Natural and Organic Cosmetis: The differences between Synthetic, Natural, Organic. Certifications & INCI

NATURAL AND ORGANIC COSMETICS: HOW TO IDENTIFY IT.

In my blog regarding the pursuit of wellbeing an article could certainly not be missing and it is about what is perhaps my greatest passion and which has also led to important changes in my private and working life:

The Organic Natural Cosmetics.

If you have read the “About Me” page you already know that since adolescence, therefore more than 20 years ago, I have been passionate about the world of plants applied to help and preserve the beauty and well-being of our body.

In those years between the end of the 90s and the beginning of the 2000s we were returning from the 80s, therefore from a synthetic cosmetic production where the choice of the product to buy fell on the product packaging, on the advertising by a famous person or on captivating fragrances but with ingredients synthesized in the laboratory and without a soul.

The act of buying this type of product certainly satisfies our ego, the fragrance itself can give us pleasure … but it hasn’t helped in many cases to solve any aesthetic problem and in many other cases it has filled our body with harmful and dangerous substances if used constantly.

Even today, the market works in part like this but really much has been done to try to reverse the direction of something that was deeply wrong, many important cosmetic companies have recognized this and have started to turn towards a “green” cosmetics that is more healty and more respectful of the environment and more regulations have begun to guarantee transparency and protection for consumers.

During my experience as the owner and manager of a spa in central London and distributor in the UK of organic and sustainable cosmetics, I noticed a great confusion in the buyers but also in the professionals who do beauty jobs.

The skin is often seen as something separate from our body and the resulting aesthetics treated superficially only at the level of the epidermis as if there was nothing else underneath, as if that beautiful machine that is our body did not exist and was not communicating with us.

Sometimes we are frightened by the imperfections that appear on our body and for this reason we seek immediate solutions by throwing away money but above all ignoring the important signs of some imbalances that our body is undergoing.

An obvious example is someone who every time he has heartburn takes a medicine to not feel the pain, same thing for a headache or a back pain and does it without asking why this happens to our organs, lack of water ? of vitamins? too much stress? bad diet?

For this reason is always important having an holistic approach and well understand the products and the ingredients that we are applying on our body.

The same thing happens for our integumentary system, what we commonly call skin, an aestheticism such as acne, for example, tells us to work at the lymphatic and hormonal levels. Cellulite is synonymous with poor lymphatic circulation, stagnation of liquids and so on with many examples with eczema, psoriasis and much more.

These imperfections are all signs that something is wrong with our systems and therefore we must not stop looking for a product for topical use but discover the mechanisms that triggered it and why.

In my opinion and with the experience of the last 20 years there is no better way than to treat, cure and prevent them with the help of plants, with Aromatherapy, Ayurveda, alkalization and natural and organic cosmetics and also to discover the conflicts of the mind that are poured out on the body with psychosomatics.
If you want to clarify this article, I will reveal why in the search for well-being I cannot fail to include Organic Natural Cosmetics and what are the steps you can take to start using it effectively.

02. THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SYNTHETIC, NATURAL AND ORGANIC.

As anticipated in the preface of the article, there is a big difference between synthetic, natural and organic cosmetics.
Often, however, the consumer does not understand the differences well because sometimes deliberately confused and misleading information arrives from cosmetic manufacturers and therefore to make informed choices it is always good to understand as much as possible.

Cosmetics word derives from the Greek word “Kosmos” which means  “keep in order things ” therefore this term perfectly reflects the purpose of cosmetics which is to preserve and enhance our beauty.

The use of cosmetics has been known since ancient times, in the civilizations of Mesopotamia in the southern Mediterranean area and in Egypt.
The Egyptians contributed significantly to the development of cosmetics even in subsequent generations as the beauty secrets were handed down in their papyri but also other civilizations such as the ancient Greeks and Romans have shown to appreciate the care of the body that merged with hygiene, the search for beauty and well-being.

