Defining CLEAN Beauty

It’s the crypto of the beauty industry—trendy, growing, and no one can explain what it is very easily. To get to the bottom of it, we spoke with dozens of experts to clarify the category and guide us toward formulas that feel good, work well, and make a dent in the environmental problems we face.

- EMILY BARTH ISLER

In the beauty world, there’s no term buzzier than clean right now. Whether you shop online or are walking through a store, you'll find product after product categorized as clean beauty”—and people are snapping them up. According to market research company Statista, over half of women prefer natural or organic products when they shop for skincare. While it’s crystal-clear that we are in the midst of a clean beauty movement, defining it is more than a little murky. For some, clean beauty means that formulas contain only natural, nontoxic” ingredients. Others say it also has to do with a product being sustainably and ethically produced. And then there are those who expect clean beauty to check both boxes— and a few others.

The tricky thing is that although the FDA regulates cosmetics, it doesn’t review or approve products or ingredients before they go on the market a spokesperson points out, though, that companies must make sure the products are safe under the law). In Europe, more than 1,300 ingredients are prohibited,” says Define Arikan, CEO of Bryhel Cosmetic Labs, who works closely with chemist Yehiel Amouyal. But in the U.S., only a relative] few substances are prohibited by the FDA in formulas.” The Personal Care Products Council, an industry trade group, has written that 80 percent of those ingredients have not been used and never would be used as a cosmetics ingredient.”)

 

This is all to say that terms like clean, green, and eco-friendly aren't regulated by a governing body, so anyone or any brand) can interpret and define these terms however they'd like. To help you find products that are clean, natural, sustainable, and effective, we called on cosmetic chemists, brand founders, dermatologists, and environmentalists to guide you to the most important attributes of clean beauty products.

CONSIDERING THE INGREDIENTS