Our skin absorbs percent of what is applied to it. Hence the chemicals in skin products go directly into the bloodstream. What we apply to our skin should be good enough to put inside our body as even a tiny amount of these chemicals can have a huge impact on our health and hormonal balance. It is crucial for you to understand what goes into your products and take steps towards safe, clean and responsible beauty. But, the beauty and skincare industry is highly unregulated with claims, labels and ingredients, lists being very deceptive. Some of the most harmful ingredients even if they are present in low amounts that you should be vary of are:

Silicones: Ubiquitous in most beauty products, silicones are polymers with multiple names making it hard to identify their presence in skincare products. They act like a barrier on skin blocking pores and trapping debris, bacteria, sebum and dead skin cells.

Parabens: Used as a preservative in several products, the presence of these has been linked with breast cancer, reproductive disabilities and general irritation of the skin. It reacts with UVB leading to additional damage and aging of skin.

Sodium Lauryl Sulphate: Being an inexpensive chemical added to most foaming beauty products, it is also found in pesticides, car batteries. It is linked to irritation of the eyes, skin and has corrosive properties.

 Petroleum based or Mineral Oils: Being extracted from crude oil, they are contaminated with several toxic impurities. Potentially carcinogenic and can disrupt endocrine hormonal balance.

Phthalates: Linked to reproductive toxicity, endocrine disruption and cancer. Phthalate are seen in colour cosmetics and artificially fragranced products. Also, keep an eye on the presence of heavy metals like Zinc, Cadmium in your products. Formaldehyde, talc, artificial colour, artificial fragrances have also been linked to skin irritation and hormonal imbalance.

–The writer is the founder of an organic beauty brand.