Regulatory about cosmetic ingredients

Many of the ingredients used in the cosmetic products are actually industrial strength chemicals, solvents and petroleum by-products. This is even true for many of the most expensive products available and products being promoted as "natural". The truth is that many of the ingredients used widely by cosmetic industry , reason of being used is not that  they are good for your skin.

Regulatory bodies and truth about cosmetic ingredients

Shweta Kapoor*, Swarnlata Saraf                     

*Institute of Pharmacy, Pt. Ravishankar Shukla University, Raipur (C.G)-492010
 email- This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  

INTRODUCTION

Cosmetics, preparations externally applied to change or enhance the beauty of skin, hair, nails, lips, and eyes. The use of body paint for ornamental and religious purposes has been common among primitive peoples from prehistoric times. Ointments, balms, powders, and hair dyes have also been used from ancient times. Many cosmetics originated in Asia, but their ingredients and use are first recorded in Egypt. By the beginning of the 21st century the cosmetics industry was mostly run by large corporations and had become a multibillion dollar enterprise.1.The skin's primary function is to protect the body from environment. The primary causes of skin damage and ageing are exposure to sunlight—UVB and UVA—oxidation and inflammation of the skin, decreases in supportive collagen, loss of muscle tone, and dryness2. Cosmetics widely used to maintain the healthy skin. Most cosmetic products contain a combination of ingredients such as emulsifiers, preservatives, thickener, colour, fragrance, UV filters (sunscreens), humectants, occlusive agents and pH stabilizers. Many of the ingredients used in the cosmetic products are actually industrial strength chemicals, explosive solvents and petroleum by-products. This is even true for many of the most expensive products available and products being promoted as "natural".

Common consumer never bother about the ingredients present in the cosmetics the people are not aware that these ingredients can be harmful to their health. Although every country has made their own legislation to control over cosmetic ingredients, they have prohibited the some of the ingredients which found to be toxic. The truth is that many of the ingredients used widely by cosmetic industry , reason of being used is not that  they are good for your skin. They are used because they are cost effective (cheap), because they facilitate the manufacturing process, and because they facilitate a product shelf life of several years. Regulatory bodies of different countries continuously giving warnings about toxic ingredients, there are also guidelines for the safety of cosmetic products. The aim of this paper is to reveal the truth of cosmetics ingredients and role of regulatory bodies in front of consumer, cosmeticians, academicians and chemists .