Posted on by Basic-Naturals

Choosing Natural Skincare: Important Differences Between Natural, Organic, and Synthetic-Free Skincare Products

Choosing natural skincare is a transition for some people, one that is not easily made without a solid understanding of products available on the market, and the categories used to describe them. We spend a lot of time sharing posts about key features of our products. They are 100% Natural, Organic, Non-GMO, Cruelty-Free, and Plant-Based / Synthetic-Free Brand among others.

You may be asking yourself, what does this even mean even if you are an experienced and well-versed consumer. These keywords may just blend in with the slew of marketing terms companies throw at consumers. 

Education is power, so let’s talk a little about what it means when we say we are a Natural, Organic, and Plant-Based / Synthetic-Free Brand! (*Consider this a crash course in how to fine-tune your natural skincare routine to the best natural skincare there is).

What makes a skincare product natural? 

Natural as a label means that ingredients come from resources that are not man-made and occur in… well, nature of course. The term “natural” is not officially regulated by the government, so we recommend that everyone learn how to read an ingredient list. Did you know that ingredients are listed from highest percentage to lowest? That means, when reading the labels, you should try to pick a product where synthetic ingredients are mainly at the bottom of the list if included at all. (All ingredients in our products are 100% natural, with no synthetics. ) 

Confused? Here’s a good resource: Skin Deep Database.

If you are looking for references, check out the EWG database linked above. This is a fantastic database that shows the safety of any ingredient and even has many mainstream products stored by name and brand. Don’t know one of the ingredients on a product? Pop it into this link and find out safety ratings and any potential risk usage can carry. 

What is Organic Skincare? 

When Skincare is labeled as organic it means that ingredients are farmed without chemical pesticides or fertilizers. This category is officially regulated by the FDA. Products only need to contain a certain percentage of organic matter to declare “made with organic ingredients” on its label. (This amount varies from state to state.) Spotting a USDA Organic seal is ideal since that means the product contains at least 95% organic ingredients. Please note that having a USDA seal costs money, a lot. So many small businesses may not yet have reached this threshold to gain a “seal” while all their ingredients still come from verified organic sources. (We make sure that we exceed that threshold in every product we make!)

OK, that makes sense now. Then what does it mean to be Synthetic-Free?

“Synthetic-free” products contain no man-made ingredients—this means it is 100% of it is made of naturally occurring elements or compounds. Here is an example: a naturally derived ingredient, such as hyaluronic acid, which is originally sourced from animals is copied and molecularly replicated to the same effect within a lab.

What is Plant-Based Skincare? What are Plant-Based Products?

The term “plant-based” might be a little more flexible but generally indicates that the product is made with botanical ingredients. An example of plant-based would be mango butter, olive oil, avocado oil, shea butter, essential oils, etc.

Both Synthetic-Free and Plant-Based are terms that are unregulated. They do not necessarily include or exclude one another. (Basic Naturals’ products do not contain ANY Synthetic Ingredients and are mostly Plant-Based.) Beeswax is the only ingredient we use that is not Plant-Based and for this reason, we are not a fully Vegan brand. However many of our products are Vegan! AND ALL of our Basic Naturals skincare products are Alcohol-Free!

Here you can find some of our VEGAN and Alcohol-Free Basic Naturals Skincare products:

Mango Body Butter – best body butter
Vegan and 100% Natural Body Butter by Basic Naturals

For our full collection of Vegan Products, click here to Shop Now!

Try also: Healthy Face Anti-aging Moisturizer and Serum, and Clean Face Oil Cleanser! All products are alcohol-free!

And… Basic Naturals products are always cruelty-free, natural, organic, alcohol-free, and synthetic-free!!

Don’t fret—you’ll begin to recognize these terms and ingredients with practice.  Read the list when you are looking to buy natural skincare brands, it will help you and our planet!

Organic – means that ingredients are farmed without chemical pesticides or fertilizers (it is a category that is regulated by the FDA). A product only has to contain a certain percentage of organic matter to declare “made with organic ingredients” on its label. (This amount varies from state to state.) Spotting a USDA Organic seal is ideal since that means the product contains at least 95% organic ingredients. But please note that having a USDA seal costs money, a lot. So many small businesses may not yet have reached this threshold to gain a “seal” while all their ingredients still come from verified organic sources. (We make sure that we exceed that threshold!)

Plant-Based or Synthetic-Free – Theoretically, a product labeled as “synthetic-free” contains no man-made ingredients to—this means it is 100% made of naturally occurring elements or compounds. The term “plant-based” might be a little more flexible but generally indicates that the product is made with botanical ingredients. Both terms are unregulated. They do not necessarily include or exclude one another. (Basic Naturals products do not contain ANY Synthetic Ingredients and are mostly Plant-Based. Beeswax is the only reason our products are not 100 % Plant-Based and also the only reason we are not 100% Vegan. However many of our products are Vegan! They are always cruelty-free.)

organic skin care by basic naturals
Posted on by Basic-Naturals

What is organic skincare?

