Mineral Oil - good or bad?

Mineral Oil - sounds good right? Minerals are good, right? It is downright natural sounding. Well, almost. It is a petrochemical, and while crude oil is a natural product, found in the earth, few of us want to slather it on our skin. Furthermore, mineral oil is not usually found natural but is a by-product of the distillation of petroleum to produce gasoline, and related to petroleum jelly. It is used as a moisturiser in lotions and ointments, as a makeup remover and is the primary constituent in baby oil. It is a known comedogen, that is, it plugs up pores and can cause a worsening of acne. But, one of the main reasons for not liking mineral oil is that during the refining process, unintended byproducts, such as poly-cyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and other potentially dangerous and damaging chemicals can be produced, creating unwanted exposure.

Besides all this, it also can interfere with vitamin uptake in the intestines if taken topically and especially orally and has been linked to lipoid pneumonia. There are alternatives - mineral oil is cheap and so found in a myriad of products - but natural is better and there are so many wonderful natural moisturising agents out there such as cocoa butter, shea butter, almond oil, the list is almost endless...

Parabens - Hype or a concern?

Parabens are used in cosmetics because they exhibit broad spectrum anti-fungal and antibacterial activity, that is, they kill fungi and bacteria that may contaminate and spoil cosmetics. You are most likely to encounter them in moisturisers, skin care lotions and creams, shampoo, sunscreen, gels and shaving creams. Parabens occur in nature (more about that later), but are mostly synthetically produced by the esterification of para-hydroxy benzoic acid (pHBA); hence, the name: paraben. pHBA is an organic acid found in most plants and used in many metabolic pathways by plants. Parabens are easy and cheap to synthesize, and therefore attractive to the cost-conscious cosmetic's industry. The most common are:

• methylparaben
• ethylparaben
• propylparaben
  
• butylparaben
• isobutylparaben

Parabens have not been shown to cause cancer and the American Cancer Society disavows the rumours out there that say otherwise. So then, what is the concern? In 1999 researchers discovered that parabens and their precursor, pHBA exhibited estogenicity, that is, they mimic estrogen activity. Since upwards of 80% of all breast cancers rely on estrogen to fuel their growth, this is of concern. In 2004, Phillipa Darbre et al discovered parabens in breast cancer tumours. This was not a causal link, but warranted further study. Indeed, the EU limits parabens in cosmetics to 0.4% per paraben type and a maximum of 0.8% for a combination of parabens. There are no similar limits in North America. Search 'paraben' in the EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetic Database and you will find a wide array of concerns. Darbe followed up in 2005 specifically looking at the estrogenic activity of the paraben metabolite p-hydroxybenzoic acid (pHBA). She capped it off with the 2008 study, Paraben esters: review of recent studies of endocrine toxicity, absorption, esterase and human exposure, and discussion of potential human health risks and not only confirmed the intact transmission of parabens across the skin barrier into the blood and urine, but concluded that we simply don't know enough to declare parabens safe and as such the precautionary principle might be useful until we know more.

So, where does this leave us? Well, at the very least if you want to avoid parabens, you are going to have to read labels and ask questions. Companies may claim that parabens occur in nature. pHBA certainly does, but it's estrogenicity is thousands of times less than paraben esters. Methylparaben can be found in strawberries and blueberries - but in minute concentrations, far less than you will find in typical synthetic paraben ester laden lotions, potions, sprays and shampoos. If you are concerned about estrogenicity, you might want to avoid parabens, synthetic and natural alike, though synthetic paraben esters will be many times the concentration than those paraben precursors that are found in nature.

What we can look for is further research on the subject, with particular interest in whether there is a causal relationship between certain cancers and paraben (and/or other environmental estrogen mimics) exposure. Until then, there are many proven alternatives out there, so if you want to avoid synthetic parabens, it's not only possible, but relatively easy with a little homework and label reading.

What is Soap anyway?

