Having first been introduced into haircare and skincare in the 1950s, Silicones can be found throughout the vast majority of cosmetics, hair care and skincare products today thanks to their low cost of inclusion. But why should you avoid them? Let’s take a look.
What are Silicones?
Silicones are derived from a natural compound called silica (the primary component of sand). After being derived from its natural form, silica then undergoes extensive chemical processing to then form silicones which are synthetic substances. The chemical processing of silicones requires a lot of energy during the manufacturing process and may also use petrochemicals to achieve the exact type of silicone.
Types of Silicones
Silicones go by different names and are modified into numerous different types in order to perform the specific role expected of them. Some of the most commonly used silicones are Dimethicone, Cyclomethicone, Cyclohexasiloxane, Cyclopentasiloxane, Amodimethicone and Phenyl Trimethicone. The quickest and easiest way to identify whether silicones are in your products is to look for ingredients that end in;
- Cone
- Conol
- Silane
- Siloxane
Why are they used in skin care?
Silicones in skin care are used to help create a smooth, silky textures and spreadable formulas due to their light and dry feel, lubricity, slip and shine.
However, silicones stay on the surface of your skin. They form a layer on the top of your skin, making your skin appear smooth as they fill fine lines, wrinkles and imperfections. But while they may fill in the gaps temporarily, they provide no benefit in helping repair or rejuvenate your skin. Like most synthetic ingredients, on the surface they seem to provide superficial, short-term results but they have no benefit to your skin as they may potentially buildup on the skin and hair.
Why we say no!
Silicones like Dimethicone and Cyclomethicone have been criticized of late for their lack of biodegradability, which may take them years to decompose and raise risks of disturbing the ecosystem.
Because KORA Organics products are certified under COSMOS, each ingredient and formula utilizes principles of Green Chemistry as COSMOS finds silicone and their counterparts not natural or naturally derived.
The good news is there are latest advances in natural or green chemistry, which offer several vegetable or plant derived alternatives to silicones. These natural alternatives widely appeal to customers seeking eco-friendly products, yet still deliver the soft, light and non-greasy characteristics of silicone, which is why we are proudly silicone free skin care! Silicone free skincare products give you the flexibility and peace of mind that our products will absorb into your skin and provide results no matter what order you apply them – and with no potential side effects nor risks to the environment.
What we use instead
We are proud to use clean, natural alternatives to silicones by using light weight botanical oils and esters derived from Rosehip, Jojoba, Sunflower, Olive and Desert Date. They offer quick skin penetration with a long-lasting silky feel, and create soft, smooth and silky textures.
Compatible with all skin types, they are certified, renewable, sustainable, biodegradable and completely safe in use.
These ingredients provide real results over time while helping to deeply nourish and hydrate your skin and being safe for the environment.
KORA Organics
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I’m glad I read this! I had no idea about silicone in skincare! I’ve been using Kora Organics since January 2019 & I love it! My skin feels and looks great now. Thank You Kora! I’m not going back to silicone base products!
I’ve told all my friends to avoid silicones in their face and hair routines and my body has actually built up an intolerance to them and i can’t use anything containing silicones without dire consequences. Unfortunately a well known brand claims to be organic and have no “nasties” in their products and I trusted them, only to find dimenthicone in all of their moisturisers! People just want that superfast fix and yes silicones give the feel of that do then people think that they’ve got a fantastic product! Nothing can be absorbed into the skin or hair once a silicone is used, so your other products that you apply after just sit on the top and are unable to do their job and you also end up with build up as well on your face and hair and any other part of your body you moisturise that contains any silicones. I also ordered a product that only showed the active ingredients and asked twice in their question part whether silicones were contained thinking that 2 different people would read it and I’d get the correct answer …1 i got back was just a list of active ingredients and the other said no, so silly me ordered the product and used it. Four days later i was still suffering the consequences even though i used it twice. I contacted the company who wanted pictures of my face which looked shocking and embarrassing even though I’d been using some of the best products made for chemical face procedures as they’re the only thing that helps if i do react and the company was shocked but never apoligised and the female consultant on the phone was telling me it wasn’t their product as it contained no silicones and was very unpleasant to deal with so i mentioned the names listed in their ingredients and she put me on hold to get a jar to check it out, rudely she did state that they were contained in the product. Now i was very pleasant on the phone unlike the consultant who then asked what did i want them to do about it, naturally I wanted a refund and was told the products had to be returned to them within a certain time frame and they’d consider a refund after the product was inspected and then hung up on me!! I urge everyone to not just take people’s word for it or accept that because they’ve said it’s organic do some research on the actual product and ingredients before purchasing. A friend wanted to see my face as I’d told her what had happened and by the way it took 4 washes 1 after the other to stop the feeling of the damage the silicones had done, after sending my pic to my friend, and I can’t put down what she said for fear of offending people but let’s just say she was totally shocked and couldn’t believe that this was 4 days after using the product. The facial oil from here and the lovely balm in a stick as i like to call it played a big part in helping me get some relief from the damage caused by silicones. I will be looking at buying more from this range as you’ll be absolutely shocked to find out who uses silicones in their products that a lot of their products are over $100.00 to purchase. I’d never heard of this building up an intolerance to silicones before but after researching and asking questions I found out first hand it does exist and please don’t think that you’ll be exempt from it condition as your body decides when it becomes intolerant to this nasty chemical!!!!!