Green Your Beauty

Products for the ‘Moisturizer’ Category

So I finally used up my Ole Henriksen Herbal Day Cream Moisturizer, (which isn’t that bad ingredient wise compared to most but still not quite natural enough for me). I tried to switch back to my Korres Yogurt Cream, which immediately caused me to breakout, so now I am on the search for a replacement. It is hard! Nearly every moisturizer in the ‘natural’ section of most online retailers contain parabens, benzyl alcohol, or fragrance! Those are the first three things I recognized and know to avoid in products that sit on my skin.

Here are some I have found that seem to be “more” natural but still contain some ingredients that I would need to look up:

Earth Science Almond-Aloe Moisturizer/Ingredients:
Aloe Juice, Glycerin (Vegetable), Ginseng Extract, Glyceryl Stearate, Squalane (Vegetable), Sweet Almond Oil, Jojoba Oil, Dimethicone, Ceteareth 5, Canola Oil, Soya Sterol, Soya Liposomes, Tocopherol, Camomile Oil, Geranium Oil, Sorbic Acid, Allantoin, Ascorbic Acid, Hyaluronic Acid, Xanthan Gum, Lactic Acid, Beta Carotene, Licorice Root Oil, Retinyl Palmitate, Phenoxyethanol

I recognize most of the ingredients with a couple of exceptions. There has been some debate about Retinyl Palminate lately, particularly when you are out in the sun. Phenoxyethanol is not wonderful, either, but better than parabens. Dimethicone is a low to moderate hazard. That said there are already 3 “iffy” ingredients that may not make this as wonderful a choice but perhaps a better alternative to most. It also doesn’t really contain any known anti-aging ingredients so I’m not sure it would be worth it unless you really just want a basic moisturizer. Almond and Jojobo oil are great for the skin, but at that point you could probably just use them in their pure form.

Aubrey Organics Moisturizer SPF 15/Ingredients:
Active Ingredient: Padimate O (PABA Ester). Inactive Ingredients: Coconut Fatty Acid Cream Base, Organic Aloe Vera, Deionized Water, Organic Shea Butter, Aubrey’s Preservative (Citrus Seed Extract, Vitamins A, C and E), Milk Thistle Extract, Organic Rosa Mosqueta® Rose Hip Seed Oil, Organic Jojoba Oil, Organic Evening Primrose Oil, Lavender Water, Canadian Willowherb Extract, Organic Lavender Oil, Organic Blue Green Algae, Grape Seed Extract, Organic Blue Camomile Oil.

Okay, so I recognize pretty much all of these ingredients which would make this a pretty natural product. Padimate O is ranked as a 6 (moderate hazard) on EWG, but most UV blocking agents are, unfortunately. Oxybenzone is rated a big fat 9, (severe hazard), and the more commonly used ingredient in sunscreens. Titanium Dioxide may be your best bet, which is rated as a (1-3). This might be a great day-SPF cream without oxybenzone that appears to be naturally composed in all other regards! I looked up some reviews and a frequent complaint was: smell. This was my issue with this company’s leave in conditioner. I would most likely try to purchase this from a store that lets me try it out first to see how the smell sits with me. Another review complained that they got burnt within 5 minutes, so I am not sure about the protection benefits Padimate 0. If anyone happens to read this and has information let me know! One thing to keep in mind is that an SPF moisturizer is not really something you want to depend on if you are in direct sunlight. You’re generally getting a water-ed down concentration and would probably need to use 3x as much to really get any protection. I use them when I am inside most of the day but feel it’s better than nothing for the sun exposure I do get when I’m in my car, etc. I also use an additional SPF infused powder. When I am in direct sunlight I will use an actually sunscreen and reapply every hour or so depending on the SPF.

Eminence Tomato Sun Cream SPF 16/Ingredients:
Active Ingredients: Zinc Oxide 12%. Ingredients: Tomato Extract, Tomato Juice, Sheabutter, Aloe Vera Extract, Horse Chestnut, Spring Water, Corn Germ Oil, Biocomplex ( Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Esther C, Coenzyme Q10, Alpha Lipoic Acid), Stearic Acid, Tocopherol, Xanthan Gum, Vanilla, Peppermine Extract, Pine Needle Oil, Orange Oil, Beta Carotene, Cetyl Alcohol, Sodium Hydroxymethylglycinate ( Soy Derivative).

