Natural beauty truths exposed (from Paula's choice)

Aug 10, 2014

Kat A.

Good information :)
castor oil, Vaseline, coconut oil, etc.do not grow lashes fast & long! those are myths & only give the illusion of length. Vaseline shouldn't be used around the eyes anyways, it's a sealant & seals in bacteria which can cause an eye infection. oil is fine to condition lashes, though.
there's no way to make your hair grow fast. it'sbased on genetics, the health of you & your hair.

Aug 10, 2014

Andrea V.

I know for Vaseline, like on cracked heels and dry elbows you should put moisturizer then Vaseline on top as it seals or whatever :)

Aug 10, 2014

Alyx T.

A lot of oils are sealants, but most of them are moisturizing and sealants. Like coconut oil.
But no oils other than coconut oil since it's anti bacterial should be used to condition lashes. Other oils and Vaseline will just make a sticky breeding ground for bacteria and can trap lashes from naturally falling even when they are supposed to, which can lead to in grown hairs on your lash line. W

Aug 10, 2014

Alyx T.

Oops I pressed send to early. *which would be super painful

Aug 10, 2014

Diana T.

I read that Paula's choice myth book about cosmetics and I think it's interesting how it makes all these claims about how there is no scientific evidence behind "dermatologist tested products" or "hypoallergenic" products and they use the same marketing ploys and terms with their own "clinically" approved products
Don't get me wrong I LOVE Paula's choice stuff but just found that interesting... I really take any articles that come from a cosmetic company with a grain of salt because they all have their own biases and agendas behind them

Aug 10, 2014

Alyx T.

There's a difference between on the eye and on the eyelashes though. eyelashes are meant to keep bacteria out of the eye. When you put a sticky sealant on them the eyelashes can't do they're job anymore

Aug 10, 2014

Madi O.

@diana thank you!! I first starting using the Paula's Choice info/ratings when I started getting into skincare. Only a while later I realized that the rate other products low and "bash" on them for using certain products...that they in fact use too! They are very sneaky and try to hoodwink customers into thinking that their products are good and most other things are bad (at least my opinion). Even though I have heard good things about their products I will not purchase from them because of their unethical marketing practices. I'm glad someone made a post sharing this info with everyone!!

Aug 10, 2014

Traci L.

This is why I said previously that Paula's choice is not a reliable source of information because they are about there bottom line,they are trying to make money,so bashing products then putting there products at the bottom of the page is a scare tactic ,oh these companies are lying to you but here are our products buy these,it's a bunch of hype to make there products seem superior to anyone else's but I can tell you that's not the case and they do use most of the same ingredients thats other skincare companies use its no magic potions ,they have some good products as do plenty of other companies out there ,the way you find out about skincare is by looking up individual ingredients that benefit skin then reading the ingredient deck on the product your interested in if there are a few top rated ingredients in the top portion of the deck without a lot of things that irritate your personal skin then this may be a good product for you ,

Aug 11, 2014

Kitty K.

Most of her reviews, honestly piss me off.
Her cosmetics review ESPECIALLY are sooo misleading and make me want to roll my eyes ten thousand times.

I don't know how many times I have come across a 'this product is great for oily skin' when it's initially a product meant for dry skin...
And lets not forget that she throws comedogenicity COMPLETELY OUT THE WINDOW.
'Yes, this product with its highly comedogenic ingredients is great for even acne prone skin types!'
Trusting her reviews is exactly how I ended up with milia across my forehead in the first place, lol.
She acknowledges that comedogenic ingredients are not good for comedogenic prone skin types, but then she also disregards it completely saying theres no such thing.
I would not use coconut oil, mineral oil, etc on acne prone skin. It irks me that she cannot acknowledge that. 

Aug 11, 2014

Kitty K.

Oh and SPF.
She will trash out a product for not having enough SPF.
I've seen her be-rate serums, lotions, etc... but her (serums )don't have SPF so I don't get what's the complaint? Essentially if my lotion does/doesn't have SPF I still apply sunscreen after anyways, so I don't know why products need to be trashed talk about when its not like I buy a serum or a foundation for SPF?

Aug 11, 2014

Ciciii C.

I've looked her up before , and half the stuff that she said for us to do , WAS wrong.

Aug 11, 2014

Leona S.

I was just looking at her reviews :o I agree with everything said that's why I search ingredients one at a time.

Aug 11, 2014

Shelley W.

I asked my husband's opinion about Paula and her rating system a few years ago. I'm not going to repeat what he said but basically to keep it PG...is not impressed with by her creditentials or how she rates every products that doesn't have her name on it low. He thinks that she does more of disservice for consumers with her one sided ratings and lack of solid knowledge of cosmetic/skincare ingredients. She "educates" with an agenda and involves padding her wallet.

Aug 11, 2014

Emily W.

CosDNA is a great resource for looking up products/ingredients.

There's quite a lot of myths in skincare unfortunately. Coconut oil is comedogenic, as are most oils because they are sealants. Contrary to popular belief, no oil is a moisturizer. They do not "absorb" the way a moisturizer does; they sit on top of the skin and seal whatever moisture the skin already had to prevent it from being lost via evaporation. The feeling of the oil absorbing is the molecules breaking down after reacting to the natural acidity of sweat as well as the billions of microorganisms that live on your skin.

Witch hazel, undiluted, is a stripping agent. Diluted, it is an antibacterial astringent. For many people, it can be irritating and drying. But it also helps people with breakouts because it dries pimples and fights bacteria.

Cosmetics and skincare are highly processed, so pesticides and fertilizers simply cannot end up in the final product. Between all of the chemical refining, heating, mixing, and physical refining, all of the undesirable stuff is removed.

"Natural" means absolutely nothing. It has no Standard of Identity and is completely unregulated. It is just a gimmick to capitalize of the general populace's scientific illiteracy and irrational fear of chemicals.

An ingredient that is irritating or even dangerous in large quantities may be quite harmless or sometimes beneficial in smaller quantities. So no, technically an irritant is not always an irritant.

Not all alcohols are drying, and not all acids are damaging.

I find that searching medical journals for information about certain trends (skincare, hair removal, etc.) often has interesting results. That's how I discovered that eyebrow threading can lead to vitiligo, fungal/bacterial/viral infections, nerve damage, and other serious issues. I'll stick with my tweezers.

Aug 11, 2014

Traci L.

Emily that's very interesting I new the threading can cause bacterial infections but not vitiligo but thinking about it I can see how that can happen ,thanks for the info

Aug 11, 2014

Breeze T.

Wow, very interesting thread. I've never wandered on the Paula's choice website, but now I'll certainly have a more critical eye. I tend to be too trusting in some cases, but for cosmetics I always check the ingredients for myself. Thanks everybody for the awesome contributions!

Aug 11, 2014

Traci L.

Vitiligo is a depigmentation of the skin your melanocytes stop functioning and you loose the pigmentation in your skin EM.

Aug 11, 2014

Emily W.

The Beauty Brains is a blog that has a lot of good (factual, scientific) information about cosmetics, skin care, hair care, and related products. It is run by cosmetic chemists and cites reliable academic sources. Check it out: http://thebeautybrains.com/