Mineral Makeup Primer: What You Need To Know

Mineral Makeup Primer: What You Must Know

How to choose a mineral make up that's right for you-

plus how the major brands of mineral makeup compare!

Mining For Beauty:

Mineral Makeup

Is In the Bag!

Mineral make-up is more than just a

new beauty trend – it claims health

benefits for skin as well.

But is it really help – or hype?

Read on to find out!

By Colette Bouchez

As beauty legend has it, it was the mid 1970's, in the aftermath of the frenzied Haight-Ashbury love-ins of San Francisco, that a quiet little cosmetic revolution was born.

It was called "mineral make up" – products made of all natural, finely ground minerals from the earth, without any of the chemicals, dyes and preservatives found in traditional make up. As good as that sounded, for many years it remained primarily the domain of the Birkenstock-cotton T-shirt earth momma!

Fast-forward some 30 years: Mineral makeup is virtually exploding the beauty market.

"This is an extremely popular style of makeup – and it's something that a lot of my patients use and love, and I use it myself – it's also the product most patients ask about," says Kathryn Frew, MD, a dermatologist at Juva Skin and Laser Center and Medi-Spa in New York City.

And while mineral makeup comes in a variety of forms – and at prices ranging from less than $10 to over $50 per product - undoubtedly the most popular in all price ranges are the loose powder foundations and blushes. These are light, finely ground loose minerals that are buffed into the skin using a wide, fluffy brush.

Indeed, Bare Escentuals, the company which some credit for introducing the world to loose mineral make-up via their Bare Minerals line, remains the top beauty brand on electronic retailing giant QVC since 2001, and the leading beauty brand at cosmetic superstore Sephora since 2005. [4] Jane Iredale mineral make-up – sold primarily in dermatology offices in 35 countries, and on-line - is not only a huge seller, dermatologists and A-list celebrities frequently cite it as their makeup of choice. [5]

More recently mass marketers like Neutrogena, Physicians Formula, L'Oreal, Urban Decay and IsaDora jumped on the mining cart, with extremely affordable powder mineral make up products, while dozens of smaller boutique companies like AfterGlow, GloMinerals, Larenim and Canary Cosmetics, are rounding out the market with their versions of these popular formulas.

But does "natural", "mineral" and "from the earth" really equal "better"? WebMD discovered the answer has a lot of qualifying factors – and some vastly differing opinions.

Mineral Make-Up and Skin Health

Like most cosmetic products, mineral makeup has its fans and it's critics. Those who love it rave about the light, natural, long lasting glow that simply can't be duplicated by other types of make-up. Others, however, complain it's drying, irritating, and accentuates wrinkles and adds years to your appearance. Some say the colors have an ashy undertone that is a particular problem for ethnic skin types.

But looks aside, many consumers also say they are initially drawn to try mineral makeup because of skin health claims – more specifically, that it's pure formulations are safer and better for sensitive, even acned or rosacea-prone skin.

But is it?

Quite frankly, I think mineral makeup is just a genius marketing plan -- a new way of selling women the same ingredients that technically have been in makeup for years," says dermatologic and pharmaceutical chemist Ben Kaminsky, author of the new book Beyond Botox: 7 Secrets for Sexy, Ageless Skin.

The main ingredients (minerals such as mica, zinc oxide, and titanium dioxide), says Kaminsky, have been the basis of most makeup foundations for decades. And he says mineral makeup has no special health or beauty properties.

"Mineral makeup can cause problems the same as any other preparations can cause problems. It's not purer; there's no scientific proof of that," he says.

But other experts see it a bit differently. Many dermatologists report that because mineral makeup frequently eliminates classic "irritants" – like fragrances, binders, synthetic dyes, and preservatives -- it is considered "purer" and can be kinder to the skin.