Welcome back to the second installment of the Un-Dupe Series. This time we are talking foundations, a very important item in every woman’s makeup bag. A foundation covers the entire face, and most women wear this 365 days a year and the majority of the day. Women spend so much time and money on cosmetics not knowing what the ingredients are and in return their efforts result in clogging pores blemishes to even more serious skin irritations such as dermatitis.
So what should you keep an eye out for? Parabens are an absolute NO. These are preservatives that penetrate the skin, can disrupt hormone levels and have been linked to cancer in women. Not only that they can react with UVB and lead to premature skin aging! And who wants that as a side effect in their makeup?!! Not this chick……..
Commonly used parabens found in cosmetics that you should aim to avoid are Methylparaben, butylparaben, and propylparaben. Another is Parfum (aka Fragrance). This ingredient usually contains a cocktail of chemicals which may trigger allergies, migraines and asthma symptoms*. Talcs are also to be avoided as they clog the pores and do not let the skin breathe which is an important factor in maintaining healthy skin, as seen in the video we found all of the prior ingredients in the foundations we tested: Bare Minerals spf 15, Smashbox Camera Ready Spf35 and Revlon Nearly Naked Foundation.
Another important tip for you ladies is to watch out for ingredients such as propylene glycol, methylparaben, and propylparaben, all of which are considered endocrine disruptors. The endocrine system regulates ALL biological processes in the body, including development of the brain and nervous system, growth and function of the reproductive system, and metabolism and blood sugar regulation, as well as the functions of the ovaries, testes, pituitary, thyroid, and adrenal glands.
Be on the look out for icons like the ones shown below when shopping for cosmetics!
Stay AWAY From the Following Chemicals: parabens, sodium sulphates, phthalates, sodium benzoate, triclosan, methylisothiazolinone, acrylates, salicylates, butlene glycol, zirconium, tartrazine, nickel sulphate, potassium bromate, coloring dyes such as red#40, yellow #20, etc, aluminum, nitrosamines, octinoxate, propylene glycol, oxybenzone, etc.