Guest Appearance on The Proof podcast with Simon Hill

Lab Muffin The Proof Simon Hill

I recently chatted all things skincare with Simon Hill on his podcast The Proof for about three and a half hours. You can listen to the first part on sunscreen here and the second part on skincare, clean beauty, haircare… basically everything else – here. The Proof is a great listen if you’re looking for deep dives on pretty much …

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US Sunscreens Aren’t Safe in the EU? The Science

US Sunscreens Aren’t Safe in the EU?

There’s been a lot of fearmongering about chemical sunscreens. There were scary-sounding new stories – sunscreen absorbing into blood, killing coral reefs, zinc oxide being toxic, benzene in sunscreens… Related Post: Top 7 Sunscreen and SPF Myths I’ve covered most of these before, and they’re largely just the media taking things out of context and sensationalising them, partly for views, …

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You don’t need to freak out about benzene in dry shampoo

dry shampoo

There’s been another beauty product recall because of benzene. This time it’s dry shampoos produced by Unilever, including products from; Dove TRESemmé TIGI  Suave I’ve talked about benzene contamination in products before, specifically sunscreen. It’s a very similar situation this time. The key points: Benzene is not intentionally added to products. Rather, it’s a trace contaminant that’s accidentally found its …

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High School Science Investigations Involving Cosmetics

laboratory equipment

Over the years I’ve gotten a lot of questions from students and teachers about investigations and demonstrations related to cosmetics that could be done in class or for independent research projects, with limited equipment access. Here are some chemistry-heavy suggestions that might be helpful. Saponification, soaps, detergents Different oils used for saponification have different fatty acid profiles – how does …

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Do I Need a Special Cleanser to Remove Sunscreen?

Do I Need a Special Cleanser to Remove Sunscreen?

Here’s a myth I’ve been seeing around skincare communities: that you have to use a special cleanser to remove water-resistant sunscreen. For example: “Keep in mind that most of these sunscreen actives are also oil-soluble (only dissolves in oil, not water), which gives sunscreens their water-proof and sweat-proof properties. Therefore, in order to completely remove sunscreen, you have to use …

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SPF Boosters: Hidden chemical sunscreens in “mineral sunscreens”

other active SPF boosters 4

There’s a sort of industry secret with mineral sunscreens: a lot of them contain unregulated chemical sunscreens. Which isn’t always a big problem… but it also kind of is. Today we’re talking about inactive ingredients in sunscreens that aren’t really inactive. The video is here, keep scrolling for the text version…. SPF boosters It’s not that easy to make a sunscreen. It …

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The Science of Hair Products: Shampoo and Conditioner

Sulfates, fatty alcohols, silicones, preservatives… what are they doing in your shampoo and conditioner, and do you need to avoid them? Today’s post is a deep dive into some of the key ingredients in haircare products. The video version is here if you prefer that format! Note: This post is based on a video sponsored by The Ordinary, but this …

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The Science of Laser Skin Treatments and Picosure Review

laser picosure treatment

This video was sponsored by Cynosure, although this post was not. Lasers! You can use them to cut things, you can use them to point at words, and you can use them to treat about a million different skin-related things. These are just the ones I found on the AAD website: Birthmarks, melasma, hyperpigmentation, freckles, acne, rosacea, psoriasis, wrinkles, fine …

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