False Skincare Myths

Pores are not doors: they do not open with hot water or steam, and they do not close with cold water. During facial cleansing, steam works to liquefy sebum, making it easier to extract impurities. With specially formulated cosmetic products, you can simply try to refine pore size: it’s recommended to use astringent active ingredients (for example, Fomes Officinalis or burdock extract), clay masks, and salicylic acid. Pores are not doors: they do not open with hot water or steam, and they do not close with cold water. During facial cleansing, steam works to liquefy sebum, making it easier to extract impurities.

The ingredients listed at the bottom of a skin care product's ingredient list (also known as "INCI") are generally present in smaller quantities than the ingredients at the top of the list, keeping in mind that substances present in concentrations below 1% can be listed in any order after those with concentrations equal to or greater than 1%.

However, this does not necessarily mean that these ingredients are ineffective. Some ingredients at the bottom of the list can have very beneficial properties for the skin but exert their activity at low concentrations. In fact, at higher concentrations they could have the opposite effect and cause irritation: a typical example is retinol, which delivers its miraculous properties already at a concentration of 0.3%.

Also be careful of those who promote extremely high percentages of an active ingredient you are interested in: it is always best to check what form the active ingredient is in and keep in mind that this concentration might not be real and the active ingredient could be "diluted".

In medicine, respiration has a single meaning and implies that lungs or other respiratory organs are involved. So no, skin cannot breathe.

The skin is a very important organ for the body's thermoregulation and for maintaining water balance, and it is rich in sweat glands that produce sweat, which helps cool the body through evaporation. It receives oxygen not from the air but from the blood vessels that irrigate the dermis, with which it exchanges O2 and nutrients.

The word "breathe" is often used figuratively to indicate that, when skin does not breathe, it is because it is blocked by cosmetic products: occlusion does not mean “suffocating the skin” but on the contrary, many times occlusion serves to prevent it from drying out by reducing the so-called TEWL (transepidermal water loss).

The cosmeceutical industry is a vast consumer-driven market that has seen robust sales growth since the early 2000s.

The term "cosmeceutical", which combines the words cosmetic and pharmaceutical, was popularized by Dr. Albert Kligman in the 1980s: it refers to a range of topical agents that offer both cosmetic properties, which improve the appearance of the skin, and pharmaceutical properties, which therapeutically alter the physiology of the skin and/or reverse a pathological process. An example of cosmeceuticals is dandruff shampoo, which is both a cosmetic (a cleanser) and a drug proven to treat dandruff.

By definition, cosmeceuticals produce fewer clinical changes than more heavily regulated prescription drugs; however, the term "cosmeceutical" has no legal standing.

We start from a premise: the cost of a product is influenced by many factors, such as production costs, marketing, and the producer’s marginal profit. Therefore, a product’s price does not always correspond to its quality or effectiveness.

There are products that cost a lot, but what you will end up taking home will likely mainly be a beautiful packaging that costs the company a huge amount (and therefore also costs you a lot). A product’s quality depends on many factors, such as its formulation, ingredients, and usage methods. Of course, there are more expensive products that contain high-quality ingredients and are formulated very effectively, but this is not the rule.

Silicones and parabens are commonly used ingredients in skin and hair care products. Despite public concern and fear that they are harmful or non-"natural", they have been declared safe by both the FDA and the European Commission.

But what is the difference between parabens and silicones, and most importantly, what do they do?

Silicones
Silicones, and especially polydimethylsiloxanes, are a class of excipients used to manufacture topical dermatological products. Thanks to their exceptional physicochemical properties, they offer numerous application possibilities for pharmaceutical formulations for
skin use. In addition to improving aesthetic and sensory properties, they can enhance the essential properties of formulations such as their stability. The incredible thing is that most topically used silicones have an extremely low toxic potential in humans.

Parabens

The  parabens are instead used as  preservatives to prevent the growth of bacteria and molds: the best part is that they are some of the least allergenic preservatives available, with contact sensitization rates between 0,5% and 1,4% (rates that have remained stable since the 1990s).

However, the reputation of these compounds is rather negative, even though product preservation is an absolute necessity to prevent particularly problematic microbes, such as gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus and gram-negative Escherichia coli, from contaminating cosmetics. The most commonly used parabens are: methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben, and butylparaben, generally at concentrations of 0,4% or lower.

Parabens and silicones have been classified as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), as well as by the European Commission. The latter, through the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS), provides opinions on individual substances, which are regulatory bodies that ensure the safety of all substances on the market, based on scientific literature.

Skin and hair care products labeled "clean" are products that, according to their manufacturers, are free of harmful or potentially toxic chemicals. These products often contain natural or organic ingredients and are formulated without the use of substances such as parabens, sulfates, or silicones. Many consumers choose to use clean skin and hair care products because they believe these products are safer and less irritating to the skin compared to products formulated with chemicals. 

However, we must ask ourselves whether choosing ingredients considered more natural is truly better, and whether choosing ingredients considered more chemical-based is truly worse. Many "natural products" contain high concentrations of botanical extracts, which are one of the main causes of irritant contact dermatitis, allergic contact dermatitis, photosensitivity, and even poisoning. In a study conducted by the University of Ferrara, 6.22% of users of topical herbal products reported one or more adverse skin reactions.

In addition to this, all cosmetics currently on the market are legally safe and no ingredient can be added to a cosmetic product if it has been certified as harmful.

Parabens, for example, are some of the least allergenic preservatives available, with contact sensitization rates between 0.5% and 1.4% (rates that have remained stable since the 1990s).

We’ve all tried using easily accessible, affordable products in the hopes they’d have some effect on our skin: toothpaste on pimples, lemon for spots, avocados, pumpkins, honey, olive oil. The hard truth is that if it were that easy, there would be no science behind cosmetic products and there would be no targeted checks and tests to ensure that everything we put on our face is not harmful.

The problem is that many products we have at home, or easily find at the supermarket, are absolutely not beneficial for our skin, and most importantly, they have not been tested for use on skin. DIY home remedies often cause issues like irritations, allergic reactions, and dermatitis. So-called “natural products” also contain high concentrations of botanical extracts, which are one of the main causes of irritant contact dermatitis, allergic contact dermatitis, and photosensitization. In a study conducted by the University of Ferrara, 6,22% of users of topical herbal products reported one or more adverse skin reactions.

To wrap up, before slathering any citrus fruit you have in your fridge onto your skin, really think about whether it can be helpful for you and whether it’s truly the best solution for your skin, compared to the active ingredients that have been extensively studied in dermatological scientific literature.

You’ve definitely read that after some time, skin becomes accustomed to the products you’re using, which is why it’s necessary to switch them often. This has no scientific basis, and now we’ll explain why. 

Skin can’t become accustomed to products for a simple reason: physiological cellular turnover takes 20-28 days. That means within the span of a month, all of your skin’s cells have been replaced. 

If your cream doesn’t work as well as it used to, this could depend on several factors: seasonal changes, stress, or your lifestyle can all interfere, and your skin may have different needs.