Balance Jan Issue 2018 - 83

Transform: B E A D

'EM AND WEEP

Bye bye
microbeads
As the UK
ban comes
into effect,
Balance
looks at
some of the
exfoliating
alternatives

utside of animal testing, few
ethical issues have troubled
the beauty world quite like
microbeads. Developed as a
cheap, non-abrasive alternative to natural
exfoliants, they have been used in everything
from skin cleansers and scrubs to shower
gels and toothpaste.
Sadly, their use has led to billions of these
tiny toxic time bombs being washed down
plugholes worldwide, passing through water
filtration systems and polluting rivers, lakes
and oceans, where they're swallowed by fish.
This allows them to enter the food chain.
Unless you check every single label of every
product, chances are you will have already
come across them.

O

BEWARE BARGAINS

LEE
KYNASTON

Although a firm
believer that
real beauty comes
from the inside,
Lee sees no
harm in giving the
outside some TLC.

The good news is that thanks to campaigners
like Greenpeace, 2018 begins with a ban on
the manufacture of microbeads in the UK.
Products already on the shelves may still have
them, though (until July) so it's worth checking
labels. Look out for words like polyethylene,
polypropylene, nylon or the initials PE, PP, PET
or PMMA. Also, be very cautious about special
offers as some retailers may want to offload
stock before the sale ban comes in.
The other good news is there are plenty of
natural alternatives to microbeads (soy-based
substitutes are already in the pipeline), even
if you have sensitive skin and might have

HOW TO BIN
THE BEADS

Discovered
you've a
product
containing
microbeads?
Add a little
water to
it and use
a paper
coffee filter
or muslin
bag to catch
them, then
dispose of
them in
your weekly
rubbish.
Far better
landfill than
the ocean

benefitted from the beads' smooth surface.
If you find crushed nuts (a natural exfoliant)
too abrasive, think about products
containing poppy seeds and oats, or check
out Odilique's award-winning exfoliators;
spherical jojoba beads found in products like
Liz Earle's Gentle Face Exfoliator, or organic
rice powder (both Neal's Yard Remedies'
men's and women's scrubs use these).

GET READY
You might also want to switch to exfoliation
methods that don't use any particles at all
like sponges, cleansing clothes or liquid
exfoliants such as REN's Glycol Lactic
Radiance Renewal Mask which use Alpha
Hydroxy Acids instead.
The bottom line is that the ban on
microbeads isn't a ban on looking good,
it's just a ban on an ingredient that has
proved to be one of the beauty industry's
biggest and most costly mistakes. B

S IX O F THE BEAD L E SS BE ST

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MAIN IMAGE: GETTY IMAGES

Sensitive?

A gentle
solution

❷
❸

❺
January 2018 BA LA N CE

1. NYR Men Exfoliating
Face Scrub, £15
(nealsyardremedies.com)
2.Odylique Honey &
Oat Cleansing Bar,
£6.50 (odylique.co.uk)
3.Balanceme Cleanse
and Smooth Face
Balm, £20
(balanceme.co.uk)

4.Liz Earle Gentle
Face Exfoliator £16.50
(uk.lizearle.com)
5. Weleda Salt
Toothpaste, £4.75
(weleda.co.uk)
6. Glycol Lactic
Radiance Renewal
Mask, £34
(renskincare.com)

83
http://www.nealsyardremedies.com http://uk.lizearle.com http://odylique.co.uk http://weleda.co.uk http://balanceme.co.uk http://www.renskincare.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Balance Jan Issue 2018
