When there are multiple Indian cosmetic brands that boost "chemical free", "herbal" "ayurvedic" labels for their products, why should one go with seemingly chemically ridden facewash? Is it worth to invest in this facewash? let's find out.
Garnier Men series have quite few variets available that include:
- Turbobright
- Acnofight
- OilClear
What's inside?
1. Methanol : You get cool and fresh feeling after you apply this face wash. This is due to methanol. Although research shows that methanol is readily absorbed by the skin and has potential to cause damage, the small quantity of methanol should be safe to use. Unfortunately the company hasn't declared the concentration of methanol, so we are assuming it is low enough to not cause any damage.
(Safety: Moderate)
2. Glycerine : It acts as moisturizer. It is completely harmless when applied to skin. Ingestion of high doses may cause short term problem.
(Safety: Good)
3. Myristic Acid and Fatty acids : They remove oil and dirt from skin. Since it is also used as flavor enhancer in food it has no harmful effect on skin.
(Safety: Good)
4. Mineral oil : Moisturizes the skin.
(Safety: Good)
5. Fruit (peels) extract : It has antioxidant capacity hence helps in "skin deaging" It may irritate the sensetive skin.
(Safety: Good)
6. Fragrances : They did not mention any specific quantity or quality. Some people may not tolerate fragrances. To check potential allergy, apply small quantity of face wash on your hand. Wait for sometime and wash it off. If nothing happens then you are good to go with this face wash.
(Safety: Moderate)
7. Salicylic acid (In Acnofight) : It dissolves the dead skin cells and oil produced by skin gland thus prevent formation of pimples (acne)
8. Mineral clay (In OilClear) : Prevents sebum production thus prevent oily skin.
9. Charcoal powder : Activated charcoal helps in cleaning the skin pores by removing oil and dirt from it.
Additionally there are some colorants, moisturizing agents and binding agents for better texture. All of these are human skin approved.
Claims and Reality :
I. Acnofight : Company claims that it kills acne causing bacteria and reduces the oil thus prevent acne.
Evidence Based Scientific Study:
A research was conducted in the department of dermatology, west china that accessed the effect of Salicylic acid as anti-acni agent.
Methodology :
Researchers measured the sebum (fat responsible for pimples) content of skin cell after Salicylic acid (SA) application. They compare it with non-treated skin cell.
Result and conclusion:
They found that SA reduced sebum content upto 40% in SA treated skin cell. This means that Salicylic acid can prevent acne.
My opinion:
When I have time to masterbate few days continuously, I get pimples on my face. Garnier's Acnofight does remove my pimples. It is my first hand experience that Acnofight is effective in preventing acne.
II. OilClear : The mineral clay is claimed to reduce sebum and hence prevent oily skin.
Evidence Based Scientific Study:
I couldn't find any research paper that evaluated mineral clays effect as sebum reducing agent. So I am highly sksptical about this claim by the company.
My personal opinion:
The more we try to clear out oil the more oil is pumped by the skin. So instead of using oil clear chemicals we should just clean our face with normal face wash to prevent oily skin.
Company has claimed that charcoal reduce the sebum and oil, removes blackhead and pimples and helps in brightening the skin.
Evidence Based Scientific Study:
Nelson Sanchez and colleagues at University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, USA published a review of literature in which they concluded that there is no evidence that charcoal has any substantial benifit in cosmetic products.
My opinion:
Although company has falsely claimed a lot of unrealistic benifits, I find Turbobright to be an average face wash product. It contains some solid granuals (particles) that may help in exfoliating the skin hence helps in cleansing the facial skin.
My verdict :
Considering the fact that none of these face washes contain any potential carcinogenic or highly toxic compounds you do not need to worry about any harmful effect. I would say that Acnofight would be highly suited for individuals with mild acne problem. OilClear and TurboBright can also be used but put your expectations on check as most of the claim by the company has no scientific evidence.
Sources:
[1] Lu J, Cong T, Wen X, Li X, Du D, He G, Jiang X. Salicylic acid treats acne vulgaris by suppressing AMPK/SREBP1 pathway in sebocytes. Exp Dermatol. 2019 Jul;28(7):786-794. doi: 10.1111/exd.13934. Epub 2019 May 15. PMID: 30972839.
[2] N. Sanchez, R. Fayne, B. Burroway, et al., Charcoal: An Ancient Material with a New Face, Clinics in Dermatology(2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clindermatol.2019.07.025
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