And the ones to watch out for…

THERE’S A LOT OF NOISE AROUND “BAD” INGREDIENTS, AND IT DEPENDS HOW MUCH OF A PURIST YOU WANT TO BE, BUT THESE ARE GENERALLY AGREED TO BE NOT-SO-GREAT NEWS FOR YOUR SKIN.

Artificial fragrance (parfum) serves no real purpose and can irritate. Same goes for “simple” alcohols (isopropyl, ethanol, ethyl), which are often included because they feel refreshing, but can seriously dry out skin. Microbeads are set to be banned by the end of 2017 for environmental damage. Parabens get a bad rap, but testing at L’Oréal Paris Episkin labs found that parabens such as propyl and butyl had potential to be problematic, yet methyl and ethyl parabens showed no issues. Formaldehyde, triclosan and diethyl phthalate are on the banned list at L’Oreal Paris for potential to irritate and cause inflammation. W&H