We have there two wonderful types of products from Physicians Formula. Organic Wear and Mineral Wear.
Organic Wear is in my personal opinion a borderline case. They name it Organic wear, but according to their website, the product Loose Powder is made with only 10.6% certified organic ingredients.
Ingredients: MICA, MAGNESIUM STEARATE, ZEA MAYS (CORN) STARCH*, CALCIUM CARBONATE, KAOLIN, GLYCERYL CAPRYLATE, CARTHAMUS TINCTORIUS (SAFFLOWER) SEED OIL, GLYCERIN, GLYCINE SOJA (SOYBEAN) OIL*, OLEA EUROPAEA (OLIVE) FRUIT OIL*, ORYZA SATIVA (RICE) HULL POWDER, SIMMONDSIA CHINENSIS (JOJOBA) SEED OIL*, CINNAMIC ACID, CITRUS GRANDIS (GRAPEFRUIT) FRUIT EXTRACT, SODIUM LEVULINATE, TOCOPHEROL, WATER. MAY CONTAIN: IRON OXIDES, TITANIUM DIOXIDE. *PRODUCED FROM ORGANIC FARMING
I honestly have to apologize for my smile: Most of our facial products contain more certified organic ingredients, even if we do not mention it!
And please: Can anyone tell me why you would use oils in the first place in a dry mineral make-up? Mineral Make-up is simply powder... no oils necessary. Was that way for what... 2,000 years plus? The old Egyptians had it already! Mineral Make-up is not a development from our recent cosmetic industry.
However, Then we have the Mineral Wear.
Since it it made by the Physicians Formula as well, you would assume that this product is also very natural. Wrong guess. I have here the Mineral Wear, Matte Finishing Vail 2695 Translucent in front of me. It contains:
Ingredients: ZEA MAYS (CORN) STARCH, ALUMINUM STARCH OCTENYLSUCCINATE, MICA, SILICA, MAGNESIUM STEARATE, ZINC OXIDE, LECITHIN, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, RETINYL PALMITATE, PROPYLENE GLYCOL, DIAZOLIDINYL UREA, METHYLPARABEN, PROPYLPARABEN. MAY CONTAIN: TITANIUM DIOXIDE, IRON OXIDES.
Their commercial information from the website for this product states:
# Ultra-lightweight powder for the ultimate finishing touch to your makeup!
# Bathes skin in minerals, smoothing out its appearance with a soft focus finish.
# Can be worn alone or over other Mineral Wear™ face products to gently absorb shine, minimize the appearance of pores and enhance staying power of makeup.
Let's have a look:
ALUMINUM STARCH OCTENYLSUCCINATE - This ingredient has a rating of 9 on the cosmetic database (10 being the worst):
Developmental/reproductive toxicity
Violations, Restrictions & Warnings
Allergies/immunotoxicity
Contamination concerns - ARSENIC, LEAD, HEAVY METALS
Neurotoxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
PROPYLENE GLYCOL - Check it out at the source
This ingredient:
Cancer
Developmental/reproductive toxicity
Violations, Restrictions & Warnings
Allergies/immunotoxicity
Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), Enhanced skin absorption
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
Neurotoxicity, Endocrine disruption
DIAZOLIDINYL UREA - Preservative, may be derived from animals
This ingredient:
Cancer
Violations, Restrictions & Warnings
Allergies/immunotoxicity
Contamination concerns - FORMALDEHYDE
Neurotoxicity, Endocrine disruption, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
And our known favorites, METHYLPARABEN, PROPYLPARABEN:
Methylparaben - Preservative
This ingredient:
Cancer
Allergies/immunotoxicity
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), Biochemical or cellular level changes
Neurotoxicity, Endocrine disruption
Source: Cosmetic Database
Polyparaben - Preservative
This Ingredient:
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
Endocrine disruption
Further from their website:
Mineral Wear® uses less ingredients to minimize the risk of irritation
* Minimalist formulas allow skin to breathe and help reduce the risk of irritation and breakout.
* All of our products are Hypoallergenic, Fragrance-free, Dermatologist Approved and Safe for Sensitive Skin.
* Our formulas are free of over 100 known irritating ingredients still found in many cosmetics on the market today.
Do I need to mention that the EU has 10,500 ingredients on their black list, not just a few hundred? Plus this product contains known irritants and cancer related ingredients. And I still try to find the part of the ingredients, that "Bathes skin in minerals"...
So our conclusion: Physicians Formula, You know it better! Which way do you want to go? Saying you are "Organic" and use less than 50% of organic ingredients or go with the usual crowed, saying one thing and do the other, even if you know it better? Just because the FDA does not say anything, does not mean that it is healthy!
