Fashion Wear

Secrets behind the chemistry of cosmetics

From seeing those television advertisements on cosmetics, during every interval of daily soaps to getting irritated with online sites referring to a random cosmetic advertisement at the right hand corner of the page, we all grew up. Cosmetics are those sets of makeup products that are designed to cleanse, protect and give your external body parts a new dimension. They are a part of various articles, videos preaching easy beauty tips. The ground ingredients of most cosmetics are basically water, preservatives, emulsifiers, thickeners, colors and perfumes.

Regarding regulation and safety

Cosmetics must be used on the basis of the consumers' reviews and standardization by the government agencies. Every ingredient of it must be studied well before applying, to prevent disastrous side effects. They are labeled and named according to the norms of the "Trade Practices Regulations". This brings transparency. This suggests that every cosmetic manufacturer must mention the intentionally added ingredients on the product's label, failing which legal actions can be taken against them.

What does cosmetics consist of?

There is a wide range of makeup products available online. Every commodity has some things in common which forms the base and can be constructed further, depending on the needs. They are:

Water: It forms the simplest base of creams, lotions, deodorants, makeup products, shampoos and conditioners. It acts as an excellent solvent to dissolve out different ingredients, thereby providing a smooth blend. This water is made ultra pure before adding into your favorite daily cream. Want to check out this ingredient? There must be a label of Aqua, distilled water or purified water wrapped around your product's body.

Emulsifiers: These are those substances which prevents unlike substances (like oil and water) from separating. Most of the cosmetics are based on the technique of "emulsification". By preventing the separation of oil and water, it makes the mixture homogeneous, smooth and of uniform texture.

Preservatives: They are basically added to the commodity to increase their shelf life and to prevent the growth of microbes like bacteria, fungi etc. On the basis of the types of microbes that can inhibit, preservatives are added accordingly. They can be both natural and synthetic and can perform differently according to the formulation. Some examples of famous group of preservatives are: benzyl alcohol, parabens, formaldehyde, salicylic acid etc.

Thickeners: Thickening agents are responsible for giving the product an appealing consistency. They can be broadly categorized as

1) Lipid Thickeners

2) Naturally derived thickeners

3) Mineral thickeners.

4) Synthetic Thickeners

All these groups of thickeners are used to balance out the dilution of the formula.

These are the four main ingredients which forms the recipe of every cosmetic. Added to this, emollients, pigments, glitters and fragrances are also used to exemplify their complex formula. So, cosmetics online must be purchased with great care and suggestions must be taken before using any newly launched product. Because at the end, all that matters is only you.