What is All Natural and shouldn’t we be using everything that’s all natural?
Let’s talk about All Natural ingredients. Sure, all natural is mostly better than any chemical ingredients, right? I try not to use chemicals in my products if I can avoid it. However, I sell to the public and therefore am regulated by the FDA concerning those products. I must use some ingredients that aren’t viewed as all natural.
Preservatives. They are OH SO IMPORTANT! When I make lotion, it’s a combination of water and oils. I use an emulsifier to blend the water and oil. It’s a must. But also, I use water. It is distilled and then boiled. You would think that would be good enough, right? It is NOT. It has the potential to grow nasty things like mold, yeast and bacteria! Therefore I use a preservative to keep those things from becoming a hazard in your lotion. It is required. And let’s be very clear on this, essential oils are not preservatives. Grapefruit is not a preservative. There are so many ‘natural’ preservatives that handcrafters are using that ARE NOT SAFE in preventing the nasties from growing in the lotion!
I do care about what kind of preservatives I use. Formaldehyde free. Paraben free. It is not all natural but it is the best I can get and still kill the nasties that WILL invade my lotions and other products and I refuse to take the chance with my customers health.
But what about other all natural ingredients? I mean, isn’t poison ivy all natural? I wouldn’t put that in my products!! Please beware of what you buy, do your research. There are so many claims of ‘all natural’ preservatives out there. But you can trust that I will do the research and I will use only high quality ingredients to keep you safe.
My preservative:
OPTIPHEN™ BSB-N/ROKONSAL™BSB-N
INCI: Benzyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Benzoic Acid, Sorbic Acid
Solubility: Miscible in water
pH Stability: 2.0-5.4
Usage Level: 0.3-1.0%
Description
Optiphen™ BSB-N/Rokonsal™BSB-N is a nature-identical preservative for cosmetics. It is a broad spectrum liquid preservative that is effective against Gram-negative bacteria, yeast and mould. Optiphen™ BSB-N/Rokonsal™BSB-N was specifically designed for formulations with a pH of 2.0- 5.4 due to the presence of organic acids in its system. The lower the pH of the formulation, the better the efficacy of the preservative. It is ECOCERT, COSMOS, NATRUE and BDIH-compliant. Optiphen™ BSB-N/Rokonsal™BSB-N can be used in both O/W and W/O emulsions.