What Are Parabens? And, Why They Don't Belong in Your Beauty Products

 You probably have heard of a little thing called parabens. It’s a red-hot topic in the world of beauty and hair care right now. But what are parabens? Are parabens bad? And why all the fuss? At Love Beauty and Planet, we set out to create a brand that we could feel good about. Hair and beauty products that are kind to us, and kind to the world around us.

Choosing naturally derived ingredients carefully is one of the small acts of love we carry out daily to help improve the happiness of our beautiful planet. So, read on to discover where we stand on the ‘are parabens safe?’ debate, why we choose to create paraben-free products and whether you should steer clear of the p-word too.

What are parabens?

If you want to give your product a long shelf life and keep it free from bacteria, yeast and mold, then you add parabens – or at least, many health and beauty brands do. This common preservative is a collective name for a family of ingredients used in everything from shower gel to shampoo.
On your personal care bottle labels, you are quite likely to find the not-so-lovingly named butylparaben, methylparaben and propylparaben. But exactly what are parabens? Despite the bad press, many parabens that crop up in some products can actually be found in fruit and veg (including blueberries, cherries and cucumbers).

Got that. so, are parabens safe?

Without going too sciency on you, some media reports say parabens may mess with your hormone balance. However, this is disputed by scientists and their use in personal care products is still supported by major health bodies including the US Food and Drug Administration. So, are parabens safe? It would seem the official line is, yes. Yet, the debate goes on.

What does paraben-free mean?

Paraben-free means our formulas are derived without these peservatives typically found and put in beauty products that are used to extend their shelf life.
Here at Love Beauty and Planet we are proud to champion small acts of love that do good for you – and the planet around you. That’s why a lot of our products are free from lots of things that don’t make us feel truly happy.
You’ll find most of our products come with a cruelty-free, dye-free, silicone-free and paraben-free product guarantee. In fact, we are the cheerleaders for 100% guilt-free beauty. We focus on cherry picking the very best ingredients to offer, like shea butter or coconut water.
Happily, there are plenty of lovely alternative preservatives that can be found in paraben-free products like ours. So, if you choose to ditch the parabens from your daily routine, then why not show the world some love and spend a bit of time exploring one of our many ranges of deliciously tempting, paraben-free products?