In today’s episode we will be answering your beauty questions
- Does the price of the product indicate something about the quality?
- Are Glycerin and Aloe Vera really moisturizing?
- What does salicylic acid do in products?
- And how legitimate are the product styles / ingredients?
Beauty Stories of Science
Unilever is clearly moving forward
Big Companies are finally jumping on the transparency bandwagon and promising to list the ingredients in their perfumes for all to see. While they started in early 2017, Unilever has now completed their task of listing fragrance ingredients with a concentration of 0.01% or more. This step goes beyond what cosmetic regulators need. They say they did it to help promote consumer confidence.
But if you want to know you can check the fragrance ingredients in Unilever products by going to US & Canada or EU people.
71% of Consumers Buy Beauty on Their Travel Trips
A new study conducted in the UK found that 71% of consumers buy beauty products on their commute to work. Of course, this is done in a metropolitan area, like London, where public transportation is the main way people get to work. The research found that the average weekly expenditure of commuters shopping online was between £89 and £153. This adds an estimated £22.8 billion a year to the economy, which is 14% of the UK’s online shopping economy.
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Questions – Product costs
Veronica asks, is there a way to determine the quality of a product by looking at the price?
This is a good question and one that I’m sure comes across to many buyers. I think it is ingrained in our minds from a young age that expensive things are better than cheap things. And cosmetics retailers, and marketing people in general, are taking advantage of this situation. If someone can make you pay more for a product, that’s a good reason to charge more.
The 3 biggest factors affect how much a product costs.
- Material costs and production costs
- Distribution costs
- Brand positioning
Question – Glycerin and Aloe vera in moisturizers
Most facial mists contain Glycerine or Aloe Vera. Do these ingredients moisturize/moisturize or dry out the skin. I have tried both and each time my skin feels dry.
Yes, glycerin works. Aloe may provide a little softening but not much. It is definitely inferior to Glycerin.
In general, Aloe vera contains about 75 active substances including vitamins, enzymes, minerals, sugars, lignin, saponins, salicylic acids and amino acids. Sugar and amino acids may have some softening effects but it is difficult to distinguish which effect. I will point out that in a 1999 review article in the British Journal of General Practice, the authors concluded regarding aloe vera, “Although there are promising results, the clinical effectiveness of oral or topical aloe vera is not sufficiently defined at this time. Basically, regarding its use as a medical treatment, it has not been proven.
Question – Tell us about salicylic acid
Please tell us something more about salicylic acid in beauty products. Can be used in concentrations above 2%,
Salicylic acid is an oil soluble active ingredient known as a beta hydroxy acid. It has various functions in cosmetics, such as exfoliation, acne treatment, and wart removal. However, there are concentration limits depending on what salicylic acid is used for. In cases where salicylic acid is used to treat acne or remove warts, it would be considered an effective drug in the United States.
Question – What about beauty trends?
Lauren is a delighted listener that the show is back, and she declares, YES, SCIENCE in her letter to us. We’re glad you’re listening, Lauren, and thanks for asking one of today’s questions: “I’d like to know what the official trends are like. For example, everyone is doing those mask things. Are they good for your skin? Is there something better you can do instead? Or are Korean beauty products the new hot thing? Is acai the killer ingredient that will make Stuff like that.
You have to understand that there aren’t really that many changes from a technological point of view when it comes to cosmetics. The products you use today are the same types of products that people used 20 and 30 years ago. I once did a comparison of the ingredient list of a 2018 Pantene shampoo versus one from 1998. They were very similar ingredients. There aren’t many changes.
But in the beauty industry, you always need something new. It’s very similar to the fashion industry. And so you get these ways…
In my opinion, the science of cosmetic products doesn’t change much and the technology and products don’t change much either. The thing that changes the most is the marketing issues that go with it. And it’s marketing stories that create trends. Or perhaps the other way around, trends create marketing stories.
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