Green Cosmetics is all about awareness about not using harsh chemicals on yourself and how this industry has been affecting the environment around us. People nowadays are being more conscious about the environment; they are trying to be more careful about not being wasteful and being mindful of what they put on or in their body. This all leads to the formation of the green movement where people are using renewable resources and using natural ingredients in formulation and manufacturing. They see that mother nature has everything in herself to offer and to fulfil our needs.
A career in cosmetics can be very rewarding as the cosmetic industry is known to be one of the fastest growing industries today. The green movement in cosmetics is all about using sustainable ingredients, manufacturing, packaging, and distribution. It also encourages people in following ethical practices from sourcing the raw material to ethical distribution.
Considerations while Talking about Green Cosmetics
Sustainability in Cosmetics: It includes making cosmetics with raw material sourced from crops and plants that are organic and pesticide free, packaging that is made from reusable material or is recyclable and find options that can be refilled.
The 3 R’s: The 3 Rs stands for Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. This includes finding ways to reduce water, reusing the packaging or being able to recycle the packaging. This concept in very fancy words is called the circular economy.
An Open Process: this is mainly to keep brands in check and for the consumers to know what exactly goes into the product. It’s about being open about the process from where you are sourcing the raw material, how the products are manufactured, where things come and go. It helps the consumer to make an informed choice during a purchase.
Being Ethical: it means choosing ingredients and products that are more sustainably sourced, supporting local farmers for sourcing ingredients, being respectful of religious beliefs – halal products and also using cruelty -free products.
Environmentally Considerable: the point here is to be kind to our mother nature and slowing down something called carbon footprint. How can this be done? It can be done by conserving water, avoiding harmful chemicals being dumped, and using natural, biodegradable products throughout the process.
Current Trends in Green Cosmetics
The most important trend in green cosmetics nowadays are cruelty-free cosmetics or vegan cosmetics, that is ingredients that contain no artificial or animal or their by-products used in making of it. Even after being natural ingredients like beeswax, lanolin, carmine and squalene.
Mother Nature’s Gift to the Beauty Industry
Our surroundings are full of ingredients that can be used in cosmetics that are biodegradable and are also not harmful to our skin. Most common criteria on ingredients that are used in cosmetics are moisturising agents and surfactants.
When we talk about Moisturising agents its most commonly found in the form of:
- Humectants
- Glycerine: That is extracted from plant sources
- Mannitol: that can be found in olives, sweet potatoes and carrots
- Sorbitol: is found naturally in all forms of fruits and vegetables
- Xylitol: also known as “wood sugar” which can be extracted from straw corncobs and mushrooms
- Occlusive Agents: that is found in all types of nut butters like shea butter, cocoa butter, etc.
- Keratolytic Agents: are all found in fruit acids like Citric acid (citrus fruits, tomatoes, pomegranate, etc.), Ascorbic Acid or Vitamin C (Citrus fruits, berries), and so many others
- Emollients: all vegetable oils and their derivatives are examples of emollients like olive oil, jojoba oil etc.
Surfactants that are Naturally Occurring
It’s all because of a soap nut that has something called saponin. The most common examples are
- Ritha
- Shikakai
- Manjistha
- Wash berries/wash nuts: they have about 14% saponin and amazing cleaning properties, they are hypoallergenic
- Ginseng
- Wild Yam
Pant based surfactants can be extracted from coconut, palm, corn& soy.
Natural Anti-aging Ingredients
- Vitamin C: it increases collagen production and prevents wrinkles
- Turmeric: which has a compound called curcumin that protects skin against cell damage
- Retinol or vitamin A: reduced skin dullness
- Ceramides: makes skin firm and can be found in wheat and soy
- Resveratrol: that can be found in grape bark and berries that protects against harmful UV rays
- Flavonoids: that can be found in green tea and various types of fruits
Natural Anti-Acne Ingredients
- Apple cider vinegar
- Cinnamon
- Tea tree oil
- Witch hazel
- Aloe vera
- Chia Seeds
- Basil
- Neem
All these ingredients have either or all of the following properties antibacterial antifungal, antiseptic antioxidant and anti-inflammatory
Depigmentation Ingredients
- Aloe vera: that has aloin that can make skin lighter and is an anti-inflammatory
- Liquorice extract: protects skin from depigmentation through sun exposure
- Cucumber: helps to lighten the skin and reduce dark circles
- Lemon juice: helps to lighten pigmentation
Some other examples are tomatoes, potatoes, papaya and many more.
Conclusion
All the ingredients that are mentioned above can be used to make a number of cosmetic products. These products will be natural, organic, sustainable and not harmful to you or the environment. Some of the best cosmetology colleges in Maharashtra offer undergraduate and postgraduate programs in cosmetic science which include the study of green chemistry to integrate into the industry upon graduation.
Companies nowadays are adapting the principles of sustainability, reducing, reusing and recycling, being transparent about their process and are also being ethical about their brand, with taking care of the environment. They have been making people aware about the environment and how important it is to use clean cosmetic products and how it can be beneficial to one’s health and also protect the environment along the way.