Once, however, cosmetics were certainly natural, not always healthy for humans because harmful and even poisonous substances were used to achieve certain purposes, but it was certainly not a synthetic cosmetic.
The new era of cosmetics and the paradoxical change it has undergone from natural to synthetic occurred in the 18th century, especially in France where the industrial and scientific revolution favored the birth of synthetic products.

For today’s society, the real boom occurred with the economic progress of the 1980s which saw the arrival of mass-made products advertised by sparkling packaging, advertising and famous people.

In this period, cosmetics mostly used synthetic ingredients and there was no real regulation. We did not ask ourselves if the substances used in the long term and in large doses could have negative effects on the environment but above all on the health of consumers.

The cosmetic safety system was formed over time on the wave of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938 in the USA. The spirit of the law is that all the responsibility for the safety of cosmetics rests with those who produce it and put it on the market.
In Italy, the production and sale of cosmetic products was regulated in 1986 with the Law of 11 October 1986, n. 713. The law transposed the community directive 76/768 / EEC, issued in order to make the regulations relating to the production and sale of cosmetics uniform at European level. It regulates, in particular, aspects relating to the composition of cosmetic products; to the presentation (by presentation being the labeling, packaging and any other form of external representation of the product) and to the formalities necessary to start the production and sale or proceed with the import of cosmetic products.

Today at European level the Regulation 1223/2009 on cosmetic products provides the common definition of cosmetic product and contains a series of provisions that guarantee the safety of the cosmetic from various points of view (from the manufacturing method to the control of the ingredients, from the obligation of information to be declared on the label for evaluations carried out by an expert). Since the Regulation is aimed at all member states, it provides that some information on the label (eg function, warnings and methods of use, etc.) are reported in the official language of the country in which the product is marketed.

According to the Cosmetics Regulation in the European Union, therefore, cosmetic products are: “any substance or mixture intended to be applied on the external surfaces of the human body (epidermis, hair system and hair, nails, lips, external genital organs) or on the teeth and on the mucous membranes of the mouth for the sole or primary purpose of cleaning, perfuming, modifying their appearance, protecting them, keeping them in good condition or correcting body odors. ”

There is still a long way to go to make cosmetics safer and clearer, but things are improving gradually.
For example, since September 2004, all animal tests of finished cosmetics have been banned in the European Union and since March 2009, animal tests for cosmetic purposes have also been prohibited for ingredients.

But let’s see in more detail what it means to buy a synthetic cosmetic, a natural and an organic one.

SYNTHETIC COSMETIC: in traditional cosmetics we find many ingredients that derive from the processing of oil or that are chemically reproduced in the laboratory. Later we will see that the composition of a product requires various ingredients to ensure that they work in synergy with each other and create the cream, shower gel, shampoo etc. etc.
An example of synthetic ingredients are preservatives that allow the product to last for years on store shelves, for example we find parabens such as Methylparaben, Ethylparaben, Propylparaben, Butylparaben, Isobutylparaben.
The advantage of using petroleum-derived or synthetic ingredients is that they are inexpensive and the formula remains much more stable and lasting over time.
The disadvantage is that since there is no law that obliges cosmetic companies to prove that prolonged use does not cause health problems, there remains the doubt that in the long run they can cause serious damage to our health because we use them every day. Over the years, more and more studies have been made in this regard and it has been found that these substances also interfere with our endocrine system, altering hormonal functionality.
Furthermore, these productions amplify the problems at an environmental level, not only for their own production but for what we pour directly into our waters once they are washed away.

NATURAL COSMETIC: as a trend in recent years, many cosmetic companies are trying to change their advertising by promoting products with botanical extracts and natural ingredients, this means that in addition to the ingredients seen before in synthetic cosmetics, extracts derived from plant processing also appear. This means that the natural product can have from a minimum of 10% of natural ingredients up to 70%.
In my opinion, however, this type of cosmetics risks creating confusion and greater damage because even if some cosmetic companies use it with the true intent of improving things, for others it remains only an opportunity to exploit the benefits that advertising creates. of a natural product given the green trend of the moment but in the end the product has very little natural and therefore all the problems listed above continue with synthetic cosmetics.

