Spinoff: What makes a product 'natural'??

[JustKiya]

There's another thread about using all 'natural' products, and that got me to thinking......

What defines a natural product, vs an unnatural one? I started this thinking that natural stuff would be most homemade/handmade....but then realized that I consider Oyin, Qhemet, Anita Grant, and AfroDetangler all - natural, really.

Does natural mean it's organic? Sold at the health food store? Are Silk Amino Acids 'natural'? Is Lactic Acid 'natural'? Cuz I can make homemade items with those ingredients as well.

I don't know. I'm expressing some PJ'ness/product ideas at LotionCrafter, and I'm curious as to what ya'll think a 'natural' product is.....

 

[brownsugarflyygirl]

To me natural is an ingredient that is created or extracted from nature and not created in a lab.

Organic is different than natural because organic ingredients are grown a different way without the use of certain chemicals etc. in the soil.

I think that most oils are "natural" because they are pressed or extracted from a seed or another naturally occuring substance.

I think that for some products the ingredient that "keeps" the product can make or break it from being fully natural. For example, much to my chagrin Elucence uses parabens but Burt's Bees uses grapefruit seed extract.

I think its kinda subjective and you have to create your own standards. For my personal hair regimen, my standards are kinda low and not as strict...but my hair is happy so I dont trip.

 

[JustKiya]

Girl, you might wanna check out grapefruit seed extract, it's not NEARLY as 'natural' as most companies want you to believe....

And I'm not sweating sticking to any standards - we all make the compromises we feel are best for our hair, right? I'm just curious (lords, but that's gonna be the downfall of me) to hear what other ladies think....

 

[brownsugarflyygirl]

Girl, you might wanna check out grapefruit seed extract, it's not NEARLY as 'natural' as most companies want you to believe....

And I'm not sweating sticking to any standards - we all make the compromises we feel are best for our hair, right? I'm just curious (lords, but that's gonna be the downfall of me) to hear what other ladies think....

***Closing my ears, I hear no evil***

Nah just kidding....you are probably right. I realized that as hard as I try....my regimen and life will never be completely natural and organic...not living in this nation anyways So Im not surpised at all about the GSE.... I just say...hey at least Im closer than I would be if my all my products had ingredients with names like ajkwoeroeincaociaeliu. I feel better at least being able to pronounce them.....that should be the litmus test....if you can pronounce the ingredient name on the first try and your not a chemistry major, then its probably natural

 

[JustKiya]

hey at least Im closer than I would be if my all my products had ingredients with names like ajkwoeroeincaociaeliu. I feel better at least being able to pronounce them.....that should be the litmus test....if you can pronounce the ingredient name on the first try and your not a chemistry major, then its probably natural

It's sad, and frustrating sometimes, ain't it? But yeah, that's a nice simple definition - it's more LIKELY to be natural if it's under 8 syallables.....

 

[Neith]

I say a product is truly natural when there are absolutely no man made chemicals in it. Organic products are natural, but use mostly or all organic ingredients.

Most "natural" products still have man made preservatives, sls and other things.

The most natural, organic line I've run across is aubrey organics.

If you're just going natural for hair health, I guess using a natural line that still has some non harmful man made chemical additives is fine. I'd ony make a big deal about whether something is truly 100% natural or organic if you are making a strict lifestyle change.