T
here has been a rise in the number of ‘vegan’ beauty products
and cosmetics on the shelves in recent years, but you won’t be
forgiven for wondering how on earth animals are even involved
in the production of things like shower gel, razors and lipstick.
The obvious way is through animal testing. The sale of animal-tested
products was banned in the EU in March 2013, so the shampoo you pick up
on your weekly shop isn’t directly tested on animals. However, the company
behind it may still have been required by law to test on animals in order
to sell to other worldwide markets such as China and the United States.
THE SECRETS HIDDEN
IN YOUR
BATHROOM CABINET
What people are less aware of is the fact there are animal by-products in
a lot of the items you could be using on a daily basis, but their scientific
name means they can hide away easily. Here is some examples of
which ingredients to look out for next time you’re in the drugstore:
Cochineal Dye - Crushed Beetles: This dye is collected from crushed Dactylopius
coccus (cochineal) beetles. Meant to be found living in Central and South
America, the females feed on red cactus berries, hence the intense red colour
when they’re crushed and boiled. It is found in many red-based cosmetics, such
as lipsticks and blushes (but may be hidden away as ‘Carmine’ ‘Natural Red
4’ or ‘Crimson Lake’. Because they sound slightly more appealing and fancy).
Guanine - Crushed Fish Scales: Watch out for CI 75170, or to give it it’s
more beautiful label, natural pearl essence. Sounds pretty, right? But it’s
actually scraped-off fish scales after they’ve been suspended in alcohol. This
shimmering, crystalline material is found in a lot of nail polishes, lipsticks,
bath products, cleansers and mascaras that coincidentally sell due to their
shimmery nature. It is often used as a colourant in makeup too, imparting a
white colour into the product and reducing the transparent nature of products
which reduce blemishes. So it may be in foundations and concealers too.
Lanolin - Animal Excretion: To be more precise, secretion from the
sebaceous gland of wool-bearing mammals. Imagine the grease that
would build up on your skin and in your hair if you weren’t to shower for
a few weeks? The animal version of that goes into most lipsticks, lip salves,
shaving creams, shampoos, makeup removers and, most surprisingly,
that little lubricating strip on most razors that protects us from irritated
skin. Lanolin makes products greasy/sticky/moisturising for their
users, but it’s primary function is to protect wool from retaining water.
Squalene - Shark Liver Oil: This product is as horrible as it sounds - extracted
from the livers of sharks and then added to eye makeup and lipsticks, it means
sharks are being taken out of the sea at an alarming rate. A recent trend has also
been squalene heath capsules, to add to their endangerment. It is lighter than
water, well-absorbed non-greasy, therefore acting as a natural moisturiser.
It also has low acute toxicity, so is not a significant skin irritant. Good news
for the big corporations which use it, less so for the sharks of the world.
Collagen - Animal Tissue: Everyone has heard of it. People who use anti-
aging creams/botox/face fillers love it. Loss of collagen contributes to
aging and wrinkled skin, so the idea of being able to replace it has been
long praised by a certain age group. Have you ever tried plumping your lips
with one of those special lipglosses that promised to give you a fuller pout?
Well it probably contained collagen too, which is a fibrous protein from
animal tissue. And collagen is actually not proven to do anything long term,
such as produce natural collagen in the skin, so it’s all for nothing really.
BY SIAN KISSOCK
Have you ever heard
about the Chinese
White Dolphins,
known worldwide
as Pink Dolphins?
Have you ever seen
them? If not, you
may not be able to
make it.
EN