The Truth about some of today's Beauty Products
Lately I've been noticing so many products out there with so many claims, some are gimmicky while other's seem so dag nab believable, some claim to be "all natural" or have "organic" ingredients, but just because a product claims to be natural and/or organic, ALWAYS check the ingredients, you would be surprised on what you might find, first and for most if it's a name you can't pronounce, it's more than likely a chemical, unnatural ingredient, google will come in handy at this point. So to get things started, what inspired this post, well I made a trip to tjMaxx and picked up a deep conditioner that I use to use a couple of years ago by Giovanni, I have no idea why I stopped using it, I'm guessing because I probably purchased from a store like tjMaxx and couldn't find it once I ran out and never thought to look online. Using it made me realize that it made my hair feel so soft and smooth and similar to an order product I used several years ago before going "cleaner" with my beauty routine. What I use to use was the famous Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Mask, and goodness I thought it was doing wonders for my hair until I realized what was actually in it. Chemical after chemical, not saying that all chemicals are bad and if you prefer to use it, that's totally okay. For me personally, I'm glad I made the switch. Now on to today's subject.
A popular Ingredient found in Today's Beauty, "Silicone"
Silicone seems to be in everything beauty related these days, all the way from boobs to your makeup primer.
The Basics, What is Silicone?
Silicone is a mineral. It is an effective ingredient commonly used in hair care products. It provides slip and shine, can help smooth and straighten hair and gives hair a luxurious and conditioned feel.
Silicone's are a large class of materials, not just one ingredient. They can usually be recognized by names ending in "cone". In hair care, they are mostly used to coat/condition and to add shine.
POSITIVE Effects
“The positive effects (of silicone in hair care) are a lot, starting with the fact that silicone can actually make hair that is dry and damaged look and feel like it’s healthy by filling in the porosity—what looks like frizz and split ends—and driving and locking in conditioner. Silicone protects the hair from the elements, keeping it smooth and shiny by ‘waterproofing’ each strand. It also gives hair a slippery-when-wet feel because of its hydrophobic coating.
NEGATIVE Effects
“Silicone is almost like rubber or plastic. It is used as a sealant against water and even air. It is NOT a natural ingredient and its side effects are bad for our hair. It gives the hair the illusion of shine, but it is not the shine we wan. It is a fake like shine from the plastic. The shine we want is when the cuticle layer is sealed and light reflects off the hair. This only happens when hair is properly hydrated and kept healthy as possible.
Silicone will weigh the hair down, making it limp, lifeless, and with time, very dull. It prevents moisture from penetrating the hair shaft and becomes like a magnet for dirt and other ingredients. So in all in all, we get a good shine for a couple of days, but over time it will start to attract more buildup on our hair. With time it will dry the hair out because it won’t allow in the conditioner and it ends up sitting on the surface. Due to lack of moisture, the hair will become very brittle and could lead to frizzi-ness and breakage.
Silicone's are also found in today's makeup and skincare from Primers to Foundation all the way to Serums, Moisturizer and even Skin Treatments and Mask.
Prolonged exposure to Dimethicone can actually increase skin irritations because of the coating property, it can cause bacteria and other impurities to become trapped within the pore.
Silicone's that tend to be in today's Beauty Products.
- Dimethicone
- Methicone
- Dimethiconol
- Cylomethicone
- Phenyl Trimethicone
- Dimethicone Copolyol
Silicone's tend to just blur out the imperfections and problems on our skin, it may give the appearance of smooth and even skin but it may actually be suffocating the skin and clogging pores, everyone's skin is different but if you tend to have blemish and acne prone skin, any products that contain a type of "Silicone" you may want to stay clear of.