the-dirty-docket

At Luaer, all our products are crafted with love and infinite wisdom passed down from our ancestors. This means no toxins, no harmful chemicals and no confusing names we can’t pronounce.

We’re proud to be paraben-free, lead-free, phthalate-free and toxin-free and are constantly striving to make this a part of everything we do. In that spirit, here’s a little list of naughty ingredients that you’ll never find in And Begin Again’s arsenal. Ingredients that sneakily made their way into the cosmetics industry but now need to be bid farewell to.

According to USA’s National Toxicology Program, BHA (Butylated Hydroxyanisole) and BHT (Butylated Hydroxytoulene), both chemical cousins, are reasonably anticipated to be human carcinogens.

They are used as antioxidants in cosmetic products, lipsticks and eyeshadows specifically, and are known to cause skin irritation and hormonal disorders.

EDTA is a chemical that binds and holds on to (chelates) minerals and metals such as chromium, iron, lead, mercury, copper, aluminum, nickel, zinc, calcium, cobalt, manganese, and magnesium and tends to deactivate them. While they may have some side effects, they are not linked to health issues. However, they can cause problems for marine life since they don’t break down easily.

A type of preservative first introduced in the 1950s, Parabens tend to mimic the activity of estrogen in the body’s cells thereby leading to hormone disruptions and potential risks of cancer. Sometimes parabens hide in products under aliases such as ethylparaben, butylparaben, isobutylparaben, methylparaben, propylparaben and even alkyl parahydroxy benzoates.

Talc is a mineral made up mainly of the elements magnesium, oxygen and silicon. In its natural form it is known to contain some asbestos, a substance known to cause cancers. While the usage of talcum powder is commonplace, past reports make it clear that you should not use products containing talc on your skin and even inhaling such products can be problematic.

Be careful where phthalates like Dibutyl Phthalate a.k.a DBP, DEHP and DEP are concerned. While some of them appear on product labels, most of them remain unlisted and stay hidden under the term ‘fragrance’. They’re also linked to hormone disruption, cancer and development and reproductive toxicity.

Ethanolamine compounds like Diethanolamine (DEA), triethanolamine (TEA) and MEA are comprised of amino acids and alcohols and are used in a wide range of cosmetic and personal care products. When they are used in the same product as certain preservatives that break down into nitrogen, they can form nitrosamines which are possible and known carcinogens. Ethanolamines are thought to cause cancer, environmental concerns like bioaccumulation and organ system toxicity.

Petroleum-based compounds, PEGs are widely used in cosmetics as thickeners, solvents, softeners and moisture-carriers. Sometimes, depending on how they are manufactured, they may be contaminated with amounts of ethylene oxide and 1,40dioxane which are known carcinogens and possible carcinogens respectively. PEG compounds are also sometimes known to show some evidence of genotoxicity and can cause skin irritation (on broken skin) and systemic toxicity.

As part of our commitment to do better and be better we aim to keep this list a WIP and keep updating it as we go along.