We begin this series of meetings in our #BeautyAware column with a simple question:
What is natural cosmetics and why choose it?
Perhaps not everyone knows that the skin is an organ, on par with the liver and heart.
And who knows, tends to forget that.
Yet, it is our contact with the outside world: it allows us to feel stimuli, pain or tickle, reacts to emotions, protects us. So, we should keep it in good condition and take care of it.
Instead we often treat it as a "wrapper," to be kept well only because others, from the outside, look at it.
Skin is alive and says a lot about us (sometimes too much).
He blurts out that we don't moisturize it daily, use an eye contour or cleanse it properly.
A big snitch, the skin. And a bit vindictive, too.
Try sunbathing one summer after another without adequate protection--it will wait for years (after all, you know, revenge is a dish best eaten cold) and present you with the bill all at once, as salty as a starred restaurant.
To be fair, however, we are seeing a reversal of this trend.
In recent years, there has been a greater focus on nutrition, there has been an increase in the number of vegetarians, food provenance is checked, and km 0 markets are preferred. This is because we have realized that, from a healthy diet, the whole body benefits.
A few years too late, people began to pay as much attention to what they put on their skin. And here was the birth of so-called "natural" cosmetics. And here, let's get some clarity.
Natural cosmetics are defined as those consisting of products that contain, within them, plant-extracted or plant-derived functional substances.
Thanks to the many varieties and properties of plants, we can include in a formulation what may be suitable for the problems of each skin type.
There are an estimated 1,000 plant functional substances available to us for modern natural cosmetics-we'll find one that suits us, right?
In fact, the effectiveness of a natural cosmetic, or phytocosmetic, consists in the simultaneous presence of several functional substances and from the interactions that occur between them in a synergistic manner, resulting in a quality final product.
How many times have we seen packages on the shelves filled with little flowers, baby goats, reedy grandmothers and smiling friars, only to find out later that there was little more than the name on the box of a much-vaunted miracle plant? By contrast, natural cosmetics are free of synthetic chemicals such as parabens, mineral oils and paraffins, which are potentially harmful to skin health.
They are substances rich in "life," and our skin, alive, is one. All very beautiful?
A downside, actually, there is (tell the truth, you could already see little flowers singing as they jump headlong into a jar of cream, right?). : natural formulations are more "delicate," and products need to be handled with care.
The minimal (indispensable) presence of preservatives and the very plant origin of the functional substances, do not allow for absent-minded or unhygienic use of the products... so you don't take the cream out of the jar with your fingers, you don't leave the packaging open or near heat sources.
Treat them like crystal.
They will be grateful to you, making your skin more and more beautiful.
Liana Sassoli
Training services manager for Eden Energy of Nature