9 Best Non-Toxic Body Wash Brands For Sensitive Skin

What Ingredients to Avoid in a Body Wash

Our skin, as the most significant organ, protects our body in general. But are we taking care of it? Most people are not aware that what we apply to our skin gets absorbed into our cells. Thus, it can affect our health.

Most of the time, the harmful effects of the chemicals present in body washes do not take effect immediately. Unfortunately, over time, these toxic chemicals accumulate inside our bodies, causing irreparable damage.

Most consumers take time to deliberate on the food and drinks they take. But, they forget that it’s also essential to check on any products we put on our skin.

Listed below are the top 6 must avoid ingredients in beauty products. The list also includes their side-effects.

It’s crucial to check the ingredients of the products you buy if these listed below are one of them. And if they do, it might be wisest to switch to another brand or product.

Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS) and Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS)

They are prevalent foaming agents. There used to be a link between SLS as a hormone disruptor and breast cancer. Yet, the research community proved it to be false.

Still, SLS is an irritating detergent. Even more alarming, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate often has worse effects. It’s due to the body, making it longer to break down the chemical’s residue.

SLS also allows other harmful chemicals to enter the skin and bloodstream. More so, it can cause skin conditions such as Perioral Dermatitis. So, scientists only recommend using SLS at 15 percent of the total product.

Fragrance

The research is convincing on the harmful effects of artificial fragrance. Some affirmed that they experienced headaches or allergies with synthetic fragrances. That’s why several consumers now switch to fragrance-free products. Or they buy products that use essential oils.

Unfortunately, most body wash contains artificial fragrances. How to know if it is a synthetic fragrance? They have the labels as fragrant oil or parfum, or something similar.

The typical fragrance oil on a label contains more than 100 chemical compounds. That’s alarming.

These chemicals are aldehydes, amines, benzene derivatives, to name some. Also, there are ethers, ketones, lactones, phthalates, terpenes, thiones, and other toxins. There are links to these toxins to allergic reactions, congenital disabilities, and cancer. Central nervous system disorders and neurological disorders are some of the aversions too.

Parabens

You can research mixed studies and findings on parabens. Still, prevention is better than cure. It’s because there is too much evidence.

Researchers at the California Pacific Medical Center released their findings in the edition of Carcinogenesis in their September 1, 2011 edition. The findings revealed that both BPA and Methylparaben have adverse health results. Even at low concentrations in humans, it can increase the risk of acquiring breast cancer. 

Twelve years ago, the Journal of Applied Toxicology revealed some studies on parabens. The research showed that parabens could lead to tumor growth. More so, it can also lead to hormone disruption, according to the reviews. Both tumor growth and hormone disruption are the causes of breast cancer.

Triclosan

This chemical is a synthetic antibacterial and antifungal agent that can interrupt thyroid function. Triclosan can also worsen into a form of dioxin. A class of chemicals linked to cancer. It’s also a probable cause of other comprehensive varieties of toxicities.

Triclosan is present in shaving creams, soaps, deodorants, toothpaste, and mouthwash. Canada and Japan restrict the use of this agent in their cosmetics. More so, it is of grave concern in the European Union’s REACH program.

What’s even more alarming is that Triclosan may cause children’s allergies. Also, it can cause immunotoxicity. Furthermore, when Triclosan combines with chlorine in tap water, there’s a possible carcinogen.

Propylene Glycol (antifreeze) 

This chemical has a lot of startling effects. First, it may cause immunotoxicity and respiratory toxicity. Other adverse effects would be skin or sense organ toxicity. Examples of these toxicities are skin and eye irritation, skin drying, and defatting.

Cocamidopropyl Betaine

This chemical is another foaming agent that can also trigger immunotoxicity. Like the antifreeze, it also produces skin or sense organ toxicity. You’d feel skin itching, burning or blistering, and eye irritation.

What Ingredients To Look For In A Non-toxic Body Wash

We all know now what makes one body wash better than the others. It doesn’t have harsh chemicals that make our skin angry. Still, we have to be cautious. Not all that claim their organic body washes are natural.

Some that claim to be all-natural have ingredients that are difficult to understand! These products have unclear labels. So, which elements are best for our skin?

Here are some of the things on the bottle you should be checking:

Organic Ingredients

Look for a seal that verifies its certified organic. The use of chemical pesticides is the difference between organic and conventional ingredients.

It’s like the difference between organic and conventional farmers. While the other uses organic pest, the latter uses harmful chemicals on their farm. A certified body wash means there are no chemical herbicide or pesticide residues.

