4 Ingredients to Avoid in a Facial Wash

The skin on your face is the thinnest skin on your body. In fact, the thinnest skin you have, which is found around your eyes, is 80 times thinner than the thickest skin on your body (hint: you stand on it). Yet your face gets exposed to more skincare and cosmetic products than any other part of the body. Washes, moisturisers, toners, peels, lipstick, foundation, blush and eyeshadow, the list is endless. So, it’s not surprising that skin allergies often appear first on the face. 

On top of that, if you’re pregnant, your skin reacts even more to outside irritants. And as we age, our skin gets thinner, and that shows up first, again in facial skin (hello crow’s feet!). 

So sensitive facial skin shouldn’t be a surprise - after all it goes through, it’s understandable that your face needs more care and pampering than anywhere else! One of the most crucial elements of every skincare regimen is your facial wash. Yet many washes actually contain ingredients that aggravate and sensitise facial skin. 

Here are four ingredients to avoid in your facial wash if you have sensitive skin - 

  1. Fragrance : the number 1 skin allergy trigger. Not surprising as the average fragrance is a combination of at least 100 chemicals.
  2. Essential oils : one of the most common skin sensitisers in natural skincare. But they’re often used in overly high amounts in skincare and, on sensitive facial skin, that can be a potent aggravator.
  3. Sulphates and betaines : the most commonly used cleansing ingredients in facial washes are also detergent ingredients. Excellent at stripping oil from surfaces, it’s obvious why you don’t want them in your facial wash.
  4. AHAs (a.k.a. alpha hydroxy acids) & BHAs (a.k.a. beta hydroxy acids) such as glycolic acid, lactic acid and salicylic acid : these acids literally break down the skin and just a few weeks of use makes the skin more sensitive not just to other allergens but UV light as well!  

Looking for a new facial wash? Our Mother’s All-Natural Castile Wash is handcrafted with only four ingredients, no fragrances, fillers or additives. This gentle, soothing creamy liquid wash has just the right blend of natural ingredients to wash away grime and germs whilst nourishing sensitive facial skin.

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