I get a lot of questions at Rocky Mountain Soap about, well ... Soap, as I guess I should since we sell more than 30 different kinds! The most common questions are: "What is soap anyway?", "Is your soap natural?" and "Do you have glycerin soap?", so let's address these here.

What is soap anyway? : in lay terms it is the product of an oil reacted with lye or potassium/sodium hydroxide. You take almost any oil - olive, coconut, and almond oils are very common - and you mix it usually with KOH (potassium hydroxide) and/or NaOH (sodium hydroxide) and a gelatinous slippery material is produced - i.e. soap. KOH and NaOH historically were derived by pouring water through wood ash - this is rarely they case anymore - but the reaction is a natural one, and both materials occur naturally. Indeed, Pliny the Elder mentions this in his Historia Naturalis (AD 79), so we have been using soap for a long time. As you can see from the picture to the right, soap comes in solid form, but it also comes in liquid that is dispensed as is. Recently companies have been aspirating glycerin enhanced liquid soaps to produce a very luxurious and natural foaming wash. Of course natural soap may just be that, without any additions. However, for those that like texture or scents or colours, essential oils and extracts are used, such as lavender essential oil or apricot fruit extract to name but a few. Colours are usually natural earth minerals and textures such as pumice, seeds, grains and even coffee are sometimes added for look, feel or exfoliating purposes.

Is your soap natural?: If soap is produced in the above manner, it is considered natural. However, most 'soap' these days is hardly natural, and sometimes isn't even soap. Detergents, which contain no actual soap are often formed into bars with added moisturisers. Dishwashing liquid is also usually just a detergent with synthetic fragrances added. Most detergents contain harsh surfactants like SLS, SLES or Coco Betaine etc. Rocky Mountain Soap's products are all 100% natural. If you are unsure, read the ingredient list, if there is one. It should say something like saponified oils of coconut (insert oil of choice here) - but if it says something like "derived from" coconut (etc) oil, then you might want to question how it was derived...

Do you have glycerin soap?: All real soap has glycerin. The oil molecules that real soap is made from contain a component called glycerol on one end. In the saponification reaction, this is converted to glycerin. In commercial soap production, the glycerin is often skimmed off, and sold for industrial purposes, as it is quite valuable. Natural soap makers usually leave all the glycerin in their soap because it has natural cleaning and moisturising abilities. This is what helps give the soap its silky and slippery feel. It is also a natural humectant, that is, it attracts moisture - another reason that you will also find it in natural moisturisers. However, many people think of those clear, almost see through soaps when they think of glycerin soap. This is simply because alcohol has been added during the soap making process. Aesthetically, this might be more pleasing to some, but alcohol is drying and helps defeat the purpose of glycerin being left in the soap in the first place.

Soap is a pretty simple product - yet there are a variety of issues surrounding it. Read ingredient labels and when in doubt, ask your soap retailer for clarification so that you get what you really think you are buying. Natural matters!

Are your Essential Oils pure?

Adulteration: the willful and purposeful addition of cheaper oils, oil fractions, by-products, isolates, natural and/or unnatural synthetics, to reduce the cost of the oil. Essential oils are becoming more and more popular with the general consumer. As holistic and natural health trends increase, people are becoming more interested in aromatherapy and essential oils and their benefits. I can remember 15 years ago trying to find chamomile essential oil and having to finally mail order for it. Now, the consumer has a reasonable expectation to find most common essential oils in their local heath food store, aromatherapy shop or even local mall. With rising popularity often confusion follows. Aren't all essential oils the same? Well they should be, but sadly, the adage caveat emptor is best followed. Because essential oils are, depending on the oil, comparatively expensive in small amounts, there exists the temptation to dilute them to make them go further. This is called adulteration.

Adulteration occurs in a number of ways. (i) Addition: invisible, where a vegetable or mineral oil is added to dilute the essential oil (EO) or visible, the addition of a constituent like alcohol, (ii) Mixture: with cheaper essential oils such as Rosemary EO being diluted with eucalyptus and/or white camphor oils, and (iii) Synthetic "nature identical" addition, such as when bergamot EO is adulterated with linalol and/or linalyl acetate. The only way to confirm if adulteration has occurred is through gas chromatography (GC) and manufacturers using essential oils should request an HPLC (liquid chromatography) test of the essential oils they are buying from their supplier to ensure strict compliance.

