The Most Trusted Ingredient Standard
You know it and we know it: you’ve been settling for far too long. You deserve so much more than beauty products that can harm you. Even “non-toxic” is not enough. You deserve the healthiest, most luxurious beauty that’s good for you and good for the planet. And it is our mission to deliver this to you, one Hero product at a time.
Think of us as a trusted friend wearing an invisible cape. We’re first on the scene to help guide you to safety.
Download our free pocket guide
Our easy to print and fold guide will keep ingredient intelligence within reach whenever you shop. Or, bookmark this page to quick reference the ingredient intel below!
It Begins With Integrity
We go over and above when vetting each product to ensure that their ingredients never list:
Ingredients banned in United States (a mere 11 individual chemicals)
Ingredients banned in the European Union (an admirable 1,328 chemicals)
Ingredients banned in Canada (over 500 chemicals)
Ingredients banned in Japan (over 100 chemicals)
We Go Above and Beyond
We keep a lookout for these harmful ingredients in products we carry:
SNEAKY ETHOXYLATED INGREDIENTS
which would put them at risk for contamination with 1,4 Dioxane, a known carcinogen. This includes phenoxyethanol and polyethylene glycols (listed as PEG’s for short on ingredient lists).
PARABENS
Since they aren’t banned for use in cosmetics the U.S., EU, Canada or Japan, parabens are still commonly used as an inexpensive preservative system. While preservatives are important for some products, there are much safer, better researched effective preservative systems.
SYNTHETIC FRAGRANCES
In order to avoid the fragrance loophole, we don’t work with products that list fragrance as an ingredient without disclosing each individual component of that fragrance.
PRODUCTS TESTED ON ANIMALS
Each brand we work with certifies that their products aren’t tested on animals.
OXYBENZONE AND OCTINOXATE
While these two specific chemical sunscreens are being banned around the world for their effect on reefs, there are other chemical sunscreens cropping up all the time. Until they are thoroughly studied, we rely on non-nano zinc as the only physical sun protection ingredient we trust.
INGREDIENTS THAT AREN’T BIODEGRADABLE
We don’t allow silicones, petroleum-based ingredients and those that aren’t readily biodegradable. Ingredients should be safe to wash away without polluting waterways.
Discover Healthy Ingredients
Discover an abundance of healthy ingredients that nourish, renew and help skin look its healthiest from the outside in. Just like whole foods, these ingredients work their magic holistically while also offering up their special talents to help you achieve the skin benefits you need. Our Pocket Guide lists our favorite ingredients for anti-aging, brightening, calming, clearing, exfoliating and nourishing skin. At Beauty Heroes we affectionately refer to them as ‘Superpower Ingredients’.
ANTI-AGING
Acai Fruit Oil
Astaxanthin
Bakuchiol
Buriti Fruit Oil
Camellia Seed Oil
Carrot Seed
Cranberry Seed Oil
Green Tea Extract
Hibiscus
Jasmine
Kakadu Plum
Lupin SEed
Moth Bean
Niacinamide
Peptides
Plum Seed Oil
Pomegranate Seed Oil
Raspberry Seed Oil
Reishi Mushroom Extract
Rosehip Seed Oil
Vitamin C
BRIGHTENING
Bilberry
Cacao
Camu Camu
Coffee Extract
Gotu Kola
Licorice Root
Potato Flour
Plum Seed Oil
Saffron
CALMING
Arnica
Algae/Kelp
Beta Glucans
Blue Tansy
Calendula
Cannibidoil or CBD
Comfrey
Licorice
Marshmallow
Turmeric
Yarrow
CLEARING
Activated Charcoal
Black Cumin Seed Oil
Borage Seed Oil
Copaiba
Helichrysum
Honey
Sandalwood
Tamanu Oil
Turmeric
EXFOLIATING
Apple Cider Vinegar
Aspen Bark
Honey
Papaya
Pineapple
Pumpkin
Sugar Cane
White Willow Bark
Witch Hazel
NOURISHING
Aloe Vera
Argan Oil
Avocado Oil
Babassu Oil
Borage Seed Oil
Cloudberry Seed Oil
Coconut Oil
Hyaluronic Acid
Jojoba Seed Oil
Kukui Oil
Macadamia Nut Oil
Mango Seed Butter
Moringa Seed Oil
Olive Oil
Prickly Pear Seed Oil
Rose Oil
Sea Buckthorn Oil
Squalane
Sunflower Seed Oil
Ximenia
Avoid Harmful Ingredients
We know it, and studies prove it: these ingredients are bad for your skin, your health and even the environment. (Because what we put on our skin and ingest into our bodies eventually enters our waterways.) Many of these potentially toxic substances are banned in other countries, but the FDA does not regulate cosmetic ingredients. That’s where we come in. We’ve done the research for you. We list the most usual suspects and some sneaky toxins that hide out in your beauty products, leading to cancer, hormone disruption, immune-toxicity, neuro-toxicity, and the ones that are restricted in other countries, but not the US (SMH).
