An “all-natural” formulation might conjure images of a kitchen laboratory or a herbal farm distillery. While this may have been the origins of natural skincare ingredients, this couldn’t be any further from the truth in the 21st century. Organic and natural skincare products are often formulated in the lab with ingredients derived from natural origins but extracted and formulated in a high-tech laboratory setting for improved efficacy and hygiene reasons. After all, you would not want your precious serum to be exposed to air and an unsterile environment before being packaged would you?
There are many reasons why we may prefer ingredients of natural origins as opposed to laboratory synthesized ingredients, but we may also wonder, are there any drawbacks in using natural ingredients? Is the potency limited? Today we will explore this topic in depth and address a few common questions while comparing the advantages and disadvantages of choosing natural ingredients over synthetic ingredients.
We have all heard of the benefits of various vitamins in skincare, such as Vitamin A (retinol), Vitamin B3 (niacinamide), Vitamin C, Vitamin E, etc. Most of these formulations are usually lab synthesized for multiple reasons: they are easier to synthesize, more cost effective to synthesize, may be more stable, and may have a longer shelf life.
Does this mean all naturally derived vitamin ingredients are a marketing hoax? No. The answer isn’t as straight forward as it seems. Studies have shown benefits of using naturally derived vitamins over lab synthesized equivalents. The above study has shown that naturally derived vitamin C penetrates the skin better and that lab synthesized vitamin C had to be formulated at a very precise pH in order to be stable and effective.
If you have not begun integrating a vitamin C into your skincare routine, you should definitely give this power-house ingredient a try. Vitamin C when topically applied, has been shown to combat free radical damage, pigmentation, and brighten the skin while even reversing free radical and sun damage and encouraging collagen synthesis! Use under your sunscreen as an added protection against environmental aggressors. As a real life example from the Pure Tincture team, we noticed the back of our necks, where we only applied sunscreen and moisturizer tanned from incidental exposure while the face area and front of the neck did not with vitamin C application.
The Odacite 15% Vitamin C Serum is a 100% natural serum that contains superfood Acai, invigorating Passion Fruit, hydrating Meadowfoam, antioxidant-rich Wild Carrot and revitalizing Rosehip & Pomegranate to provide the skin with a new sensation of youth and vital glow. Alternatively, The Organic Pharmacy Vitamin C is a highly stabalised formula with 91% organic origin.
However, for other common ingredients such as peptides and niacinamide, the jury is not as clear. Hence, it is important to look at the formulation and the research the company has done in formulating the product. For example, the Venn Vitamin B Activated All-In-One Concentrate has strong research backing it up. Scientifically formulated with VENN’s proprietary Concentric Technology™ using Vitamins B1 (Thiamine HCL), B2 (Riboflavin), B3 (Niacinamide), B5 (Panthenol), B7 (Biotin), and B9 (Folic Acid), 11 Amino Acids (including 8 Essential Amino Acids), and VENN's patent-pending water-solubilized Mastic Gum as key ingredients to deeply hydrate and effectively improve the skin’s complexion in a single step.
Should you use only 100% natural and organic products? That is ultimately a personal decision to be made. What we would recommend is researching the brand and ingredients well and speaking to a professional in regards to suitable skincare products. It is also important to avoid certain ingredients which has been proven to be irritating to the skin and may pose health risks such as artificial fragrances, DEA, MEA, Formaldehyde, Phthalates, etc. When shopping with us, we have filtered and scrutinized the brands thoroughly so you may rest assured, all our stocked products are clean.