Zinc Oxide rates as a 2(low)-5(moderate) hazard depending on the percentage. It is 12% in this product which probably doesn’t offer a lot of protection but also probably means it is limited toxicity. As I was writing earlier, most SPF infused moisturizers are not enough protection and even if you are just out and about and getting indirect sunlight, it might be a good idea to also use an SPF powder or full-on sunscreen (but try to stick to one with titanium dioxide as it seems to be the least hazardous). I love that this product has an antiaging complex which is infused in most of their products. There are minimal, recognizable ingredients. Sodium Hydroxymethylglycinate is a 2 (low hazard) and I don’t feel like researching it just yet to put it on my ingredient glossary. It acts as a preservative or conditioning agent and is a better alternative to parabens, (of course), and phenoxyethanol, (wow I can spell that all by myself teacher!), which is rated as a 4, (moderate). The negative part is the pricetag – $66 big ones for 2 ounces..eek! This is less than some of the higher-end department store brands but still a bundle for such a small amount of product. The Ole Herbal Day Cream that I was previously using was $35 for 1.7 ounces. It’s hard to say if you are paying for quality in this product but I am not sure I’ll be purchasing this just yet!

Dr.Hauschka Quince Day Cream/Ingredients:
Water, Apricot Kernel Oil, Kidney Vetch Extract, Quince Seed Extract, Alcohol, Carrot Extract, Glycerin, Shea Butter, Almond Oil, Olive Oil, Fatty Alcohols, Avocado Oil, marshmallow Leaf Extract, Jojoba Oil, Beeswax, Quince Wax, Lecithin, Bentonite, Witch Hazel Extract, Essential Oils, Xanthan Gum

This is about the same price as eminence (30 bucks for an ounce). Many people rave about this brand and I have yet to try it out. There aren’t really any anti aging ingredients in this, but it might be a nice daily day moisturizer. There is also no SPF. You will have to cut the tube at some point if you want to full use up all of the product.

John Masters Organics Mandarin Maximum Moisture/Ingredients:
Aloe barbadensis (aloe vera) leaf juice,* helianthus annuus (sunflower) seed oil,* populus tremuloides (aspen) bark extract, reticulata blanco var. unshiu (citrus unshiu) peel extract, glycoproteins, glycerin,* cetearyl alcohol, cetearyl glucoside, caprylic/capric triglyceride, cetearyl olivate, sorbitan olivate, butyrospermum parkii (shea) butter,* sodium hyaluronate, xylitylglucoside, anhydroxylitol, xylitol, tilia cordata (linden) flower extract,* sambucus nigra (elder) flower extract,* hypericum perforatum (st. john’s wort) extract,* aniba roseodora (rosewood) wood extract, tilia cordata (linden) blossom oil,* cananga odorata (ylang ylang) flower oil,* bisabolol, xanthan gum, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) extract,* potassium sorbate This was recommended on one of the sites I frequent: Eco Gloss. There are quite a bit of weird sounding ingredients on this. Sometimes that makes me think it is intentionally so to disguise the chemicals. The only one I really recognize is potassium sorbate which is a low hazard and used as a preservative or fragrance. I will look more into the other ones at a later point in time but I am not sure how “natural” this product is as of now.

Okay that’s my list for now.

RATING:3 TREES
Product Link:

I’ve been using this for a few months now and it  is ok. I bought mine from Sephora, but it is also available through the website.

PROS:
+ contains a couple of essential oils
+ pleasant smell
+ user friendly container
+ some SPF
+ seems to offer some moisturizing benefits

CONS:
– no apparent reduction in fine lines
– too many chemicals
– phenoxyethanol
– added (natural) coloring
– polysorbate 80

INGREDIENTS:
Octinoxate = 7.5%, Oxybenzone = 2.0%, Meridamate = 3.0%. Other Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oilm, Glycerin, Tocopheryl Acetate, Retinyl Palmitate, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Squalane, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Cymbopogon Schoenanthus Oil, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Dimethicone, Stearic Acid, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Cetyl Alcohol, Polysorbate 80, Sorbitan Oleate, Carbomer, Potassium Hydroxide, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Hexylene Glycol, Citral, Geraniol, Limonene, Linalool, Citronellol, Eugenol, Annatto (CI 75120)

FINAL VERDICT: This has done nothing amazing for my skin. For awhile I thought it was actually drying it out, but that turned out to be a face wash I was using. I’ve been using the tub up for the past month night and day and I have noticed that my skin is slightly softer.  They also ad CI 75120 which is a “natural” coloring agent that comes from the seed: Bixa orellana. Um, I’ve never heard of that. Even if there is no negative research on this ingredient, I feel it’s unnecessary to add any form of coloring to a cream, anyway, particularly if you are claiming to be natural. Polysorbate 80 is also added, which works as an emulsifier or fragrance. It is of low concern (2), but still has been linked to toxicity and cancer in some research. There has also been some recent research indicating that retinyl palminate can increase the likelihood of damaged skin/skin cancer, although that does seem to conflict with dermatologists that prescribe Retin A for antiaging… I will keep researching this. In short: this ingredient is not as natural as it could be. It’s better than a lot of the mainstream products out there but I’m going to try to go for something that does not contain as many chemicals.