CERTIFIED ORGANIC NATURAL COSMETICS: this category includes all those cosmetics that comply with the regulations of Eco-bio certifications. The certifications are different and are made by private bodies that apply very similar evaluation criteria, we will see them in detail shortly.They were born from the need to protect consumers and make sure that a product is truly of natural origin with organic cultivation, skin-friendly and respectful of the environment.

In eco-bio cosmetics, already in the formulation we find:

1) Ingredients from plants with organic cultivation, therefore where no pesticides, GMOs and additives are used.

2) Prohibition of the use of ingredients of animal origin that cause the suffering or death of the animal.

3) The percentage of natural ingredients varies depending on the certification but let’s say that usually it is around 95%, the remaining 5% must be made up of controlled ingredients.

Of 95% of the natural ingredients at least 10% must be organic.

4) The natural substances used must be skin-friendly and not cause dermatological problems, so they are tested.

5) Packaging must be low environmental impact and recyclable.

02. ORGANIC CERTIFICATIONS.

As previously mentioned, the Organic certifications were born from the need to protect consumers but also producers who with commitment, dedication, effort and higher production costs have decided to safeguard the planet and human health by investing in research and development of a truly natural and organic and Eco-sustainable cosmetics.

The certification contrasts and avoids the ugly phenomenon that has developed in recent years of “greenwashing”, that is to produce natural cosmetics only for the facade to be able to make use of a profitable marketing tool given the increase in awareness and research of these products by of the consumer.

The certifications that are made by private bodies therefore ensure that that product meets certain evaluation criteria such as:

1) how the cosmetic is produced
2) the raw materials used and the organic crops from which they come
3) how the import of materials from third countries takes place
4) the production of packaging
5) the labeling that must show the entity that performed the check
6) the ingredients are checked for skin compatibility.

Here are the main certifications:

COSMOS which is managed by an international, independent and non-profit association.The founding members are
BDIH – Germany,Cosmebio and Ecocert – France,ICEA – ItalySoil Association – United Kingdom
They manage the COSMOS standard and ensure its continuous development with their expertise.
COSMOS offers two logos for COSMOS ORGANIC or COSMOS NATURAL cosmetic products.
The natural ingredients are at least 95% of which 20% must be from organic cultivation.In fact, you will find in the certifications of the adhering founding members with the additional wording Cosmos Organic or Cosmos Natural such as Ecocert Cosmos Organic, or Icea Cosmos Organic.

ECOCERT is an active and independent international monitoring and certification body born in France in 1991 by agricultural engineers.
It has contributed to the development of organic crops and enjoys a good reputation all over the world thanks to the seriousness of the controls and the development of eco-sustainable projects.
It has 2 certifications, the first more rigid with the label “ecological and organic cosmetics” the percentage of natural ingredients must be at least 95 and 95% of the plant substances used must be strictly organic. The remaining 5% of the ingredients are strictly controlled.
To receive the second “organic cosmetics” label, only 50% of the ingredients of a given product must come from organic farming.
Ulteriori informazioni su questo testo di originePer avere ulteriori informazioni sulla traduzione è necessario il testo di origine

AIAB which stands for the Italian Association for Organic Agriculture is an institution created with the aim of allowing the use of products with low environmental impact and able to protect the health of the consumer and meet the expectations of the consumer through a correct, transparent and complete definition of Bio Ecological Cosmetics.
The first recognition on organic cosmetics in Italy created over 10 years ago guarantees compliance with a specification and the use of good practices:
– Only non-allergenic and irritating vegetable raw materials;
– Use of agricultural and livestock products from organic farming.

