HYRS

Skin care is a massive industry, and a competitive one at that. There are now thousands of different offerings from various different companies, many of which have side stepped the expensive start up costs by being based completely online. This has caused a few issues in terms of quality control however, as experts from Norway claim that around half of skin care products available on the net have negative effects on the skin.

Over 400 products were sampled from a cross section of sellers across the net and included everything from supermarket brands, foreign products and even exclusive professional offerings. There were both facial care and hand care products sampled, and they were all tested extensively on various types of skin and measured on their effectiveness, ease of use and side effects. There was also a control group who used no products at all.

The results were a little alarming and should be an eye opener for anyone looking to buy this type of product. Firstly the study found that around 70% of the products did not give any benefits to the user, and what is more, over 50% of the products had negative side effects. There were many side-effects recorded in the study but some of the worst were skin peeling, spots, blistering, server itching and dryness.

The second important finding from the study was that the products that had the most beneficial effects on the skin were those that were the most expensive. Interestingly, there were only positive effects recorded from the products that featured in the top 20% in terms of purchase cost. The overruling advice from this research has to be to do your research and only buy the highest quality skin care products you can. Also make sure you only buy from reputable companies you know. Skincare brands such as Dermalogica and Aesop for example are highly trusted brands. On a final note, always patch-test new skin care products first on an area of skin that is not usually visible, not too sensitive and does not come into contact with other skin.