Natural Skin Care Products

Why choose Organic and Natural skin care products for your teenager?

There is plethora of information to be found on the virtues of using organic and natural skin care products. Organic products can be found everywhere these days, from your local farmer’s market to the aisles of Coles and Woolworths. 

Being health conscious and thinking about what we are putting into our bodies is essential, but it shouldn’t stop there. Next time you are buying a new personal care or skin care product take a look at the ingredients list. Apart from not being able to pronounce most of them, do you recognise any of them? Would you eat them?

If the answer is no then perhaps it’s time to embrace a more natural and organic skin care and hygiene routine for your family. That pimple wash you just bought for your teenage son, may just contain many chemicals you would never dream of putting on your own skin, let alone his.

Why is ‘natural’ important?

The skin is the largest organ of the body and is our protection against the outside world. It is remarkably strong, resilient, and self-healing. However, skin is very absorbent. When you use products such as moisturisers, cleansers, toners, deodorants, shampoos and conditioners, the ingredients within these products can, and will be absorbed into the skin. These products may ultimately affect our bodies, sometimes positively and sometimes negatively. 

This is especially true of children and adolescents. Children and adolescents are far more susceptible to the effects of chemical products and their skin can be far more sensitive. The perils of puberty bring with it many changes and challenges. Natural skincare for teenagers can at least nourish and support their skin during this difficult time.

When we choose organic for our families, most of us feel confident that the produce or products we have chosen are free of the chemicals that could potentially cause serious health problems. However when it comes to using organic skin care products, many people are hesitant.  Do organic and natural products work as well as their non-organic counterparts? Are they really worth the extra expense?

Contrary to what many leading cosmetic companies would like you to believe, organic and natural products have been used with great success in the past and present. Most of the ingredients that are included in modern organic and natural skincare products have been used for centuries. These products have been developed using natural ingredients that have been known for their extraordinary benefits for the skin. These ingredients have proven their worth and have been shown not to have any adverse side effects (individual allergies excluded), encouraging healthy and beautiful looking skin.

Most commercial chemically based personal and skin care products contain very little in the way of nutritional ingredients that can truly benefit your family’s health. Instead of helping boost the condition of your hair and skin, chemicals are used to temporarily mask any issues you may have. Chemicals can also be very harsh. Many of us with sensitive skin will know how easily irritated it can be, and products with chemicals in them often leave skin feeling dry, red and sore. Although your skin has the ability to act as a protective barrier to keep many dangerous compounds out of your body, research still concludes that many chemically based personal care and beauty products can lead to untold health consequences.

What are natural skin care ingredients?

It is not hard to find natural alternatives to all skin products. Organic skin care in Australia has grown significantly in the past decade. So whether you are targeting skin care for teen boys, adolescent odour or just want you and your family’s skin and hair to feel clean and healthy, there is a product out there for you. Natural organic skin care products are definitely kinder and gentler to skin, and will work just as effectively. Organic and natural products, which are made from flower and plant extracts, are designed to nourish. Ingredients such as Aloe Vera, Tea Tree, Witch Hazel, Camomile and Lavender are all delightfully healing, natural ingredients that will leave your family’s skin feeling smooth and nourished instead of sore and irritated, like many products that contain harmful chemicals.

So what are the effects of these natural products? They sound delicious and luscious, but have they been proven to have positive effects of skin and hygiene? Let’s have a look at just a few of the ingredients included in the 808 Dude organic skin care range.

Natural Ingredients in 808 skincare products

 Aloe Vera is a predominant ingredient in most of our products. Apart from being an excellent first aid treatment for minor burns, Aloe Vera is a wonderful moisturiser that also tones and firms the skin. It dilates the capillaries, stimulating better blood flow, encouraging healing to occur between tissue cells. It is high in Vitamin E, a powerful antioxidant that soothes the skin.

Witch Hazel is steam distilled from the bark of the witch hazel plant. It is used for its light astringent and firming properties. Witch Hazel has mild antibacterial properties making it a great choice for acne and skin problems.

Chamomile is one of the most cherished and widely used herbs. Safe, gentle and effective, chamomile has powerful anti-inflammatory properties and is commonly used to treat inflamed, irritated and sensitive skin.

Lavender is a familiar herb known for its relaxing properties. However it also has antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties making it useful for irritated and damaged skin. Lavender has cell-regenerating properties reducing scarring.

Tea Tree oil is an amazing antiseptic. The terpenes (essential oils) and other phytochemicals (plant based chemicals) in tea tree oil are powerful antiseptics and fungus killers. Tea tree oil has been proven to work as well as products that contain benzoyl peroxide for inflamed acne but with fewer side effects such as dryness, stinging and redness.

This quick synopsis of just a few of the natural ingredients included in our organic skin care products illustrated the powerful effects of these ingredients. 

Natural & Organic Skincare for the Environment

Need another reason to make the move to organic skin care products…think environment!

No discussion on the benefits of using natural and organic products can ignore the impact of chemicals on the environment.

Environmentally speaking, using natural and organic products helps support the world we live in. Skincare products that contain chemicals can have a very damaging impact on the environment.  Mainstream personal and skincare products often use petroleum-based ingredients relying on many other chemicals for their manufacture. Components like petroleum and aluminium require widespread mining, most of which occurs in some of the world's most beautiful and sensitive areas. 

Aluminium is in the most common personal care product of all – antiperspirants. However, not only is aluminium mining responsible for the destruction of natural habitat, research has indicated it may be linked to breast cancer and Alzheimer’s. Selecting an aluminium-free deodorant, such as our ‘808 Dude Teen Deodorant’, for your teenager is perhaps one of the best ways to prevent exposure to this dangerous compound. Most palm oil used in the cosmetic industry comes from areas where rainforests have been cut down to grow palm plants. The destruction of rainforests is a major contributor to climate change. 

Additionally many of the chemical components of some skincare products accumulate in our ecosystems, these chemicals are washed down our sinks. They then flow into our lakes, rivers, and eco-systems, eventually ending up in the food we eat!

When you choose to use organic products not only will you and your family reap the benefits of beautiful skin, but also can enjoy them guilt-free without harming the environment.

So, use natural skin care products for your teenager… it’s a no brainer!

808 Dude