BDIH is a control body born in Germany in 1951 and its seal was introduced in February 2001 by the Federal Association of German Industry and Commerce (BDIH = Federal Association of German Industry and Trade of Pharmaceutical Products, health products, food supplements and personal care) to create uniform standards in the field of natural cosmetics.
The BDIH certificate is an internationally recognized certificate, which so far has around 5,800 beauty products made by around 160 certified manufacturers.

CCPB is an inspection and certification body for agri-food and “non-food” products obtained in organic and ecological production.
Thanks to its thirty years of certification experience in organic production and the resulting main authorizations received (Reg EC 834/2007, NOP, JAS, COR, Ifoam, etc.), CCPB has developed specific experience in the cosmetic field since 2004.
It also offers companies operating in the cosmetics sector a new conformity attestation service with reference to ISO 16128-2: 2016, Cosmetics – Guidelines on technical definitions and criteria for natural and organic cosmetic ingredients.
CPB has activated a specific certification scheme dedicated to organic cosmetics. This is a scheme whose Production Standard, complete with the minimum control requirements, provides for the obtaining of two types of products depending on the content of raw materials from organic farming:
• Organic cosmetics
• Cosmetics with organic ingredients
The scheme does not fall within the field of application of Reg. CE 834/07, the standard is therefore “private”, and has been prepared by a working group composed of experts belonging to companies and associations in the sector and is equivalent to the most important standards used at European level.

NATRUE (True Friends of Natural and Organic Cosmetics) is a non-profit organization formed in 2007 by producers from various European countries which, in the absence of a European public regulation similar to that of the agri-food sector, has devised a standard on cosmetics organic and natural, which is reputed to be the most serious and rigorous.
It is based in Brussels and the NATRUE standard applies to:
• FINISHED COSMETICS
• RAW MATERIAL
• FORMULAS

Today, more than 6500 certified products are part of Natrue, more than 280 brands plus 1600 certified and approved raw materials.

ICEA is the Institute for Ethical and Environmental Certification born in Italy, a non-profit consortium in which bodies, associations, companies and civil society organizations participate that for over twenty years have contributed to the dialogue and generated the thrust and development of organic farming in the Italian territory even before this was regulated.
ICEA controls and certifies several thousand companies that carry out their business in respect of man and the environment, protecting the dignity of workers and the rights of consumers.
A territorial network with 24 offices in Italy and abroad to bring services closer to the needs of companies, to work closely with the reference area and enrich the Institute’s know-how.

SOIL ASSOCIATION is the UK’s leading organic certification organization established in 1946 to promote organic farming.
Soil Association Organic also certifies specific beauty and wellness products with production standards introduced in 2002. When we talk about cosmetics and personal care products with Soil Association Organic certification, we are talking about products that:
• have not been tested on animals.
• they do not contain ingredients of animal origin (useful for those looking for “cruelty free” cosmetics and beauty products).

DEMETER The history of the Demeter brand dates back to 1927, when some farmers who cultivated their land following the principles of biodynamics decided to protect their products and their companies. So it was that they thought of Demeter, goddess of fertility and the earth. First with the flower brand, then with the word brand, Demeter appeared on all products obtained from biodynamic crops.
Today Demeter is present with its certification bodies in 43 states, coordinated by Demeter International, the federation based in Germany (Darmstadt) founded in 1997 with the aim of guaranteeing close cooperation in the legal, economic and ethical sectors.

USDA ORGANIC is the organic certification for the United States in fact the acronym stands for United State Department of Agriculture.
The rules used so far to define organic farming and distinguish it from traditional agriculture are extremely strict, companies and farmers are required to scrupulously apply the stringent criteria defined by the USDA and suspend the use of the vast majority of products for at least 3 years. chemicals used in agriculture. Even after obtaining the certification, the companies remain under the strict control of the Department which at the slightest violation can revoke the certification or impose sanctions.
The USDA also has a committee member appointed by the Department of Agriculture to the National Standard Organic Board.

These are just a few examples of the certifications that exist in the various countries and there is to add that where there are also processes derived from animal products such as milk or honey etc. Producers can also request certifications to certify that the product is Vegan.

