Mineral Makeup
Mineral Makeup: Are They All The Same?
Since virtually all mineral makeup products share a lot of common ingredients, most people are of the opinion that they are all the same. In spite of these common ingredients however, mineral makeup brands from different manufacturers can be quite different from each other. Since there is as yet no currently accepted standard for what makes makeup qualify as being of the “mineral” variety, the other ingredients they contain can vary by quite a lot. In fact, there are even some cosmetic products marketed as “mineral makeup’ that contain a lot less natural ingredients than well known mineral makeup brands.
Mineral makeup–two categories
As Kristen Adams, who is the president of AfterGlow Cosmetics says, mineral makeup can generally be classified into two categories: those that strictly adhere to the all-natural formula–that is they do not contain synthetic ingredients such as paraben preservatives and fillers–and those that do contain fillers, coloring agents, binders, preservatives, and other chemical ingredients.
All natural…or not
Some of the most commonly used marketing tags on mineral makeup products are “all natural” and “all mineral”. Unfortunately, that may not always be the case, even with brands that are specifically marketed as such. While a closer look at the label on the package or bottle should be enough to tell you what ingredients the product you are buying contains, some product labels may not be as informative, so you should make sure to buy only mineral makeup products from reputable manufacturers.
Mineral makeup and claims of sun protection
One other benefit that so many mineral makeup manufacturers claim is that these products offer adequate protection from the damaging effects of the rays of the sun. In fact, some makeup brands that have an SPF rating of 15 have managed to secure approval from the Skin Cancer Foundation as a sunscreen. Some products that contain titanium dioxide and zinc oxide–which are two ingredients that are usually found in popular sunscreen brands–also make similar claims.
It is important to note however that not all mineral makeup offers this protection, and that you should not assume that because a products is marketed as mineral makeup that you will get the same level of protection from the sun’s rays.
Furthermore, in spite of the presence of these ingredients, most experts are of the opinion that sun-screening properties of mineral makeup are not of the same level offered by commercially available sunscreen products. While using mineral makeup does offer a certain degree of protection, and is therefore better than using nothing, maximum protection from the harmful UV rays emanating can best be achieved with the use of regular sunscreen underneath the mineral makeup.