RATING: 2 TREES
Product Link:

This was another product that I loved to love, but can’t say that I did. I bought mine at Sephora, you can also purchase directly from the Korres website.

PROS:
+eco-friendly container
+contains olive and macademia oils*

CONS:
-did nothing for fine lines
-contains benzyl alcohol
-contains fragrance
-heavy on chemicals
-not many antiaging ingredients

INGREDIENTS
Water, Yogurt, Butylene Glycol, Steareth-2, Isononyl Isononanoate, Macadamia Nut Oil, Mannan, Olive Oil Unsaponifiables, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil, Steareth-21, Triticum Vulgare, Xylitylglucoside, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Triethylhexanoin, Butyrospermum Parkii, Anhydroxylitol, Amyl Cinnamal, Benzyl Alcohol, Benzyl Salicylate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Coumarin, Dehydroacetic Acid, Hydroxycitronellal, Hydroxyisohexyl 3-Cyclohexene Carboxaldehyde, Isoeugenol, Linalool, Magnesium PCA, Manganese PCA, Panthenol, Fragrance, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Sodium PCA, Tocopheryl Acetate, Xanthan Gum, Xylitol, Zinc PCA.

FINAL VERDICT: I will not be purchasing this again. I saw little to no improvement in my skin, and in fact it feels dry when I wash the product off. Unless you want to waste your money on a product heavy on chemicals that will most likely dry out your skin, I would not recommend it. * You are better off ingesting essential fatty acids through your diet than by putting them on your face. Otherwise, go the hippy route and just use them in their pure form!

RATING: 2.5 Trees
Product Link:

It took me awhile to decide if I was in love with this moisturizer. I got mine at Sephora but it is also available on the website, (see above), at Whole Foods, and probably other random establishments as well.

PROS:

+ makes my skin pretty soft
+ has a pleasant but barely detectable scent
+ paraben/cruelty free
+ lots of anti-aging ingredients (peptides/Q10)
+ Eco-friendly, easy to access jar

CONS:

- no noticed difference in texture
– kinda sticky
– I started breaking out while I was using it.
– benzyl Alcohol – bad! (Click to go to ingredients page)
– DMAE

INGREDIENTS:
Organic Pyrus Malus (Apple) Juice, Organic Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Juice, Vitis Vinifera (White Grape) Juice, Organic Saccharum Officinarum (Glycolic Acid), Organic Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Glycerin, Organic Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Organic Algae Extract, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Organic Plant Oils Of Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter) and Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed, Organic Honey, Organic Essential Fatty Acids Of Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose), Linum Usitatissimum (Linseed) Seed and Borago Officinali (Borage) Seed, Ubiquinone (Coenzyme Q10), Thioctic Acid (Alpha-Lipoic Acid), Dipeptide-2, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-3, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate (Vitamin C), Tocopheryl Acetate and Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Retinyl Palmitate (Vitamin A), Dimethylaminoethanol (DMAE), Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Hydroxide, Benzyl Alcohol, Disodium EDTA, Phospholipids, Hyaluronic Acid, Potassium Sorbate, Azulene, Citrus Reticulata (Mandarin), Litsea Cubeba (May Chang) and Cinnamomum Camphora (Ho Wood) Pure Essential Oils.

FROM THE WEBSITE:
Replenish and firm your skin with this nutrient-rich moisturizer. Combining a brightening complex of certified organic apple, lemon, and grape juices, with nourishing essential fatty acids, age-defying alpha lipoic acid, coenzyme Q10, Vitamin C, peptides and DMAE for optimum age defying results.

Clinically proven to reduce free radical damage by over 59% due to its’ high antioxidant action and to present a significant moisturizing effect of the superficial layers of the epidermis, increasing hydration by over 30% and lasting up to three hours after application.

FINAL VERDICT:
It is one of the most highly rated of natural products on Sephora. I think this product would be great for mature skin and those that are fragrance sensitive. Even men! I ended up giving it to my Mom as it didn’t seem to fit with my skin-type. She reported on liking it but didn’t buy it again to my knowledge. I would love to love Juice Beauty but I did not see any anti-aging benefits when I used it, (and yes I do have some fine lines here and there as well as texture issues), but it did feel very refreshing. Me thinks they need to remove the benzyl alcohol at the very least. There are also other random ingredients that I did not feel like fully investigating. In short, maybe it will work for you, but I do not recommend because of the alcohol.