Most of us are aiming to live a healthy lifestyle, whether that means eating healthy, exercising a few times per week, buying organic or reducing our carbon footprint.

In the last few years, the beauty industry has joined the wellness trend by commercializing products with terms like “natural”, “organic” and even “certified organic”. These are the most common marketing works used to describe products that contain ingredients sourced from nature.

Why do you consider organic?

Do you buy organic products because you think they are a great choice for your body or maybe just because it became a popular buzzword? Do you really understand what the term “organic”actually means? Or are you on the fence about switching to natural products?

Basically, the term “organic” refers to how an ingredient was farmed – it must be prepared and grown without pesticides, chemical fertilizers, growth hormones or antibiotics.

organic skin care by basic naturals

When talking about the food industry, organic products are regulated by the National Organic Program (NOP) which is run by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Producers and manufacturers that meet the NOP standards may label their products as certified organic. These standards were implemented in 2002 in the wake of the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (OFPA) and continue to be interpreted and developed by the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). These standards address many factors: soil quality, animal raising, pest and weed control, and also the use of input materials.

If you want more details about the organic products in the food industry please check out the USDA website.

What about when it comes to skincare? And what exactly does it take for a beauty product to be classified as “organic”?

Clean beauty should be focused on transparency and wellness. It’s about brands being clear and honest about their choice of ingredients and ethics.

Organic beauty is about using products that are made from high quality, organic farmed ingredients. Going on the natural beauty path means saving your skin from being exposed to harsh chemicals that are harmful to your body and also leave a significant impact on the environment.

Long story short, given the right nutrients, our skin has the ability to care for itself. Keep in mind that our bodies use nutrients absorbed not only through food, but also through the skin. We tend to be far more scrutinizing about what we put in our body than what we put on it. But what goes on your skin absorbs into your bloodstream and is carried through your body. There are a lot of products packed with chemicals and artificial ingredients that might have temporary positive effects but long-term negative effects. So skincare products can be a major source of toxins.

While organic products are sourced from high quality sustainable sources and biodegradable ingredients, they say no to: toxic chemicals, GMO, parabens, synthetic colors, dyes and fragrances nano particles.

Organic products are also a green choice that’s supporting the planet’s well-being. Organic skincare will most likely have an earth friendly packaging material and even cruelty free from testing on animals.

Women in the US apply an average of 168 chemicals to their faces and bodies every day, according to research by the nonprofit Environmental Working Group. How does this happen? Many beauty products will give you instant gratification with skincare results: less visible wrinkles, sun spots disappear, never have acne again! Sound familiar? But we all know there are rarely quick fixes in life.

These products may keep their word but too often there’s a higher price: skin asphyxiation, accelerated dehydration, photo-sensitivity. Does it worth it?

If you want to find out more about safe and unsafe products, please check out this website: http://www.safecosmetics.org/

Switching to organic often clears up dermatological issues people have been experiencing for years.

If you want to make sure what you are consuming is healthy, like picking out foods at the grocery store, checking the nutrition facts label on every packaging is the same as paying attention to the ingredients list of your skincare products.

How do we know if a product is organic? There are four options for organic claims — two of them are allowed to use the USDA Organic Seal on their packaging, and two of them are not.

– 100% Organic – the product contains only organically produced ingredients and is permitted to display the USDA Organic Seal.

– Organic – the product contains at least 95% organically produced ingredients and is permitted to display the USDA Organic Seal.

– Made With Organic Ingredients – the product contains at least 70% organic ingredients but is not permitted to display the seal.

– Less than 70% Organic Ingredients – products are not permitted to use the term “organic” anywhere on the packaging (and cannot display the seal) but are allowed to identify organically produced items in the ingredient list.

Beauty products labeled with organic claims must comply with both USDA regulations for the organic claim and FDA regulations for labeling and safety requirements for cosmetics.
If you want to be certain the products they are buying really are organic, they need to look out for the USDA seal. Also, look for specific terms such as “free of parabens” or “free of synthetic fragrance and dye”. Animal-derived ingredients such as beeswax and honey are natural ingredients. If you want to avoid animal-derived ingredients, you also need to check that the product is vegan.

The key to know for sure if there are harmful ingredients in your makeup or skincare products is to read the label. Be aware!

At Basic Naturals, we use organically grown flowers, high quality plant-based oils, pure essential oils and harm-free waxes (organic, first cold press and non-GMO).

https://basic-naturals.com/shop/

“Mother Nature has provided us with everything we need, and that is all we should use.”