Skincare product packaging is supposed to provide consumers with important user information, protect the ingredients, and be easy to use. This is really
"For people suffering from sensitive skin, protecting the ingredients is critical," according to Andrew Scoular, developer of Sensitive Skin Clinic skincare products.
All natural/organic (aka plant-based) ingredients will oxidize when exposed to air, bacteria can be introduced to the product by human contact, and heat and sunlight will help break down any natural or organic ingredient. "If you are leaving the product on your skin, you want to be sure they are as 'fresh' as possible, the action ingredients are not diminished, and there is little chance for irritation--bad product ingredients are definitely going to irritate the skin," Scoular adds.
The best ways to protect product ingredients is by way of an opaque container with an airless pump. That means that light won't affect the ingredients, and no air gets into the container after you have taken some product out. This is critical for products that you leave on the skin (like moisturizers and serums). Although ideal for all products, it is not as critical for wash-off products such as cleansers and exfoliators.
Scoular objects to the industry's cutting corners on packaging over the needs of the customers. "Airless pump containers are more expensive for manufacturers to use–so are less likely to be available for the cheaper drug store products–but for sensitive skin people, these airless pump containers are essential."
The worst type of containers are wide-mouthed jars and see-through glass or plastic containers. The ingredients in such containers will be affected by light and air. Sure, the company can counter these impacts by adding more preservative ingredients to protect the others from the light and air, but do you really want more ingredients in your product? Especially when such preservatives generally have a greater potential to be irritants on the skin.
Also, old or expired products smell differently from when purchased, and may also have changed color. Vitamin C and Vitamin A will definitely change color when they oxidize; do not use a product that has change color or smell.
The user information provides the directions for using the product, any warnings, company contact information, and list of ingredients. Ideally, all this information should be on the container because most people throw out the cardboard box. Many companies don't provide a full ingredient list on their website, so when you dispose of the box and information sheet you have no source of reference should something go wrong.
Finally, the more preservatives the more potential for the product to irritate the skin. There should be no parabens, very few or zero essential oils, zero alcohol (denatured/isopropyl/ethanol/yellow corn alcohol etc). For more information on preservatives see the video at the SkinCareTV channel.
SOURCE Sensitive Skin Clinic
