A. Recent studies by reputable scientists have found evidence of high concentrations of parabens in breast cancer tumors. Also, parabens have demonstrated an ability to mimic estrogen, a hormone known to play a role in the development of breast cancer. While the USA FDA has not seen fit to ban the use of parabens in cosmetics and other personal care products (such as shampoos), we do not believe that it is worth the risk to use parabens when there are safe alternatives available.
Q. What are the names of the common parabens used in personal
care products?
A. Methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben, and isobutylparaben.
Q. I have read that parabens are very effective preservatives for skin care products. How can you justify not using them?
A. It is true that parabens are very effective and very cheap. But VOURAY SKIN CARE products do not need them for two fundamental reasons:
First, unlike the large cosmetic companies, we do not mass produce our products. While companies that do mass produce often get discounted pricing, large quantities of their products are then stored in warehouses and in department store inventories for considerable periods of time. It can be up to a year before they make it into the hands of the consumer, so it is necessary for large companies to include preservatives in their products to keep them from deteriorating while in storage awaiting purchase. VOURAY skin care products are produced in small batches, as they are ordered by customers. With freshly made product, there is little need to add the preservatives that would be needed for long term storage.
Second, our products contain a high percentage of natural preservatives such as antioxidants and vitamins, which serve a dual purpose: (a) to protect your skin cells against oxidative stress from free radicals (while supporting your own body's natural repair process), and (b) to preserve the product while it is still in the jar or bottle. We believe our approach, although more expensive, is superior not only in terms of customer safety but also in product efficiency. Better ingredients, better results!
Q. I can't get my serum to come out of the bottle, and there's no straw attached to the pump inside. Did you make a mistake?
A. Don't worry, it's not a mistake. All of our serums come in bottles that use airless pumps, which do not require straws.
We use airless pump bottles because they keep our serums fresh by protecting them from too much exposure to the air. When you depress the pump it creates a vacuum effect, drawing the product upwards. See the image to the right for a helpful diagram of the whole process.
Since a small amount of air in the bottle is unavoidable, you may need to shake your serum bottle and give it a few pumps to get the vacuum effect going the first time, and the process may need to be repeated periodically.
Q. The ingredient lists for your products contain a large number of botanical (plant) extracts. Yet, your creams are almost pure white in color. I always thought that botanical extracts were usually some earth tone colors, such as browns, tans, or greenish. How do you achieve such a light colored cream?
A. There are many ways to prepare extracts, using differing solvents or processes. A crude extract from plant material, such as might be done in your kitchen, would generally lead to a very colorful result. That is because the plant's natural green or brownish color is contained in the fibrous part of the plant and tends to color the solvent used or the resulting powder upon removal of the liquid solvent. We use super-critical CO2 extraction processes to isolate the part (called a "fraction") of the plant's composition that possesses the particular plant chemical that has desirable antioxidant properties. It is an expensive process, requiring expensive equipment and highly-skilled technicians. But the result is that we can provide aesthetically pleasing creams. Not many individuals would want to put dark brownish creams on their faces, hoping to benefit from the antioxidant properties that are contained in only a small part of the plant's composition.
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