I was talking to a friend the other day who has the most beautiful skin. She buys various skincare products from me, but made it clear that she likes her Cetaphil to cleanse with and was going to stick with that, thank you very much. This conversation prompted me to run into my local drug store to revisit Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser and take a look at the ingredient list. Maybe my friend was on to something.
I used Cetaphil for years, but it’s been awhile. It’s the #1 recommended cleanser by dermatologists and pediatricians. In fact, that’s how I originally started using the product – a doctor suggested it as a mild cleanser for my sensitive skin.
Well ……… here are the ingredients: water, cetyl alcohol, propylene glycol, sodium lauryl sulfate, stearyl alcohol, methylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben.
- cetyl alcohol – a fatty alcohol used as a skin-softening ingredient – often a skin and eye irritant
- propylene glycol – a preservative, a derivitive of mineral oil which is a petrochemical – shown to aggravate skin conditions such as eczema
- sodium lauryl sulfate – a detergent known to be highly irritating – considered to be a potential cause of cancer
- stearyl alcohol – often comes from sperm whales – but rather benign
- parabens – not one, not two, but three of them in this product – parabens are synthetic preservatives that can disrupt the endocrine system (that’s our hormones) and are linked to breast and ovarian cancer – also an environmental contaminant
Other disturbing information I discovered is that Cetaphil is all over the internet as a treatment for lice. But the most off-putting news is that pediatricians recommend this cleanser for babies!!
My advice is to seek out safe alternatives.
Check my website for non-toxic cleansing products for all skin types.
To your health and beauty!
-Sheila