03. HOW TO READ THE INGREDIENTS (INCI) TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT COSMETIC.

It all started when I was about 15 years old which was one of the best times of my life and I noticed all the changes that took place in my body and I really wanted to be at my best so I spent my pennies and time looking for beauty products.

I don’t know exactly how it happened, but I felt that despite the captivating scents and beautiful packaging, those products did not really perform and did not promise what they kept.

For this reason I took advantage of the opportunity of the arrival of the internet, of the first computers at home to do some research since in my small village in Italy we were a little behind on technologies but in the rest of the world and in more cities. great in Italy already come out of the oven articles and know about it.

So it was that I came across a wonderful site called “Sai cosa ti spalmi” and I began to discover an underground world of information and to participate in Forums with girls who really knew how to recognize good cosmetics and fought to make her come to the light.

From then on my approach to cosmetics changed ‘forever and laid the foundations for what would later be a life path, I started wandering around supermarkets and herbalists with handwritten notes in detail with the ingredients that a cometic must contain or not and what are the natural ones that can replace these.

I found also a lot of information from the beautiful work done by Doctor Zago with the Biodictionary.

The cosmetic ingredients used to formulate a product such as a cream, a detergent or a shampoo, are many, not to say infinite but we can learn to distinguish the main ones and which ones should never be in a cosmetic.

Why are the ingredients in English?

They are in English because the International Nomenclature defined as I.N.C.I. is followed. (International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredients) is an international name used to indicate on the label the different ingredients present in a cosmetic product. It is used in all EU member states and in many other countries around the world, including the United States, Russia, Brazil, Canada and South Africa and has been compulsory since 1997.

According to the INCI nomenclature, the ingredients of a cosmetic product must be written in descending order of concentration at the time of their incorporation.

The INCI nomenclature contains some Latin terms referring to the botanical names and those of ingredients present in the pharmacopoeia while the majority are in English but be careful because even the vegetable substances that have undergone a transformation are put into English.

For ingredients from organic farming, an asterisk * is placed which shows the indication “Coming from organic farming” at the bottom of the INCI

In the case of dyes, the numbers according to the Color Index are used (for example CI 76239), with the exception of hair dyes, which must always be indicated with their English chemical name.

A good way to disentangle the choice is to classify the ingredients into macro-categories and understand for each macro-category which is the synthetic option and which is “healthy” and natural.

For example, let’s start with LIPIDS (FATS)

Which have characteristics of carriers for other lipophilic substances and are also emollients for the skin.

Among the PETROCHEMICAL Lipids we find mineral oils such as (Paraffinum liquidum), petroleum jelly (Petrolatum) and other paraffins. They are inexpensive and are often extracted with acids.

SYNTHETIC LIPIDS: from a chemical point of view these are esters composed of fatty alcohol + acid and are Isopropyl Myristate, Isopropyl Stearate, Cetyl Palmitate.

This type of ingredients has been seen in clinical studies that in the long run they interfere with the skin’s natural hydration mechanisms, producing just the opposite effect by drying the skin.

The green answer to this type of ingredients are vegetable oils such as sweet almond oil (Prunus amygdalus oil), sesame oil (Sesamum indicum oil), avocado oil (Persea gratissima oil) and butters such as shea butter (Butyrospermum parkii) butter) or Cocoa butter (Theobroma cacao butter).

Or liquid wax such as Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis), beeswax (Cera alba), candelilla wax (Candelilla cera, obtained from the branches of Euphorbia cerifera).

The choices that are made at the level of the individual ingredients will therefore determine whether a cosmetic is synthetic, natural or certified organic.

SURFACTANTS are detergents, of synthetic derivation we find SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate) and SLES (Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate) to which Coco-Glucoside and Lauryl Glucoside of natural derivation are better preferred.

