Herbs & Botanicals
Nature is a wonderful and diverse thing. The number of natural botanical and herbal extracts and essences available in the average bathroom alone is often beyond belief. But nature is also very powerful and needs to be treated with respect and caution.
Many of the exotic extracts and essences used in the cosmetic industry today can also cause allergic reactions in those with sensitive or reactive skin types. Herbal ingredients in cosmetics are not actively assessed by the US FDA and no clinical studies are required to show their safety and effectiveness. Just because a product contains a natural substance does not mean that it is safe or free of other chemicals and irritants — in many cases a product advertised as containing natural ingredients will also contain an irritant parabens preservative — so do be careful. Check the label of any of your existing products to see if they contain herbal or botanical ingredients.
What the Experts Say:
“Greater regulation needs to be imposed on Chinese herbalists..”
(Keane FM, British Medical Journal)
“In addition, products labeled ‘organic’ are not less likely to cause an allergic reaction. There is no cosmetic product that can guarantee never to produce an allergic reaction."
(WebMD Website)
Why exederm avoids many Herbs & Botanicals
We believe that herbal and botanical extracts do have a role to play. In fact we use a pharmaceutical grade of purified chamomile extract as a replacement for a more irritant chemical in our moisturizing product. However, as a general rule we avoid herbs & botanicals as they often need to be accompanied with harsh preservatives or other additives.
