Ever wondered how to find acne causing ingredients? At the beginning of each new year, we complete a thorough review of acne-safe products we recommend to our clients. It is important to know that manufacturers of foods, cosmetics, vitamins and supplements often change their formulas without us ever knowing it.
We are in the process of reviewing our product recommendations now, and it prompted me to share what we are finding.
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Do not trust everything you read on the Internet.
In researching pre-natal vitamins, I found that the labels for the same product varied among online retailers. Vitafusion Prenatal Gummies has been on our list for several years, but I noticed that the nutritional label on Amazon was different from another online retailer for the same product.
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Go to the manufacturer’s website.
I went straight to the Vitafusion website to review the label provided. It confirmed with the Amazon label. Typically, the manufacturer’s website should be the most current and up-to-date information, but don’t trust that alone.
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Review the physical label.
Prior to opening the bottle, review the physical label on the product before you use it. Even the manufacturers of products may not update their website frequently to update new formulas.
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Double-check a product each time you purchase it.
We used to recommend Ripple pea protein milk as a delicious alternative to milk. However, they have now begun to fortify the pea protein milk with Vitamin B12. One of our clients alerted me to this just recently.
In checking out Ripple’s website, it appears that most of their other “dairy-free” products are safe to use, as they aren’t fortifying them with B12.
This may sound like a lot of work when checking out products, but it is well worth it, and you are well worth it.
The same is true when it comes to cosmetic ingredients. They change their formulas, and if they decide to add shea butter, coconut oil or some other pore-clogging ingredient to your favorite foundation, it’s going to wreak havoc on your skin.
We used to maintain a list of acne-safe makeup, and we discontinued maintaining it once we brought in our own line of acne-safe makeup. If you need a recommendation, we always have a few for you, but we preface that with “check it out for yourself” to verify they haven’t changed the formula.
PreNatal Vitamins – We have yet to find a pre-natal that doesn’t contain iodine, biotin and B12. The best choices we have found are Mother’s Select which contains a low dose of B12 and iodide and no biotin. Vitafusion contains low doses of B12 and biotin and a higher amount of iodine. (B12 and Biotin with less than 100mg and Iodide under 150mg are generally safe.)
Also note that the Mother’s Select label says that it contains soy. This would not be enough soy to cause any problems for your skin.
The bottom line about all of this is that it is up to you to be a conscious consumer and to take responsibility for what you are putting into your body and onto your skin. With a little time and intention you too will become an expert and find those acne causing ingredients.
We reserve our recommended list of acne-safe products for our clients. If you would like access to the list plus a whole lot more, click the link below to book your initial consultation and treatment.