I know Argan Oil is not something new to the beauty industry, however, it’s an oil that I’ve been waiting to discover and interpret myself for some time now (can you believe I haven’t tried it yet??)
So just the other weekend, my cousin and I went shopping in multiple stores and low and behold, which skin care ingredient kept staring us in the face??
Yes, you guessed it, Argan Oil.
The Argan Oil products we came across weren’t pure Argan Oil alone, they were products like shampoos, conditioners, hair treatments containing Argan Oil. Argan Oil is most definitely, still a hot, trending skin care ingredient. It was in so many of the products we saw.
Here’s where I became annoyed. You all know I like to read ingredient labels. When I read the labels off the various Argan Oil products, I found they contained a lot more than just Argan Oil. I couldn’t even call it the star ingredient in the product.
When I buy an Argan Oil product, I want Argan Oil to be the star of the show. Am I right? Plus, I don’t want a whole lotta other stuff in it.
After reading about 10 different labels, I honestly felt I should just buy pure Argan Oil. This way I feel better knowing the Argan Oil was solely Argan Oil and not adulterated by the likes of synthetic chemicals or irritating ingredients.
Just to show you an example, I found a body oil with the following ingredients.
Paraffinum Liquidum (mineral oil), Isopropyl Myristate, Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil (Argan), Fragrance, Salix Alba Bark (Bamboo), Oryza Sativa Bran Oil (Rice), Saccharum Officinarum Extract (Sugar Cane), PCA, Ceramide 3, BHT, Yellow 11 (Cl 47000), Red 17 (Cl 26100)
Do you see how the first ingredient is mineral oil? This means mineral oil is the most concentrated ingredient in the product compared to the other ingredients following it.
Do I really want to pay for a product containing mostly mineral oil plus fragrance, preservative and color? Hmmmm, No thank you.
How about this facial cream ingredient list?
Water/ Eau, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Cetyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Propylene Glycol, Glyceryl Stearate SE, Triethanolamine, Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil, Betual Alba Bark Extract, Tocopheryl Acetate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Oil, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Prunus Armeniaca )Apricot) Kernel Oil, Xanthan Gum, BHT, Trisodium EDTA, Imidazolidinyl Urea, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Parfum/Fragrance.
I like that the product contains some botanical extracts and oils in the mix, but I don’t prefer the synthetic chemicals known to be irritating or associated with contact allergies such as propylene glycol, bht, imidazolidinyl urea, methylparaben, propylparaben and fragrance. Unfortunately, because it is a cream, preservatives are needed to prevent organisms from growing as it does contain water (I think I’ll skip this one)..
Here’s another lotion I found with ingredients as follows:
Aqua (water), mineral oil, isopropyl myristate, propylene glycol, petrolatum, stearic acid, glyceryl stearate, cetyl alcohol, salix alba (willow) bark extract, bambusa vulgaris (bamboo) extract, oryza sativa (rice bran) oil, saccharum officinarum (sugar cane) extract, PCA, argania spinosa (argan) oil, ceramide 3, parfum, DMDM hydantoin, diazolidinyl urea, iodopropynyl butylcarbamate, triethanolamine, xanthan gum, butylene glycol, mica, yellow 6.
So again, the 1st ingredient listed after water, is mineral oil. Argan Oil is the 14th ingredient listed. So again, I ask myself, Do I really want to pay for a product containing mainly water, mineral oil, petrolatum with the addition of parfum and preservatives. I’m definitely thinking, not.
After checking out some more Argan Oil hair products, I became turned off between the strong fragrance and methylisothiazolinone, so I trekked home empty handed without any Argan Oil product. :(
As I couldn’t find an Argan Oil product with very few chemical ingredients, I decided to take my search online and purchase pure Argan Oil without anything else in it.
After searching a few days, I decided to buy a organic Argan Oil by NOW Foods. I can’t wait to experiment using it on my face, on my hair, as conditioner and treatment oil, without all the unnecessary ingredients.
As you can see, sometimes you’re getting more than just Argan Oil in Argan Oil products and sometimes, the Argan Oil isn’t even at the beginning of the ingredient list so the concentration isn’t what’s mostly found in the product composition.
What’s in your Argan Oil product??
Do you find yourself frowning at the ingredients at times and putting the container back on the shelf??
In my next post, I'll list the Argan Oils I came across in my search in case you too, want strictly Argan Oil without all the other ingredients.
cu soon skin ravers,
L