Yes, it’s important to remove makeup after a long day so that you can prevent acne and allow your skin to heal unimpeded while you sleep. The hitch is that most conventional makeup removers are full of chemicals, ranging from skin irritants to hormone disruptors to carcinogens. In this article, we will highlight the common chemicals found in makeup removers and how you can swap them out for natural makeup removers.
Chemicals in makeup removers
Making your beauty routine more sustainable and eco-friendly will mean closely examining ingredient lists so that you can avoid a growing list of unnatural chemicals often added to makeup removers.
Here are a few synthetic chemicals you want to avoid when looking for natural, sustainable makeup removers:
- 1,4-dioxane
- Coal tar dyes
- Diazolidinyl urea
- DMDM Hydantoin
- Formaldehyde
- Parabens
- Polyethylene glycols (PEGs)
- Polysorbate 80
- Propylene glycol (PG)
- Synthetic fragrances
Choosing a more eco-friendly makeup remover
If you’re eco-conscious, you have two options:
Creating homemade makeup removers
Your option #1 is to create your own natural makeup remover. You’ll reduce the need for packaging,
DIY natural makeup removers are made using natural ingredients like:
Some like to use milk (or yogurt) and a cotton ball to wash off makeup, but that isn’t vegan and has a negative environmental impact. Plus, raw ingredients like raw milk or eggs can contain harmful bacteria, so we recommend avoiding such ingredients altogether.
Shopping for sustainable makeup removers
DIY cosmetics have some dangers, so consider option #2: buying eco-friendly, sustainable makeup removers.
When shopping, look for trusted eco-labels such as:
- Leaping Bunny (certifies that the brand is cruelty-free)
- Certified Organic (USDA Organic in the USA)
- Certified Vegan (or The Vegan Society).
There are now several good brands of eco-friendly and sustainable makeup removers on the market that offer a safer solution for removing your cosmetics and the dirt of the day. As always, when looking for any personal care products and ingredients to make your own, be sure to keep the health of animals in mind by purchasing products made cruelty-free and without any animal products or byproducts.