Beneficial ingredients for natural formulations

Yet how would they feel about the presence of mould? It is after all natural but I suspect it would be an unwelcome addition to your favourite face cream. Psychologically we are geared to believe that natural is always the best option. This is probably due to our associations with food – we know that fruit is good for us therefore fruit extracts, with their essential vitamins, are good for our hair and skin. This is of course true but marketing stories often lead us to believe that something is more natural than it really is. We have all seen adverts for a cosmetic where the advertised product is placed in beautiful natural surroundings and we are told how this product contains some beneficial natural ingredient. The inference is that this is a natural product. While it does contain one or more natural materials to fit with the marketing story, in most cases it will have them at a low percentage while the bulk of the product is composed of synthetics.

How natural is natural?

A raw material may be of natural origin but it can be manipulated into something quite different through chemical processes, which leads us to question: how do we define natural? If we take the case of a natural oil, we can look at how this could be modified (or not) for different uses. We can use an oil pretty much in its natural state or refine it through neutralisation, deodorisation or bleaching and straight away a valuable raw material has been produced. For example, sweet almond oil has nourishing properties and is naturally high in omega-6 fatty acids. It can be used for direct application or incorporated into hair and skin care products for its moisturising benefits and is particulaly beneficial to dry skin. Alternatively, by using complex technology, sweet almond proteins can be purified and engineered by the patented process of biopolymerisation to optimise their firming properties, creating a tensor active of the monomeric proteins. The polymer of sweet almond proteins forms a three-dimensional protein network which adsorbs to the skins surface to create a lifting elastic film which smoothes microrelief. Two very different functionalities from one natural source. Using transesterification, natural-based esters can be designed with different functionality from natural materials containing triglycerides such as coconut palm. The chemical process of hydrolysis splits the fatty acids from the glycerin backbone, leaving these building blocks free to create triglycerides. By condensation with the chosen fatty acid methyl esters, a chemical with the desired characteristics can be created. This type of chemical engineering is accepted by natural standards globally such as Cosmos, Natrue, Oasis, Ecocert, BDIH and Soil Association and resultant products are considered natural, assuming starting materials are from a natural source. These standards also allow for saponification, glucosidation, sulfation, acylation and etherication.