The reason for this is that the essential oils must be pure to provide the benefits that they promise and are expected. Adulteration can reduce and/or remove these properties and even introduce undesirable ones.

• EO's contain many powerful antioxidants
• Many EO's facilitate the release of endorphins
  
• EO's are often immune system stimulants
• Some EO's are natural chelators
  
• EO's are often antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral
• EO's can act as nutrient transport agents to cells
  
• Most EO's contain terpenes that are beneficial to cellular function
  

As a consumer, ask your supplier of essential oils or your favourite natural personal care products store if they are sure that not only are their oils natural, but free from adulteration. If you make your own natural bath and body products, check with your supplier. For further information and as a starting point, I have found AromaWeb interesting and useful.

Product Swap Results

The results of the Rocky Mountain Soap Company Product Swap in Victoria are in. It was a smashing success. Of the 522 products that we received, 3 were completely natural [epsom salts (2) and a deodorant (1)], 98% had more than one synthetic ingredient, greater than 90% had at least 3 unnatural ingredients. The worst had 17 synthetic ingredients, and one lotion had 5 synthetic parabens. The most common synthetic ingredients were propylene glycol, parabens (methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, iso-butyl), SLS, SLES, cocamidopropyl betaine, perfume, fragrance, colorants, aluminium chlorohydrate, dimethicone among many others. Of course the were most likely phthlates in the perfumes, but unfortunately perfumes don't usually list ingredients, so we can't confirm that suspicion. Many people asked about the ingredients and how and why they were 'bad' for them. This was par for the course, but what surprised us was the vastknowledge of consumers out there and their desire to "go natural". Many customers new to Rocky Mountain Soap grilled us on our ingredients and challenged us to demonstrate that they were natural. This was immensely satisfying. There is a lot of knowledge out there, people know what they want, natural does indeed matter. Now that we have the products swapped, many customers have asked what we are going to do with these products. The products will be disposed of safely and the packaging will be sent to the local recycling depot. Many customers expressed their thrill at cleaning out cupboards and cabinets with the knowledge that they would be replacing their synthetic bath and body products with natural ones. This was very satisfying for us as well. Natural does indeed matter to many people. Below is a list of exactly what came in:

Fruit Extracts

There has been a trend in the use of natural fruit extracts in shampoos and conditioners for a few years now, but more and more we are seeing them in soaps and other bath and body care products in lieu of perfumes and fragrances. With the notable exception of the citrus family, essential oils cannot be derived from most fruits. Those interested in natural body care products tend to shun fragrances because they are usually synthetically derived and until recently, if they wanted natural, they were often out of luck. If you are an ingredient list reader, look for parfum, perfume, fragrance - these are usually manufactured from artificial esters and not natural. Common esters used in the production of artificial fruit fragrances are ethyl butyrate and ethyl acetate. Ethyl butyrate is also sometimes added to orange juice - to make it more orange-like in flavour.

So, we have been left with the vast array of non-fruit essential oils like lavender and rosemary, among others, to scent our favourite soaps, shampoos and moisturisers. However, the industry has been inundated by consumer demand for not only fruit scents, but natural ones. Supercritical carbon dioxide extraction is the most natural way to isolate natural fruit extracts, which are becoming much more commonly used and available. And not only is the scent isolated, but often the polyphenols, vitamins and other anti-oxidants and phyto-chemicals are too, allowing the manufacturer the ability to impart those benefits and qualities.

Whether you use banana pineapple soap or traditional French lavender, make sure you check the ingredient list if you truly want natural. Just because the label has a pretty flower or picture of a fresher-than-life piece of fruit, doesn't mean that the contents are completely natural. Read labels, ask staff at your favourite bath and body store, contact manufacturers with your questions. Be real, be kind, be natural.