EMULSIFIERS and SOLUBILIZERS that have been created so that water and oil in the same formula do not split between these we find PEG-7 Hydrogenated Castor Oil but we can prefer Sodium Stearoyl lactilate, Gliceryl stearate.

THICKENERS that have been created so that the product has a certain consistency among the synthetics we find Carbomer (acrylic acid polymers)

And the Polymers deriving from petroleum (Butylene / Ethylene / Styrene Copolymer) while the natural solutions to be preferred are Saccharide Gums (arabica, tragacanth, guar, xanthan, etc.) or algae extracts (alginates, carrageenans, agar agar).

PRESERVATIVES serve to inhibit bacterial proliferation for the preservation of the product. The most common are the famous PARABENS: Methylparaben, Ethylparaben, Propylparaben, Butylparaben, Isobutylparaben.

But they can be replaced with Benzoic acid, Sodium Benzoate, Sorbic acid, Potassium Sorbate, Benzyl Alcohol or the grapefruit seed extract Citrus grandis, GSE = Grapefruit Seed Extract or the Essential oils of Thyme, Oregano, Tea Tree etc.

SEQUESTRANTS that serve to sequester the ionimetals present in the cosmetic product and among the most common EDTA (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) and its salts (Disodium EDTA, Trisodium EDTA) has been widely used in cosmetics but due to its slow biodegradability it has unleashed protests from amientalists who are looking for greener solutions such as citric acid.

ANTIOXIDANTS prevent rancidity of the product, among the synthetic ones the most used are BHT (Butylhydroxytoluene) and BHA (Butylhydroxyanisole) while naturally derived we find Vitamin E (Tocopherol), the vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid) and rosmarinic acid.

HUMETTANTS are used to delay the loss of moisture in the product, among the most used we find GLYCOLS are also very common (Propylene Glycol, Butylene Glycol, etc.) while with natural formulation vegetable glycerin and aloe and mallow extracts.

COLOUR as mentioned above follow the universal Color Index nomenclature and each has 5 digits. To recognize those of natural origin you have to see if the numbers range from 75,000 to 75,999 which are cataloged as natural organic dyes.

SILICONES ensure that the texture of the product is silky, easily absorbed without leaving the white trail and create a water-repellent patina that maintains hydration.

But it is precisely the creation of this protective film that in the long run makes the skin asphyxiated by preventing oxygenation and absorption of the true active ingredients and are also not very biodegradable and therefore environmentally friendly.

They are chemicals of natural origin such as organic derivatives of silicon but since their synthesis process today is based on complex chemical reactions, they can no longer be considered natural products, but only of natural derivation.

They have endless applications in cosmetics and therefore have been much debated.

Cyclopentasiloxane, Cyclohexasiloxane, Cyclomethicone, Methicone, Dimethicone.

The natural alternative is not to put them, in fact they are absolutely not allowed in formulations that want to have an organic certification and therefore the silkiness characteristics of the product must be sought with a wise use of vegetable lipids previously seen as butters, oils. and natural waxes.

The choices that are made at the level of the individual ingredients will therefore determine whether a cosmetic is synthetic, natural or certified organic.

We can make a comparison of all the categories listed above and see what the petrochemical and synthetic market is proposing and identify the natural ingredients that can replace them and why choose them.

If you are interested, write it in the comments for a more detailed article.

Another important thing to know in order to choose the right cosmetic is to understand the expiration date.

If a cosmetic is valid for less than 30 months regardless of its opening, it must report a precise expiration date.

If a cosmetic is valid for more than 30 months, it must only report the Pao (Period after opening) indicated by the symbol of an open jar with the specific number of months in which that product can be kept open.

As previously said, it is not so easy to discard all the good work that is done to create a product that is eco-friendly but also dermo-compatible since green washing is very widespread, that is, passing scarce products that are not really well done as natural. and good for us and the environment.

But by following some of the guidelines listed above you will already be able to move more confidently and for every question I will wait for you in the comments.

Thanks and have a good choice.

With Love Nicole