Should We All Be Worried About Mineral Oil In Moisturizers?
Sunday, March 22nd, 2009You probably use a moisturizer right now. Is there mineral oil in it? Is mineral oil in moisturizers good, or is it bad?
One of the by products of distilling crude oil to produce petroleum products is mineral oil. It is used in a wide range of cosmetics and skin care products because it is extremely cheap, and is also known as white oil.
Would it surprise you to find out that in some skin care products over 50% of the ingredients are petrochemical products?
According to the Cosmetic Safety Database mineral oil is used extensively in skin care products, anti aging products and cosmetics. It lists 454 different moisturizers that contain mineral oil, so chances are very high that the moisturizer that you use will have mineral oil in it.
And anyone with a baby will know mineral oil as baby oil because baby oil is 100% mineral oil, just with a fragrance added as mineral oil doesn’t smell that sweet.
And there’s more from the Cosmetic Safety Database. They say that mineral oil is linked to allergies, cancer, toxicity in biological systems in the body and irritation of lungs, eyes and skin.
And as well as all that mineral oil has also been linked to other skin problems including acne. It is suspected of causing skin problems because when used on the skin it forms a thin layer on the surface and this clogs the pores and stops the skin breathing, and releasing toxins.
And there are some who have also linked the use of mineral oil on the skin with premature aging.
But like all these things none of this if firmly proven and there is debate, and the big cosmetics companies and skin care companies maintain that it is perfectly safe and works well.
So you’ve looked and found mineral oil in one of your moisturizers and you’re worried about it and don’t know what to do? Well if you’re happy with the moisturizer and haven’t found any ill effects then that’s good, though not conclusive. And remember too that there are some highly expensive and very poor skin care products that do very little, so if you’re happy with your products you’re in front.
I suspect that many women continue using their skin care products even though they do very little because they have come to expect very little and so arent being disappointed. And if you’re paying a lot I personally believe that you ought to be seeing good results that both you and others notice.
And if you really are seriously worried about using moisturizers with mineral oil try using some high quality natural skin care products that contain no mineral oil at all. See how they work for you, remember you ought to see visible results, not just take it on trust.
And if you buy the best natural skin care products you get products with no mineral oil and with a full money back guarantee so you can try the products mineral oil free and risk free.
So if for any reason you dont feel they are working you can return them for a refund, and very few do, or they wouldnt have the guarantee.
But, sadly, there is no conclusive evidence linking mineral oil in moisturizers with health problems, and no conclusive evidence that mineral oil is safe to put on your skin, though many think it is not, and doesn’t moisturize very well at all.
I cover natural skin care products in much more depth on my website.