Let’s look at the big picture.
A skin care paradise?
If you really think about it, a skin care cream is a marvelous thing. A moisturizer, for example, in its simplest form is an object of balance and if done carefully, an object of elegance. While the new age serums and butters and sprays have all made their way into the super market shelves and slowly into our bathrooms, they have done little to dethrone the good old moisturizer as our go-to, comfort skin care product.
The idea of a moisturizer is not new. Enough ink has been wasted on the history and absurdities of the Egyptians or the Victorian era and their use of various concoctions to alleviate dry skin and body odor. But it is in the modern formulations of moisturizers that one begins to see a careful balance of ingredients that offer the benefits that we so cherish.
Forests new and ancient
The most common oil used today in moisturizers is mineral oil. It is a cheap petroleum distillate which finds purpose in various industries including cosmetics. Other than the mineral oil, a cream typically also includes several fatty materials that are sourced from palm oil. And all of this is floating in a medium of ultra-pure water in a carefully orchestrated dance. A dance that sees participation of oil from deep underground reservoirs, fat stored in palm kernels that grow high off the ground and free flowing water from rivers both under and above ground.
If you think about it, the blob of cream that you so casually apply on your face is made of ingredients that are drawn and processed from ancient forests buried deep in the earth (fossil fuels) and new (palm) forests from where we source the palm oil. The humble moisturizer has been in the making for millions of years!
All is not well in paradise
And here in lies the problem. The mineral oil that we so love is not renewable. Not to mention that it is a by-product of the petroleum industry which is the leading case of global warming. Additionally, reports have started to emerge of a more dangerous contaminant in mineral oils (the so called MOAHs) that can cause cancer in people. Not good.
Palm oil has other issues. To satisfy the world’s hunger for palm, vast tracts of old growth forests have been cleared to make way for monocultures of palm trees. We know all about deforestation and Orangutans and how these plantations endanger an entire ecosystem.
That blob of cream that we so casually apply is killing the planet. Literally.
Light at the end of the tunnel
But all is not lost. Several companies have realized that what they pack in that tiny jar of moisturizer is not sustainable. There are elaborate plans being drawn as we speak and highly paid professionals calculating the emissions and looking at certifications of sustainable palm plantations. Mineral oils are being replaced by plant oils while boldly proclaiming that they are all planet friendly.
There is hope. While the change is painfully slow and companies have resorted to green washing, there are those few that are holding the light true and strong towards the cause of sustainability. Several governments have started to step up regulations too.
So, as consumers, what can we do? To begin with, be frugal. You really don’t need a bathroom full of skin and hair care products. Think before you jump into multi-step skin care routines; they are bad not just for you but also for the planet.
Arm yourself with knowledge. Read those labels and make careful choices.
And do not forget what goes into that blob of cream.
V S Koushik 