Cruelty-free

FDA described cruelty-free as a product that did no testing on animals. But, there is no legal outline for these terms.

Some brands and products claim to be cruelty-free on their finished product. So they did no animal testing. Yet, they can source their raw materials from companies that might test on animals. And it’s legal.

Keep away from supporting companies that test on animals. Consumers feel more confident patronizing companies that are transparent about their product ingredients.

Ingredients You Understand

Make sure you can read and understand the components of the natural body wash you will buy. We all want plant-based or natural oil ingredients on our skincare regimen.

Unfortunately, there are not as many US restrictions on the ingredients. Europe has more regulations on the world ingredients before approving personal care products.

It’s easier for some brands or companies to introduce new products. It’s because there’s a lack of regulations. FDA hasn’t approved 90 percent of the total beauty products in the market. It’s a bad idea.

There are 11 ingredients banned in the US, while the EU bans over 1,300 ingredients in their market. There’s a lack of federal regulation.

That’s why companies like EWG carried on to track the safety of these kinds of products. EWG guarantees that these are non-toxic to use. 

The companies must first disclose all their ingredients. Then EWG can certify their product.

That means be specific on the chemicals that have “fragrances” on their list. EWG has a team of chemists, toxicologists, entomologists, and scientists. They provide a full analysis of every product.

Is The Packaging Of Your Product Safe?

It’s not enough to check only the ingredients of the personal care products you’re using. When you want to be toxins-free, check on the packaging as well.

Glass is the best option to ensure that you have no exposure to any toxic ingredient in the beauty product you buy. A product on glass packaging doesn’t have any risk of any toxins sticking to it.

When the product is in plastic packaging, make sure the plastic is BPA free. Plastics can sometimes latch on to threatening toxins. They can upset the endocrine system.

Natural Ingredients That Are Safe and Excellent For Each Skin Type

Natural ingredients can offer great benefits for our skin. Here are some of the potent elements in skincare.

Dry Skin

From your diet to sun damage, there are several reasons skin gets dehydrated or dry. One of the ways to keep your skin hydrated is to maintain your electrolytes balanced. Also, eating many healthy fats such as healthy fish, hemp seeds, and avocados can help. These are some of the natural ingredients you can apply on your skin while it is damp to lock in moisture:

• Coconut oil
• Argan oil
• Avocado oil
• Aloe vera
• Sea buckthorn
• Borage seed oil
• Mango butter
• Essential oils of carrot seed, sandalwood, and frankincense
• Jojoba
• Shea
• Almond oil
• Vegetable glycerin

For Acne Prone Skin

Your pores are overactive when you have acne due to oily skin. The sebum gets trapped in the pores, and the skin becomes inflamed and infected.

You can address the problem by checking on your diet. Also, check on your hormones and stress level with a medical professional. Then, you can select products to support the skin problem outside.

Here are some products recommended for acne-prone skin:

• Honey
• Activated charcoal
• Dead sea mud
• Rosehip seed oil
• Black cumin seed oil
• Essential oils of lavender or thyme
• Witch hazel

For sensitive skin

Less is more for sensitive skin. Sometimes, our skin gets angry at certain ingredients in a beauty product. It’s harder to investigate which one triggered it when you put a lot on your skin.

Most of the time, our skin only needs less. More so, it also needs time to heal.

Natural ingredients for sensitive skin:

• Aloe vera
• Honey
• Sunflower oil (my personal favorite)
• Sweet Almond Oil
• Vegetable glycerin

For Average Skin

Average skin doesn’t make a great effort to avoid reactions. They don’t easily have breakouts, dullness, redness, and dryness too. People with average skin can have a simple routine in cleansing before sleeping. They can also have simple moisture and sun protection regimen. More so, exfoliation once a week keeps the cell healthy and helps other products to enter the skin.

Ingredients beneficial for average skin:

• Aloe vera
• Jojoba Oil
• Essential oils of lavender, carrot seed, and geranium

Final Thoughts

This article sheds light on how important it is to choose a chemical-free body wash. There are benefits in knowing what we apply to the biggest organ of our body. More so, you now have more ideal products to choose from for your sensitive skin.

Using fragrance-free is one of the fundamental ways to improve our health. Choosing organic cleansers prevents us from accumulating more toxic chemicals in our bodies.

Have you tried one of the non-toxic body washes for sensitive skin on our list? Or do you have a particular favorite that we missed on our list? Please share your thoughts in our comment section below!