Mineral oils in cosmetics: no oil on my skin!

Dans "Les huiles en cosmétique : que cachent vos produits de beauté ?" on a vu que les huiles qui composent un produit cosmétique sont très peu évoquées. Toute l'attention se porte sur les actifs, alors même que les huiles sont majoritaires dans les formules de crèmes. De leur qualité, dépend ainsi directement celle de ton produit. C'est donc important de faire le point sur les huiles cosmétiques, en commençant par les plus utilisées : les huiles minérales.

Mineral? Did you say mineral, as in mineral water? Pure and natural, flowing from our beautiful mountain springs? Unfortunately not! The term "mineral oil" actually refers to products derived from petroleum refining. Yes, petroleum, you read that right... And yet, these oils are used almost universally in cosmetics. Since the little round blue jar of your earliest childhood, your skin has been filled (humor) with paraffin, petroleum jelly, and other petrochemical derivatives.

These oils are completely synthetic and offer no benefits to our skin. They simply give the impression that it is moisturized. In reality, they create an occlusive film on the skin that limits its natural water loss and keeps it artificially moisturized. Even if your skin feels softer, this moisturization is very superficial and short-lived. As soon as you stop applying a mineral cream , your skin will dehydrate again at its usual rate, with no improvement.

Mineral oils do not provide the skin with any nutrients (essential fatty acids, vitamins, antioxidants, etc.) that would enable it to function better, particularly in terms of self-regulating its moisture levels. The skin therefore becomes dependent on the application of a cream this type of oil to maintain a feeling of hydration (our dependence on petroleum even extends to our bathrooms!).

In addition, by forming an occlusive layer of grease on the skin, mineral oils tend to clog the pores. They therefore promote the development of blackheads and pimples...

It is their low cost and stability that encourage manufacturers to include them so abundantly in their formulas.

You can find them on the list of ingredients that must be included on all cosmetic products. They are called:

• - Liquid paraffin
• - Petrolatum
• - Microcrystalline wax
• - Ozokerite
• - Ceresin
• - Mineral oil
• - words with –methicone or –siloxane
•  

Fortunately, your skin is not doomed to suffer from mineral oils . They are excluded from the specifications for organic cosmetics because of their highly negative environmental impact. Even though they are not toxic to the skin, their impact on the environment is disastrous, from the extraction methods to their release into the environment. Non-biodegradable, once rinsed off, petroleum-based cosmetic products end up polluting the ocean...