May
5
Filed Under FAQ, Skin Care, Toy Safety
I can’t tell you how many times we’ve gotten this question:
I love the Arbonne ABC Baby care line and wondered why their products are not listed on your site as they are pure, have no animal by-products etc., ?
Edit: Since the publication of this article I have been sent an updated list of product formulas. I’ll update that below. I’m going to tell you why. Because according to the ingredient information I’ve seen there is not a lot that is “pure, safe and beneficial” about them from what I can tell. To start, Arbonne doesn’t disclose the ingredients in their baby products on their website – so judging a product based on just some marketing text isn’t what we recommend when buying skin care for your little one. With some digging I found an ingredients list for the Arbonne baby Care ABC Lotion from the GoodGuide. An Arbonne Rep sent me the ingredients lists in several products. Let’s take a look at the Arbonne Baby Care ABC Lotion:
Water/Aqua/Eau, Glycerin, Cetyl Lactate, Glyceryl Stearate, Isopropyl Palmitate, Sorbitan Stearate, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Polysorbate 61, Dimethicone, Stearic Acid, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Extract, Prunus Persica (Peach) Fruit Extract, Plantago Major Leaf Extract, Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract, Carthamus Tinctorius (Saflower) Seed Oil, Prunus Armeniaca (Apricot) Kernel Oil, Retinyl Palmitate, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Hydrolized Lecithin, Tocopherol, Panthenol, Oleic Acid, Stearoxytrimethylsilane, Stearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Citric Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Hexylene Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Sorbic Acid, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Cedrus Atlantica Bark Oil, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia (Bergamot) Fruit Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Dipteryx Odorata Seed Extract, Citrus Reticulata, (Tangerine) Leaf Oil, Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Peel Oil, Jasminum Oficinale (Jasmine) Oil, Limonene, Geraniol
And the Arbonne ABC Baby Hair & Body Wash:
Water/Aqua/Eau,Decyl Glucoside, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, PEG-80 Sorbitan Laurate, PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, Butylene Glycol, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Extract, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract, Prunus Persica (Peach) Fruit Extract, Plantago Major Leaf Extract, Retinyl Palmitate, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Phospholipids, Panthenol, Triethanolamine, Citric Acid, Sodium Chloride, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Hexylene Glycol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Sorbic Acid, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Cedrus Atlantica Bark Oil, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia, (Bergamot) Fruit Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Dipteryx Odorata Seed Extract, Citrus Reticulata (Tangerine) Leaf Oil, Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Peel Oil, Jasminum Oficinale (Jasmine) Oil, Limonene, Geraniol
- Some products like the Hair & Body Wash contain a couple PEG’s.
- First, this lotion contains FOUR parabens. Hormone mimicking preservatives. Do I need to go on? No, but I will. Have been reformulated to eliminate parabens. BUT, it does contain Phenoxyethanol (see below)which we’re learning isn’t the best preservative either.
- A nice portion of the list is made up of petrochemicals… some of which can be a source of 1,4 dioxane and formaldehyde contamination. Namely Triethanolamine which can also be contaminated with nitrosamines, an endocrine disrupting possible carcinogen.
…several animal studies clearly demonstrate toxicity of phenoxyethanol, which causes damaging effects on the brain and the nervous system, even at moderate concentrations. As a cosmetic ingredient, phenoxyethanol is restricted in Japan and the European Union. Even the U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) data sheets show “chromosomal changes and genetic mutation effects in testing as well as testicular atrophy and reproductive damage in mice.”
- We’ve looked at the lists on a few other products including their kids sunscreen which uses several chemical sunscreens including Octyl Methoxycinnamate, 2-Ethylhexyl Salicylate (Octyl Salicylate), and Oxybenzone.
Needless to say, we are still not comfortable recommending Arbonne’s products. Perhaps they have reformulated to remove parabens in recent months (They have taken out parabens), we’re not sure since they don’t disclose their ingredients until you’ve already bought the product. The removal of 4 parabens from their formulas is a nice step – but it’s just a few too many chemical ingredients for our comfort level.
Related articles:
- Baby Skin Care Products: A Quick Users Guide
- FAQ: Why Isn’t Blue Lizard on your Sunscreen Cheat Sheet?
- Cheat Sheet: Paraben and Phthalate Free Baby Products
