Is there an organic or chemical-free alternative that delivers as good results?
Andrea Portman, London via e-mail It’s true that the buzz words ‘organic’, ‘natural’ and ‘preservative-free’ seem to be all the rage. Yet all beauty products and make-up are subject to strict European safety rules to ensure that they don’t pose any health risks. While preservatives may be more likely to cause allergies than other cosmetic ingredients, preservation is essential for cosmetic safety and quality, particularly if products may be sitting on retailers’ shelves for months. Parabens are among the most widely used preservatives, used for more than 50 years with an excellent safety record, and approved for use in the European Cosmetics Directive. They keep products free from bacteria and moulds that would not only spoil the product qualities, but could cause real harm. There is a lot of misinformation surrounding them, including allegations that they are linked to cancer. In fact, parabens are found naturally in plants and animals as well as being man-made, and are totally non-to
