Which Popular Makeup Ingredient Damages Skin Like a Cancerous One?

There are way more makeup ingredients ripping up your skin than you would think, which sucks because it’s hard to know what to trust.

That’s why we’re dedicated to The Provanity Project – a chemistry lab experiment that determines how much damage makeup ingredients are causing your skin and health. Looking your best shouldn’t cost you your health, and we’re excited to find out what clean makeup really is.

What we found last week blew us away.

The Cancerous Beauty Chemical

If you look at the Clean at Sephora banned ingredient list, you’ll find that acrylates are at the top, but what are they?

Acrylates are plastic like chemicals that create thin, film like layers or create adhesion. That’s why you see them in acrylic nail formulas and eyelash glues.

They used to be in a lot of other products like mascaras and eyeliners, but once more data came out indicating that they cause cancer, they started phasing them out.

You’ll still see acrylate copolymers in formulas – these are generally considered safe because they’re much bigger molecules, so they won’t absorb into your skin easily.

Acrylates, on the other hand, are very small and very harmful. Aside from causing cancer, they rip apart the building blocks of your skin, collagen and elastin.

Despite the danger, brands are still using them in eyelash glues and acrylic nail formulas. Something that causes cancer is commonly put in a product meant to make contact with your eyes… wtf?

How dangerous can it really be?

Acrylates are dangerous enough that we’ve decided to stop using them in lab until we can make sure we’re using proper safety protocols. Our team members could get hurt just by standing near a tiny amount of acrylate solution.

Wait… Which Beauty Chemical Does as Much Damage?

Before we decided to pause our acrylate experiments, we got some really good data about the damage it’s causing to your elastin.

We couldn’t believe sulfates (SLS, SLES) were doing even more damage.

Sulfates are used in all kinds of beauty products – body washes, shampoos, facial cleansers, makeup removers, liquid foundations, eyeshadows, mascaras, lipstick, eyeliners, etc.

Here’s the kicker, they’re in household cleaners too. It’s the ingredient that scrubs dirt and creates a soapy effect.

Why would it be in makeup and skincare, then? It also helps spreads out pigment, prevents clumping, and breaks up oil on your face (in a very aggressive, abrasive way).

We found that 10% concentration of acrylates broke down 21% of elastin.

Sulfates on the other hand broke down 31% of elastin at just 0.1% concentration.

Keep in mind, elastin gives your face stretch… and you aren’t able to produce more once it’s gone. Maintaining healthy skin means getting rid of these harmful ingredients.

This is how we can tell how much sulfates and acrylates are breaking up your collagen and elastin.

Can Makeup Lead to Healthy Skin?

Does this mean that you have to use formulas with sulfates to make sure your face is getting clean or your makeup isn’t clumping?

Absolutely not.

Sulfates aren’t the only ingredient that achieves these goals, they’re just the easiest to use in a formulation (plus, they’re cheap). A lot of brands like to take the easy way out, so they don’t have to put as much time, effort, and money into making a truly great formula.

Look at us, for example. Our products outperform most cult favorite brands in longevity, ease-of-use, and pigmentation without using any nasty ingredients.

It just takes a little time and extra love to make a safe formula with excellent performance, and we’re dedicated to giving you the best.

Make sure you’re reading the ingredient lists on the beauty products you buy. If you see sulfates, SLS, or SLES anywhere on the list… it’s time to find something else.

Provanity Cosmetics is all about having fun with makeup while making sure you maintain healthy skin.

Ready for safe, clean makeup without compromising performance? Give Provanity Cosmetics a try and let us know what you think.