Is Mineral Makeup Really Better For Skin?
November 17, 2009 by Kelli DesRochers
Filed under Skin Care
I have friends who religiously swear by mineral makeup. They speak so highly of these products that they say anything else but mineral makeup causes them to have skin irritations and breakouts. But is this really true? Or is mineral makeup just an extremely successful marketing campaign and my friends are products of the placebo effect?
I just read an interesting article on WebMD by Colette Bouchez called The Lowdown on Mineral Makeup. Mineral makeup is supposedly made from finely ground minerals and does not contain chemicals, dyes, and preservatives that could irritate your skin. Skincare professionals greatly differ on their ideas about the legitimacy of mineral makeup, but it is good to be an educated consumer to find out about the possible controversies behind the product.
- The “active” ingredients are not exclusive to mineral makeup…they are important ingredients that are already contained in most makeup products.
- You shouldn’t use it exclusively as a sunscreen. Mineral makeup contains zinc oxide, which is an important ingredient in sunscreen but it is suggested that you use sunscreen lotions in tandem with the topical powder.
- There are no regulations for the title “mineral makeup” so don’t assume that all products with this title are actually natural. Check the ingredients to see what is really contained in the product.
- Bismuth oxychloride is a byproduct of lead and copper processing that could be contained in mineral makeups. I just checked bareMinerals and their regular foundation does indeed contain this ingredient. This chemical can be a skin irritant.
- Minerals act differently at nanoscales. Pulverizing the minerals into makeup can possibly cause the minerals to have different and potentially toxic properties.
If you have been wearing mineral makeup for years, don’t immediately throw out all of your expensive powders! Do a little research into the brand that you are purchasing to make sure that you are getting what you are intending when you purchase a product marked as “mineral makeup.”
Image: sxc.hu
Thanks for this article! I personally have had horrible experiences with Mineral Makeup. Maybe it is just not suited to oily skin. The first kind I bought was Bare Minerals. It took about three coats to get an even finish and hide all of my freckles and blemishes. Then, about 1 hour after application my face felt extremely itchy. I looked in the mirror and wow, what a mess! The makeup looked blotchy and cakey in some areas, and was completely gone from other areas. It was basically dissolving away from the natural oils produced by my skin. I will NEVER try mineral foundation again, and can’t figure out what all the hype is about. I think that oily skin is much better suited to using a dry powder primer (I use one called Mattify Loose Powder – it soaks up oil all day long and keeps my foundation looking fresh) and then a liquid foundation (I like Estee Lauder Camouflage Foundation – it is very light weight, covers any blemish, and stays on all day). At any rate, Mineral Foundation gets a big “thumbs down” in my book!