2010 Archives: Beauty Crossovers
We’ve all heard about the health and beauty connection, but never before have we seen as much leap-frogging between the two industries—probably because this market is expected to reach $6 billion in 2010, according to a recent study on Research and Markets. Why the crossover? Think on this: The study cited more than half of European and U.S. consumers said that they “consciously acted upon the link between diet and appearance,” yet 78% of them believed “claims by cosmetic and toiletries companies are often exaggerated.” What’s a beauty product developer to do? Perhaps take a look at some tried-and-true health and lifestyle trends and think about incorporating them into a product or two.
Take magnets. For years, magnets have been called a miracle treatment alleviate pain—the theory being that they draw blood to the affected area, increasing the delivery of oxygen and nutrients. The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine reports that magnetized rings were used to treat arthritis as far back as ancient Greece (and that scientists have never been able to prove their efficacy in terms of pain management, but that’s another story). But it took a few more centuries to translate this concept into Ilike’s certified organic Magnetic Skin Therapy Mask, which blends herbal pulps of Elderflower and locust flower with a proprietary magnetic powder to create a powerful gel that increases blood flow to the skin, thus increasing circulation, detoxification and cell metabolism. Now that’s miraculous.
We’ve written about probiotics in the past as good bacteria that works in your gut to boost immunities and ward off bad bacteria like salmonella. But it wasn’t until we discovered Nude Advanced Probiotic Skincare that we thought about putting probiotics on our bodies, rather than in them. Carbon-neutral Nude Skincare claims that the probiotics in its paraben-, sulphate-, phthalate-, GMO- and mineral oil-free line deliver active proteins and amino acids directly into the skin to rebalance and strengthen its natural protective barrier against environmental aggressors. Is there nothing probiotics can’t do?
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Forget about Wonder Bread’s storied history: White bread is for wimps. Today’s breads are baked with as many grains as possible as consumers realized that the refined-grain breads, pastas and cereals of yesteryear missed out on crucial fiber, vitamins and minerals. Now skincare is hopping on the bandwagon with Origins’ Multi-Grain Makeup SPF 14, a mineral foundation that’s fortified with organic oatmeal to soothe, moisturize and protect dry skin, as well as absorb excess oil and dirt, plus rice flour to clarify and—don’t forget the berries!—antioxidant-rich goji berries to protect the skin against aging. Yum.
On the other side of the spectrum are gluten-free products, which grew 20% in 2007 to a nearly $1.5 billion market thanks to diagnosis (or self-diagnosis) of the three million people in this country who have (or think they have) celiac disease, in which even small amounts of gluten can cause an inflammatory reaction in patients, according to the National Institutes of Health. For those who want to go completely gluten-free from head to toe, there are a handful of products claiming said status, among them the fabulous and oh-so-eco-friendly Hamadi Organics line of hair care products.
(And since we’re on the gluten-free tip, Pamela’s ridiculously delish baking mixes will leave you wondering why you ever baked with wheat in the first place, and now they’re debuting ready-to-eat cakes. Yum.)
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Finally, you can’t talk to a sustainabully without some erudite mention of “cradle-to-cradle,” the concept pioneered by William McDonough and Michael Braungart that challenges manufacturers to make products in a way that they can perpetually be reused or repurposed, therefore creating new “cradles” each time we find a new use. But Aveda’s the first to achieve C2C (that’s erudite for cradle-to-cradle) certification for beauty products like their must-have Green Science Firming Face Cream, which is infused with organic, sustainably harvested argan oil and eschews any chemical ingredients.
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Gold certification is based on product assessment in the context of Aveda’s commitment to renewable energy, recyclable packaging and offsetting to create a positive environmental footprint—all while quintupling its sales in the past 10 years.
Cradle that.
