Fragrance is an ingredient in so many cosmetics and skincare products. Unfortunately, studies prove that fragrance can irritate the skin. Chemicals in fragrance have been shown to cause contact dermatitis, headaches, and to aggravate asthma. Sometimes it's not apparent when fragrance is aggravating our skin. It can be sneaky and cause harm when used for many years. At Sole Toscana, we recommend that you choose products without chemically-manufactured fragrance.
Fragrance, as defined by the FDA, is a blend of chemicals that give skincare, perfumes, and other beauty products a distinct scent. On the ingredient labels, this ingredient appears as "perfume, parfum, fragrance, essential oil blend or aroma." Fragrance is never a single ingredient, but a blend of potentially harmful chemicals. If you've experienced irritation from scented products, it might be because of this.
The FDA allows several fragrance-forming components to be classified under the term "fragrance"— how shocking! And that's not all. The International Fragrance Association (IFRA) lists about 3,059 materials that constitute fragrance compounds. According to scientific studies, some of these ingredients cause severe health issues like reproductive system toxicity, cancers, allergies, and more.
If you've been wondering why your skin reacts negatively to certain skincare products, foundations, hairsprays or laundry detergents, fragrance compounds might be the cause. The irritation is even worse for people with conditions like eczema or skin allergies.
What Should You Do?
Familiarizing yourself with the ingredients on your skincare, haircare, and cosmetic products is a great place to start. If the scent in these products isn't a concoction of harmful chemicals, the brands will list where the fragrance comes from in brackets. Natural fragrance comes from products like essential oils. You'll experience natural fragrance in some of our Sole Toscana products. It comes directly from the ingredients grown on our organic farms in Italy.
Caution: Some crafty companies use chemicals to hide scents and mark their products as fragrance-free. Know that the term "fragrance" is a broad term which can mean a mixture of numerous chemical ingredients. If the source of fragrance on a product isn't indicated, that's likely the scenario.
If you love pleasant scents, we recommend that you look for brands that scent their skincare products with essential oils. These don't disturb the skin, but rather provide incredible benefits. You could also decide to live a fragrance-free, natural lifestyle using nourishing products from brands that are transparent and won't irritate your skin.
With love,
The Sole Toscana Skincare Team
