Micro-beads and plastics in skincare products has been a hot topic of late, with a push from consumers for businesses to phase out the use of these plastics in products like body scrubs and facial exfoliants. The Australian Government has issued a voluntary phase-out of products containing micro-beads by the end of 2018.
So, what are micro-beads and what kind of damage can they do to the environment? Micro-beads are tiny pieces of plastic (about the size of a grain of sand) used in some beauty and skincare products such as exfoliants. Large quantities of micro-beads have been found in water ways across Australia, and these can then be found inside fish. The micro-beads can attract toxic substances and won’t break down over time.
As an example of how common these microbeads are, in a study of 100 particles taken from Sydney Harbour, 60 of these were micro plastics! Vasse Virgin products do not contain micro-beads, and they never have! We use the following ingredients in our scrubs:
Sugar
Found in our Sweet Feet Scrub, and Hinterland Hand Scrubs
We use raw sugar in our Sweet Feet Scrub, which is the coarsest of all of our scrubs. We recommend to use this one on your feet, and knees and elbows if they are particularly dry.
White sugar is used in our Hinterland scrubs, which provides a finer exfoliants and is great for smoothing your hands (or the rest of your body!).
Bamboo Fibre
Found in our Hinterland Scrubs
A very fine exfoliant, this is great to polish the skin and gives a youthful glow. Our Hinterland hand scrubs are great for normal to dry skin and leaves a luxurious oil on your skin to protect and moisturise.
Ground Pumice and Ground Walnut Shells
Found in our Chamomile & Lavender Body Polish and Rose Geranium Hand Scrub
Pumice stones (volcanic rock) and walnut shells are finely ground to make these natural exfoliants. Because they are so fine, they are great to use on the hands and feet and leave your skin silky smooth. These scrubs are perfect to use all over your body and are soap-based so they cleanse your skin as well. Use with plenty of water to create a rich lather, they can also be used on your face once a week (just avoid the eye area).
Dead Sea Salts
Found in our Lemon Myrtle Body Scrub
We import dead sea salts to use in this scrub, which can also double as a bath soak. Dead sea salts contain many minerals that are great for your skin, and are perfect to soak in if you have aching muscles! The oils in this scrub leave your skin moisturised and glowing. Suitable for all skin types, just avoid using this one on your face.
