Organic Beauty Week: New from Human Heart Nature
Honest talk: I am sometimes turned off by Human Heart Nature's marketing tactics. I like what the brand is doing, creating a beauty brand that is sustainable, pro-poor, and pro-environment. But I don't like how they are always scaring people off perfectly fine ingredients. They don't go out and say, this-and-this is toxic and will kill you, but they will slyly say that their ingredients are 100% safe and don't you want to be safe when using personal care products? Don't you want to avoid risks?
So maybe I'm not qualified to talk about what ingredients are safe or not. But cosmetic chemists are. I am more inclined to believe them because, you know, science. Facts. I always research ingredients when I have the time and try not to be scared into submission by fear-mongering organic/all-natural brands.
Nonetheless, I'm going to introduce some of Human Heart Nature's latest products today. ;P This local, socially-conscious brand never rests on its laurels, hence the new releases every quarter or so.
Okay! The most interesting thing here for me is the Human Heart Nature Natural Day Moisturizer (P150/50ml). This has a light, non-greasy texture that smells wonderful too! It has 15 vitamins and minerals, namely Vitamin E, Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B12, Vitamin D, Selenium, Lecithin, Zinc, Potassium, Iron, Calcium, and Magnesium.
It also has no silicone and dimethicone, two ingredients that help products feel smoother on the skin. These -ones also fill in pores and lines, which is a good way to seal in moisture and even out the surface of skin. However they can cause pimples if your skin doesn't agree with these ingredients.
Sounds interesting! You should try it if you're conscious about ingredients like that. However, I'm perfectly happy with my -ones, and will be sticking with my current moisturizer with all the chemicals that make it a joy to use. Personal choice. Not gonna knock yours, so don't knock mine.
I avoid organic/all-natural face and hair care products because they just don't seem to work for me. I get pimples and dandruff! (I'm sure it's different with other people; we don't have the same skin anyway.) However, I adore organic body care stuff. Soaps and body lotions are hard to mess up really. I swing either way (organic claims vs normal formulations).
I like the Human Nature Natural Pocket Hand Soap in Energizing Citrus (P60/ 50ml) because it smells like oranges. It feels like your typical hand soap, only with less chemicals! It's nice to bring around if you're a compulsive hand-washer.
HHN has two new things in the hair care department: the Clarifying Shampoo (P150/200ml) and Strengthening Conditioner (P145). The Clarifying Shampoo uses coco fatty acid sulfates instead of sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) – natural sulfates that give you rich lather equal to the foaminess of SLS/SLES but are non-toxic and fully-biodegradable. Same with the conditioner!
SLS and SLES are non-toxic and fully-biodegradable BTW. They are also non-irritating as long as they're on wash-off products like shampoos and conditioners. Avoid it in leave-on products! Read more about it on Personal Care Truth and a little bit on Beauty Brains.
I hope I don't leave you with the impression that I'm sneering at people who love organic beauty products. If it works for you, then it works for you. If you like the lifestyle and how healthier it sounds then you like it. No judgment! But my main concern is efficacy. I also trust that my makeup and skincare are not trying to kill me, because that just doesn't make sense. I'm not naive though. I do my research on ingredients too.
So there you go. What are your top faves from HHN?
