Seeking A Truly Healthy Lipgloss

Alright folks, in my mind there are three "grades" of lipgloss.  I'm going to put this in terms that I understand, food!, so hopefully it will make sense to you too.  Because guess what, we ladies eat the equivalent of one tube of lipstick per year of our lip product.  So you might as well know what you're putting on and in your mouth.  Also - the first ingredient listed in your lipgloss generally takes up over half of the formula so keep that in mind too.

All of this talk of ingredients is what prompted me to launch my newest line of Mineral Lipglosses which are petrochemical and paraben free - I am slightly obsessed with them!

Do you want your lipgloss to come from an oil rig?  Me neither.

So first you've got your F's - F for FAIL.  In terms of food, this is stuff that doesn't even taste good - think of a junk food that exists but totally grosses you out - for me, this is pork rinds.  I find them totally gross and would never eat them.  They are bad for you and you should not eat them either.  Bueno?  Bueno (if you love pork rinds imagine something else).  So, the pork rind lipglosses of the world contain one of two ingredients - Petroleum/Petrolatum and/or Mineral Oil (a by-product of Petroleum).  Click HERE to read all of the icky things about Petroleum (tumors/aging/photosensitivity) and just remember, Petroleum is used to run your car - it should not be on your beautiful pillowy lips.  And according to Dr. Oz "you end up eating it, which is essentially the same as drinking gasoline. Add up the amount of lip gloss the average woman uses (and consumes) over a decade, and it equals seven pounds." Gross. He goes on to say more about petroleum being banned in Europe and making people sick. Awesome.

If you want to know what's in one of your lip products and you've thrown the box away and the ingredients aren't listed online (they aren't listed online a LOT which is supper annoying) go to www.makeupalley.com - you may have to get a free membership but they have ingredients for tons of products listed.

Here are some lipglosses that use Grade F (totally made up grades by me) ingredients:

Sephora Collection Ultra Shine Lip Gloss - Mineral Oil

We can cry over this together because I LOVE how these feel and smell, but C.O. Bigelow's Mentha Lip Shine has a Petrolatum base so it's OUT!

This drives me nuts.  Mineral Lip Glosses that tote themselves as being super healthy, such as e.l.f.'s Mineral Lip Gloss which has a Mineral Oil base.  I guess that it technically shares the word "mineral" but come on.

Again, crying with you - smells yummy, tastes yummy - but Urban Decay's Lip Junkie Glosses are Mineral Oil based. 

Soap and Glory's Sexy Mother Pucker Lip Plumping Glosses are super pretty but, again, Mineral Oil.

I had to release this guy too - Rosebud Salve's Petroleum base (which they rec for using on blemishes?!) is no bueno for your mouth.

Then we have Grade B - these are above average and use ingredients that are synthetic but are a higher grade than Mineral Oil or Petroleum.  So, something like genetically modified strawberries.  Genetically modified because they have (the lipglosses, not the strawberries, stay with me here) a synthetic ingredient meant to mimic the "slip" that Petroleum/Mineral Oil has.  These ingredients are Polyisobutene and Polybutene.  Sometimes they are derived from plants but most of the time they are still derived from synthetics, inclusive of crude oil, but they are much more refined and can even be Kosher at times (I checked with my former Sunday School teacher who happens to be a super hardcore chemical engineer who used to work with oil - don't you love smart people?).  Dimethicone also falls under this "grade".  So, they feel good and won't kill you - like it. 

Chanel's Glossimer uses Polybutene for its base.

Hourglass' Extreme Sheen High Shine Lipgloss uses Octydodecanol which is fatty acid that may or may not be synthetic - not bad!

Josie Maran's Natural Volume Lip Gloss uses Polybutene.

Korres' Cherry Full Color Gloss uses Polybutene.

La Bella Donna's Lip Sheer also, noticing a theme here?, uses Polybutene.

Makeup Forever's Lab Shine Glosses use Polybutene.

 

And finally we have our Grade A lipglosses - in food terms, grass-fed beef from cows that are sung to sleep with lullabies and fanned with palm fronds every day or an organic heirloom tomato that was grown on a farm by someone who composts their cucumbers and recycles their toilet paper rolls. 

Erin's Faces Mineral Lipglosses use Castor Seed Oil & Shea Butter

bareMinerals 100% Natural Lip Gloss has a Castor Seed Oil base - yay!!

Bite Beauty's Lip Shine uses Lanolin (from sheep) and Vegetable Oil

Burt's Bees Super Glossy Natural Lip Shine uses Castor Seed Oil

Mineral Fusion Lip Gloss uses, you guessed it!, Castor Seed Oil

100% Pure's Fruit Pigmented Lip Gloss has an awesome ingredient list with a Vitamin E base

So grab your lip goodies and see what you're putting on, and in, your mouth!