Tea bags instead of eye serum, vegetable oil instead of face cream, yogurt instead of hair balm – folk beauty creativity is inexhaustible. But blindly believing in the superiority of homemade beauty products is pretty naive. Let’s explain why.
Natural cosmetics: pros and cons
We have collected the main arguments of opponents of ready-made cosmetics. And we invite you to look at them objectively. So, why do we love folk recipes? Here are the main arguments. And denials.
Everything natural is healthy
Argument. Folk cosmetics are 100% natural, which means they work more effectively than store-bought cream.
Refutation. Of course, cucumbers, strawberries, tomatoes, bananas and citrus fruits contain vitamins, minerals and other substances that are good for the skin. But the gifts of nature available to us in the city after processing, long storage and transportation often lose their taste and aroma, and along with them – biologically active polyphenols (flavonoids). This means that the skin has nothing to expect from them.
Meanwhile, cosmetics manufacturers include the most effective extracts in their products. They have the ability to extract them from those parts of the plant where the concentration of active substances reaches a maximum. And most importantly, they spend millions to encapsulate these extracts in a cream without losing their beneficial properties and deliver them to skin cells with a guarantee.
There are too many unfamiliar substances in finished cosmetics
Argument. Folk cosmetics are a pure product, in which there is nothing superfluous, and in creams there are more than half of incomprehensible excipients.
Refutation. How many vitamins are left in “fresh” fruits and vegetables by the time they get to our kitchen in the big city is a big question. In addition, over the past decades, the amount of vitamins and other nutrients in foods has decreased by 30%.
This is associated with soil depletion, unfavorable environmental conditions, selection designed to obtain high yields, when plants are cultivated whose fruits ripen faster – they simply do not have time to absorb from the soil and receive everything they need from the sun in full.
Ready-made creams are “chemistry”
Argument. There are no harmful chemicals in home cosmetics – and this is a huge advantage.
Refutation. The naturalness of the components available for the manufacture of homemade creams raises reasonable doubts. The production volumes of organic farms, where chemical fertilizers have not been used on the ground for at least 30 years, are extremely low. Therefore, a certain percentage in the composition of “fresh” products will definitely be occupied by all kinds of fertilizers, which are used to feed plants for rapid growth and safety during transportation.
Cosmetics “hand-made” acts instantly
Argument. Cucumber masks and tea bags actively act on the skin around the eyes without any chemical intermediaries, which means they give the effect faster.
Refutation. This is one of the most common mistakes. The edible ingredients used in homemade beauty recipes are designed to be absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract, not through the skin.
Natural Ingredients Won’t Harm
Argument. Mixtures prepared by yourself in a blender are safer than factory cosmetics.
Refutation. This is a dangerous delusion.
The strongest allergens are just natural ones. In cosmetic production, natural raw materials are thoroughly cleaned of unnecessary or dangerous impurities, leaving only the main and easily absorbed by the skin components.
The active ingredients are combined with “helper” ingredients that allow you to fully unlock the potential of the product, give a synergistic effect. It is impossible to do this at home.
By the way, if you use a blender when mixing the ingredients for a fruit and berry mask, then the remnants of vitamin C will be mercilessly destroyed when they come into contact with a metal nozzle.
There is nothing natural in ready-made cosmetics
Argument. Finished cosmetics means unnatural.
Rebuttal. Long gone are the days when chemists were fond of the synthesis of unknown substances. The current trend is to learn from nature. Scientists study plants that have taken root in difficult climatic conditions, looking for substances that determine their viability, ability to retain moisture and bloom under any circumstances. These natural secrets form the basis of new formulas.
Do-it-yourself cosmetics – easier and cheaper
Argument. Homemade recipes are convenient and inexpensive.
Refutation. Surely a homemade mask will cost less than a store mask, but if we evaluate the price / quality ratio, then the benefit is very controversial. Moreover, there are a lot of effective means on the beauty market at affordable and even low prices.
And as far as convenience is concerned, it is completely difficult to agree here. Still, making homemade cosmetics takes time. If the cosmetic “lab” in the kitchen is a pleasure, fine. But hobbies and health care are two different things.
Of course, a bath with milk and rose petals is a great idea. But given the current pace of life, we, unlike the queens of past millennia, cannot often afford such a luxury. Let such cosmetic procedures be a holiday, and for daily skin care, choose a cream with a laboratory-tested composition and a verified formula.
Funds overview
Moisturizing body milk with bifido complex and aloe vera, Garnier leaves a feeling of freshness on the body. Aloe juice is a real miracle of nature: it is a gel that has moisturizing and antiseptic properties.
Extraordinary Facial Oil “Luxury Nutrition”, L’Oréal Paris charged with the power of natural oils – essential and base. The basis of the product is instantly absorbed jojoba and rosehip oils. The caring nourishing and moisturizing effect is enhanced by a complex of essential oils of lavender, geranium, orange, rose, rosemary, chamomile, lavandin and marjoram.
Care for dry and rough skin, Kiehl’s almost entirely composed of natural oils (avocado, shea, wheat germ), which are able to soften and smooth even the most dry and rough skin.