Information
Happy Belated Birthday to Us
May 20, 2013 · 1 Comment
First, a big shout out to Dene Godfrey for wishing us a belated 3rd birthday!! How on earth did I miss this? Personal Care Truth launched May 17, 2010. The time has flown by like the wind. In that time, we’ve seen several drafts/attempts at changing cosmetic legislation, truthful and science backed posts from our wonderful experts and contributors and lively discussions from our readers. Kristin and I would like to thank you for your support of our efforts to bringing truth to the cosmetic industry. All the credit goes to our fabulous experts, contributors and readers. Without y’all,... [Read the full story]
Ingredients
Cosmetics Ingredients Are Not All the Same
May 20, 2013 · 2 Comments
As a beginning chemist, one of the most frustrating things for me as I started my career was the product ingredient lists. While all the products had cosmetic ingredient listings, the ingredient were rarely things that I learned about in college. The cosmetics industry just does not use the same naming system for ingredients as the one you learned in college. The college system of naming is the IUPAC system. The great thing about this system is that it allows you to figure out the chemical structure of any material from its name alone. Unfortunately, it also leads to incredibly long names for the... [Read the full story]
Legislation
Safe Cosmetics and Personal Care Products Act of 2013 Mirrors Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Proposals, Would Greatly Expand FDA Authority Over Cosmetics
April 26, 2013 · 4 Comments
Published on The National Law Review Safe Cosmetics and Personal Care Products Act of 2013 Mirrors Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Proposals, Would Greatly Expand FDA Authority Over Cosmetics Representative Janice Schakowsky (D-IL), with fifteen co-sponsors, has introduced legislation in the House of Representatives to dramatically increase Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversight of chemicals in cosmetics and other personal care products.[1] The Safe Cosmetics and Personal Care Products Act of 2013, H.R. 1385,[2] includes a number of provisions also included in the Safe Chemicals Act of... [Read the full story]
Regulations
New EU Cosmetics Regulations – A Quick Guide for Busy Formulators
December 3, 2012 · 1 Comment
The latest iteration of the EU cosmetic regulations come into force in July 2013, and they are a pretty major upgrade with lots of new provisions and innovations that will affect everyone in the business of supplying cosmetics and personal care into the European market. If you are doing so, you really should know all about them by now, but here is a quick whistle stop tour if you are just starting or if you don’t operate in Europe but are curious. EU cosmetic regulations There are 6 main new areas. Claims – it is now necessary to have data on file to support any claims you make for the product.... [Read the full story]
Science
Tonicity’s Effects on Cells
February 12, 2013 · Leave a Comment
I enjoy writing articles periodically about more serious science topics that play into developing a better understanding of cosmetics. This one is on tonicity. Tonicity refers to the affect of a solution on a cell. A solution is a mixture of two or more substances in which one (a solute) is dissolved in the other (a solvent). So a solute is the substance that is dissolved in a solvent to form a solution. This solution is homogeneous, meaning that it is a single phase and none of the solute is visible in the solvent. Common solutes would be salt or sugar. A common solvent would be water. That... [Read the full story]
Personal Care News
Interview from In-Cosmetics: Selling Personal Care Products in the EU under the New European Cosmetic Regulation, EC 1223/2009
May 8, 2012 · 2 Comments
Selling personal care products in the European market is about to become quite a bit more challenging for manufacturers across the globe, especially if they are located outside the EU. In a little over 1 year, the new European Cosmetic Regulation, EC 1223/2009, will go into force on July 11, 2013, requiring all manufacturers selling any product in the 27 countries that make up the European Union to follow a new set of guidelines if they want to keep their products on the EU shelves… I had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing Doram Elkayam, COO of Obelis, at The In-Cosmetics conference... [Read the full story]
Ingredients
Cosmetics Ingredients Are Not All the Same
As a beginning chemist, one of the most frustrating things for me as I started my career was the product ingredient lists. While all the products had cosmetic ingredient listings, the ingredient were rarely things that I learned about in college. The cosmetics industry just does not use the same naming system for ingredients...
[Continue reading: Cosmetics Ingredients Are Not All the Same]
Muddying the Waters or Fueling the Debate?
Time and time again I see arguments put forward for avoiding the use of petrochemical-derived ingredients in cosmetics. Leaving aside the nonsensical claim that they are all dangerous (fortunately, a view shared only amongst a small minority of ill-informed/naive people), there seem to be 2 main issues: 1) ...
[Continue reading: Muddying the Waters or Fueling the Debate?]
Toxic Planet
In this article, I will cover two aspects of scare stories/claims made about cosmetic ingredients: 1) We are gradually creating a “toxic planet” (an actual claim made in a LinkedIn discussion!) 2) Modern synthetic chemicals don’t have the same history of human exposure/safe use I have chosen...
[Continue reading: Toxic Planet]
Cosmetic Science Basics – Silicones
The vast majority of cosmetic raw materials are based on hydrocarbons. Oils, polymers, waxes and more involve bonds of carbon and hydrogen. But a notable exception to this hydrocarbon dominance is Cosmetic Silicones. Let’s review silicones used in cosmetics and why. Silicon Molecules Silicones are molecules or raw...
[Continue reading: Cosmetic Science Basics – Silicones]
The Chemistry of Coconut Oil
There is no disputing the fact that coconut oil has a long history of safe use as a skin treatment, sun protector and all-round good guy but as I discussed in my article – Would Coconut Oil make a good sunscreen for me – that doesn’t mean that it will suit everyone. With that in mind I thought it would be wise...
[Continue reading: The Chemistry of Coconut Oil]Read More Posts From Ingredients »
Information
First, a big shout out to Dene Godfrey for wishing us a belated 3rd birthday!! How...
Cosmetics Ingredients Are Not All the Same
As a beginning chemist, one of the most frustrating things for me as I started my...
Muddying the Waters or Fueling the Debate?
Time and time again I see arguments put forward for avoiding the use of petrochemical-derived...
Published on The National Law Review Safe Cosmetics and Personal Care Products Act...
Read More Posts From Information »
Science
I enjoy writing articles periodically about more serious science topics that play...
Spotlight on Sun Protection from In-Cosmetics: part 4: Australia & India
In the 4th and final post in the Spotlight on Sun Protection series, we’ll...
In-Cosmetics: Solar Beauty in Barcelona
In just a few weeks, I’ll be traveling to Spain for the In-Cosmetics conference...
Rats: Test Results That Don’t Apply to Humans
Rats are often used in laboratory experiments. The Office of Technology Assessment...
Read More Posts From Science »
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