Mineral oil has been used widely as an ingredient in skin care products, the most common one is baby oil. You may find mineral oil listed as liquid paraffin, liquid petroleum, paraffin oil, petrolatum, white oil, silicone quaternium, methyl silanol or microcrystalline. If any of the names appears on the label, it means that you are putting mineral oil onto your skin.

 

Although mineral oil can be frequently found on labels of beauty products, but very few people actually understand what it is. Mineral oil is a byproduct of petroleum refining process. Although petroleum is originated from the residue of plants and animals, mineral oil is not considered a natural product. After extensive processing and chemical refining, mineral oil is far from natural.

 

This colorless, odorless, lightweight, petroleum-based oil has an excellent solvent property. It acts as a preserving agent and a thin layer of mineral oil on the skin can help reduce moisture loss from the skin. It also allows the skin to absorb UV rays without drying. Not to mention, mineral oil also rarely causes an allergic reaction. However, applying mineral oil on your skin may bring you plenty of side effects.

 

Mineral Oil can not be metabolized

Despite the fact that mineral oil is the purest form of petroleum product, it is the greatest contaminant of our body, account for approximately 1 gram each person. Based on studies, cosmetics are believed to be one of the sources of the contamination. Once mineral oil enters into your body, it is there forever. It can affect the functionality of the liver and weaken the immune system.

 

Mineral Oil might cause cancer

The mineral oil contains harmful impurities, such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons, PAHs, which are carcinogenic. Untreated and mildly treated mineral oil is positively linked to tumor formation. Until now, there are no studies proven highly refined mineral oil will lead to cancer, but there are some concerns about the purity of the mineral oil. There is no way to figure out how purified the mineral oil is in the product. Some of the refining chemicals might still present in mineral oil, which could penetrate through the skin into the bloodstream.

 

Mineral Oil does not let your skin breathe

Mineral oil is made up of large molecules, hence it cannot be absorbed easily by the skin and it can form an impenetrable barrier over the skin. It means that mineral oil is an effective occlusive agent, it can seal the moisture inside your skin to prevent water loss. However, it also blocks skin's natural respiration process. As your skin is not able to breathe, your skin unable to carry out detox function. It affects sweating function and dead skin cells shedding critically.

 

Mineral Oil clog your pores

Due to its impermeable ability, mineral oil is also considered comedogenic. The layer mineral oil forms on the surface of your skin can clog your pores, result in over production of oil, acne, and other skin disorders.

 

Mineral Oil does nothing for your skin

There is nothing inside mineral oil that will nourish your skin. The mineral oil itself does not provide any hydration to your skin, it just sits on the surface of the skin to prevent water loss. In addition, Mineral oil does not allow your skin to absorb anything from the atmosphere, as well as other beneficial ingredients in your skin care product.

 

Mineral oil is commonly used in skin care products for one main reason, it is unbelievably cheap! As an unwanted byproduct of petroleum distillation process, petrochemical industry gets rid of it by selling tons of mineral oil at low prices in the cosmetic industry. The reason is clear, companies include mineral oil in their products so that they can make more money! You do not want to spend big bucks on a product that contain cheap mineral oil! To avoid mineral oil, take a good look at labels of products and stay away from products that contain mineral oil.

 

Having trouble finding a product without mineral oil? No worries, all of the Clinelle products are mineral oil-free, we replaced mineral oil with other beneficial ingredients to ensure you the safe skin care products! Click here for more information about Clinelle products. “Happy Skin, Happy Face”.