perilla oil, Savin oil, Sassafras oil, Summer Savoury oil, Tansy oil, Wintergreen oil and Wormwood oil are unsafe for aromatherapy purposes.

Wintergreen (Image credit from aromaoilstore.com)

Irritating essential oils

If you're the type to be irritated with chemicals such as SLS and SLES which are irritants for some, you should also be aware of irritating essential oils which may be in your skincare or toiletries. Bay oil West Indian, Clove oil, Coriander oil, Ho oil, Kuromoji oil, Melissa oil, Origanum oil, Pimento berry and leaf
oils, Rosewood oil, Summer Savoury oil, Winter Savoury oil, Tagetes oil, Tea Tree oil, Thyme oil and Turpentine oil can mess with your skin, so it's best to careful with these in your skincare.

Long story turned short, it's best to leave the formulation in the hands of capable professionals - whichever natural or synthetic ingredient is used.

Part 2 of this post will go over essential oils which may be phototoxic and carcinogenic. Stay tuned!


Source:
Dweck, A. (2009). 'Toxicology of essential oils reviewed' Available at: http://www.zenitech.com/documents/Toxicity_of_essential_oils_p1.pdf (Accessed Dec 11 2013).

Book Review: It's okay to have lead in your lipstick by Perry Romanowski and Randy Schueller

Weeks ago, while I was browsing through the Beauty Brains, I stumbled upon the book "It's okay to have lead in your lipstick" written by the founders of The Beauty Brains themselves, Perry Romanowski and Randy Schueller. The title was definitely intriguing as I too have this notion of how "bad" of an ingredient lead is.

The authors have impressive background of the cosmetics industry. Perry Romanowski is a cosmetic chemist, inventor, scientist, instructor, founder of Chemists Corner blog and training program. Meanwhile, Randy Schueller is a former Sr. Director of Hair and Skin Care R&D for Alberto Culver and Unilever, while also being a member of the National Association of Science Writers. The authors are basked in the cosmetic industry, and the quality of information in the books proves it.

Natural is not always safer

Whenever I look out for ingredient used in cosmetics, I almost always run across advocacy for "natural products" over products with synthetic ingredients, along with other scaremongering tags (SLS-free, paraben-free and the likes). Now, by all means I am not against the use of organic products (in fact I reviewed a couple, one of which turned out to be an excellent Vitamin C serum), but I do not like the fact that most of these products are much more expensive compared to their synthetics-laden, more effective counterparts.

The main points to those who advocate for anything "natural" is safety. So let's presume these products really are derived from natural products - say, vitamin C really came from citrus fruits are not from synthesis. Of course, the process of extraction of such from natural produce may require synthetically formulated chemicals, but let's ASSUME this possibility is bypassed by hippie magic. So are products made of natural ingredients safer?

Wild Cherry. All-natural. May contain cyanide. (Image from www.eatweeds.co.uk)

A critique on acupuncture facials

It may have been already obvious that I like to criticize the tons of marketing hooplah made for the beauty industry. From unreliable active ingredients to extracts operating on naturalistic fallacy, there are many ways people can be fooled by unscrupulous businessmen. These people are too afraid of growing old or ugly that sometimes, fear gets the better of them and they take in all the false marketing hype.

And our beauty BS topic for the day: Acupuncture facials!
(Image from The Daily Mail)

Just days ago, I read an article from a local paper's online portal that one of the bigshots of Philippine cosmetic surgery is now offering acupuncture facials. For only P50,000 php (1250 USD) for every six months , a dozen or so needles will be stuck on the patient's face and will be removed after a few minutes. The facial's provider claims that it can cause facial muscle contraction, stimulate energy flow and circulation, toning up sagging facial muscles and thereby providing another very good anti-aging regimen.

Yeah right.

Does it work: Snail slime skin care

One big skin care fad from the East is the use of snail mucus. It is believed to reduce pigmentation and scarring on the cute assumption that snail mucus was designed to heal the snail as it moves through jagged terrain. I've personally seen some snail mucin products and they're not as icky as I thought they would be. In fact, I'm thinking of reviewing one famed mucus containing moisturizer for fun.

I first learned about snail slime from Penn and Teller's Bullshit show. It was witty and brutal as always, and I thought the snail mask was a mean yet funny prank. At that time, I had no idea snail creams would be as huge as what they are now.

Panic over parabens

Let us face it. Beauty products are sometimes full of BS and marketing hype. Anti-aging. Breakthrough technology. All-natural. Of course, some claims may actually be true, but are we discerning enough to know which ones are true and not? How do we know we are not paying ridiculous claims worth nothing?

Let's take a look at one of the labels we often see in products nowadays: paraben-free. For those who have no idea what they are: paraben (butylparaben, ethylparaben, methylparaben, propylparaben) is a class of chemicals commonly used as preservatives. Recently, some beauty brands have been pegging this label into their products, implying that parabens are unsafe. But how (un)safe are parabens anyway?

Sour facts of Calamondin (Calamansi)

I love calamansi juice. Especially if it has some honey in it, topped with a few ice cubes. I also love it on my pancit, as it gives a certain tangy flavor to the dish. It is also very nice with green tea and some aloe bits.

However, I will always cringe at the slight mention of calamansi as a part of the Pinay's natural and cheap arsenal of whitening products. Heck, it is so common here in the Philippines that my mother believed it can whiten my elbows if I'd scrub calamansi on them every day.