This guide explains which chemical ingredients you should avoid that are common in many high street products for babies and children, and the reasons why you should avoid using these ingredients on your baby or child's delicate skin.
Ingredients to avoid in baby products
Skin care products need only 1% natural ingredients to be called 'natural' and legally get away with the statement. Likewise, skin care products need 75% organic ingredients to be called 'organic'. This is better, obviously, but 25% still remain for toxic chemicals which will be absorbed into your baby's blood stream no matter what.
It is known that substances, when applied to the skin, are absorbed in as little as 26 seconds and enter the bloodstream. Research has shown that, depending on the nature and properties of the chemical, as much as 60% of what is applied to the skin may be absorbed by the inner organs. In spite of this, many high street baby products contain a very high number of chemicals which can irritate your child's delicate skin and cause allergic reaction.
Even ‘so-called’ natural skin care ranges could be harmful to your baby or child. Skin care products need only 1% natural ingredients to be called 'natural', meaning that some may contain a mix of man-made chemicals and water to make up the remaining 99%. As rates of eczema and allergies among children continue to rise many have pointed to the early introduction of 'toxic toiletries' as a major contributing factor. Let's face it - we didn't have such a huge amount of allergens 50 years ago!
Back to Nature Ltd. is a truly natural and organic range of skin care which do not contain any of the ingredients listed below. Our products are not 1% or 75% natural or organic - they are 100% naturally organic! Our products contain 100% natural organic ingredients which are full of naturally occurring in plant actives - vitamins, essential fatty acids, enzymes, minerals, plant actives and many more.
Preservatives in baby products
Artificial preservatives are one of the main causes of irritation and allergic reactions. Some are also known to release small amounts of formaldehyde which is an irritant, a carcinogen and neurotoxin. The following ingredients contain formaldehyde, may release formaldehyde or may break down into formaldehyde:
◦ 2-bromo-2 nitropropane-1,3-diol
◦ Diazolidinyl urea
◦ DMDM hydantoin
◦ Imidazolidinyl urea
◦ Quaternium-15
Other preservatives that can cause an allergic reaction and irritation are:
◦ Methylchloroisothiazolinone
◦ Methylisothiazolinone
◦ Parabens (butyl, ethyl, methyl, propyl, isobutyl)
Carcinogenic linked ingredients
Many cosmetics contain DEA or TEA. Neither is carcinogenic on its own, but if the product contains nitrites (which are not always disclosed on labels and can be disguised as 'parfum' or 'fragrance') it can cause a chemical reaction, leading to the formation of nitrosamines which are carcinogenic.
Other chemicals that pose similar hazards to nitrosamine formation are:
◦ 2-bromo-2 nitropropane-1, 3-diol (Bronopol)
◦ Padimate-O (found in sun screens)
◦ 1,4-Dioxane
Foaming and emulsifying agents
One of the most common foaming agents in shampoos, shower gels, bubble baths and even toothpaste is sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS). SLS is a known skin irritant and should be avoided - especially on young sensitive skin.
Back to Nature use a beeswax based gentle foaming agents derived from coconut - no SLS! The emulsifying agents are naturally plant derived from olive and other oils.
Babies and perfume
Fragrances are another of the two leading causes of allergy and irritation. If you see the word 'parfum' in the ingredient listing you could risk a hidden multitude of synthetic chemicals. 95% of the mix in most perfumes is made from synthetic chemicals!
Scents made with natural ingredients can also cause skin irritation; however you are less likely to suffer allergic reactions if you use one essential oil or a blend of a few oils, than if you use synthetic fragrances.
Perfume-free products
Most of our Organic Babies range and Organic Children's products contain natural essential oils such as Lavender and Chamomile, although we do also have some which do not have any essential oils at all.
'Parfum' and 'Fragrance' are two very cheeky ingredients which legally contain up to 200 synthetic hazardous and toxic ingredients in them! There is no way of knowing exactly what those ingredients are so best to avoid products which contain 'parfum' or 'fragrance' of any kind.
Avoid colourants
It is wise to avoid synthetic colours. They are only used to make the products look appealing to the consumer and can cause allergic skin reactions. Some even contain heavy metals and are carcinogenic.
All colours, whether natural or synthetic, are listed as ingredients in cosmetics by their Colour Index (CI) Number. Each number is unique to a specific colourant material and is shown by the letters CI followed by a 5 digit number, such as CI 75810. Naturally derived colours from plants and mineral sources will have numbers greater than CI 75000 and as a general rule, to avoid synthetic colours in cosmetics you should not use any product with a CI number of less than CI 75000.
Here at Back To Nature Ltd. we do not use any colourants as a rule and our products are not only gentle and safe to use, but also leave skin feeling wonderfully soft and nourished.
Alcohol
Ethanol/ethyl alcohol can cause dryness and irritation and increase permeability of the skin, enabling unwanted impurities to be absorbed quicker and must be avoided at all cost! One of the reasons ethanol/ethyl alcohol is added to many skin care products is so the product dries quickly into the skin and the consumer can go about their day without worrying about the excess residue causing any discomfort. Unfortunately something has to give and because our products have 100% natural content they do leave excess residue.. However, this 'problem' can be resolved very easily and quickly, without any harm to your skin! All you need is a tissue!!
http://www.miracle-balm.co.uk/blogs/news/18968723-essential-guide-to-baby-and-child-skin-care-products
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