BHA/BUTYLATED HYDROXYANISOLE
BHT/BUTYLATED HYDROXYTOLUENE
CETEARETH GLYCOL
DIAZOLIDINYL UREA
DIBUTYL PHTHALATE
Restricted in: EU
DMDM HYDANTOIN
Restricted in: Japan
EDTA
Calcium Disodium EDTA
Tetrasodium EDTA
Trisodium EDTA
Restricted in: EU
EMULSIFYING WAX NF
ETHANOLAMINES
DEA/TEA/MEA/ETA
Monoethanolamine
Diethanolamine
Triethanolamine
Ethanolamine
HYDROQUINONE
Restricted in: Canada, EU, Japan
IMIDAZOLIDINYL UREA
METHYISOTHIAZOLINONE OR
METHOCHLOROISOTHIAZOLINONE
Restricted in: Canada, Japan
MINERAL OIL
OXYBENZONE
(found in sunscreen)
Restricted in: Japan
PARABEN
(Methyl-, Propyl-, Butyl-, Ethyl-Paraben)
PEG/POLYETHYLENE GLYCOL
There are more than 900 different “PEG-S” with varying concerns.
PHENOXYETHANOL
Restricted in: Japan
POLYSORBATE -20, -40, -60, -80
QUATERNIUM-15
RESORCINOL
Restricted in: Canada, EU, Japan
SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE
Birth Defects, Hormone Disruption, Immune-Toxicity, Neuro-Toxicity
TALC
Restricted in: Canada, EU
TOLUENE
Restricted in: EU
TRICLOSAN
Restricted in: Canada, Japan
TREITHANOLAMINE
Be On The Lookout For
The Fragrance Loophole, AKA Parfum
Unless each individual component is specifically listed after them, the terms ‘Fragrance’ and ‘Parfum’ within an ingredient list can mask any combination of chemicals, including any variety of harmful ingredients. It’s called the fragrance loophole because ‘fragrance’ is protected as a proprietary ingredient. Buyer beware.
Silicones + Petroleum Based Ingredients
Petroleum-based and silicone ingredients are invisible, and yet harmful to environment because they are not biodegradable. Look out for common silicones like dimethicone, cyclopentasiloxane, dimethylsilanediol and petroleum based ingredients like paraffin wax, mineral oil, nylon, and anything with PEG (polyethylene glycol), to name only a few.
Sneaky Ethoxylated Ingredients
While several ehtoxylated ingredients made our list of harmful ingredients, this entire class of ingredients that go through the chemical process of ethoxylation may leave them contaminated with 1,4 Dioxane, a known carcinogen. Learn more about the common ethoxylated ingredients on our blog.
Reef Harming Chemical Sunscreen
While oxybenzone and octinoxate are being banned in U.S. States and countries around the world for the harmful effect on reefs, there are other chemical sunscreens cropping up all the time. Until these new chemicals are thoroughly studied, we rely on non-nano zinc as the only UV filter we trust.
Our gift to you:
Our free ingredient
Pocket Guide
If you have a question about our ingredient standard, don’t hesitate to ask us at hero@beauty-heroes.com
DOWNLOAD OUR FREE POCKET GUIDE
This printable version is easy to fold so you can keep ingredient intelligence within reach whenever you shop!
