Best Paraben-Free Body Lotions
Skincare products have been used for centuries to keep our skin looking and feeling its best. The downside is that manufacturers of these products haven’t always used the safest ingredients to create them. Though these chemicals have their uses, they aren’t necessarily doing our skin and body any favors.
Parabens are one of these potentially harmful ingredients. Though added to our body lotions and other skincare items as a preservative, there could be some side effects that you may not be aware of. To avoid any potential surprises, many people are choosing the best paraben-free body lotions for their skincare needs.
1. Sebamed Moisturizing Body Lotion
Sebamed Moisturizing Body Lotion is rather expensive for a 1-liter bottle but the high-quality ingredients and soothing effects may make it worth it for anyone with sensitive skin. It absorbs into the skin quickly, with no greasy residue to make you uncomfortable after using it. You can also use it daily to keep your skin feeling soft and supple all day long.
This body lotion contains natural ingredients, including chamomile extract for healing your skin and giving it a natural glow and allantoin to help shed those dead skin cells for healthy, smooth skin. It also hydrates with each application, keeping that dry, itchy feeling at bay. Sebamed is free of parabens and pH balanced to help maintain your skin’s natural barrier function.
2. Hempz Sweet Pineapple & Honey Melon Moisturizing Skin Lotion
This Hempz body lotion is 100% vegan, plus it doesn’t contain harmful additives like parabens or gluten. Instead, it includes a variety of healthy ingredients, starting with pure natural hemp seed oil that contains nutrients, proteins, carbohydrates, fiber, and other important minerals to help hydrate your skin and keep it feeling fantastic.
This body lotion also includes shea butter for protection against harmful UV rays and dehydration while healing your skin. Cucumber and aloe condition your skin, healing inflammation and soothing irritation for the healthiest, softest skin possible.
Other beneficial ingredients include antioxidant-rich pineapple extract and honey melon extract, which contains vitamin E to neutralize those free radicals. Daily use of this body lotion keeps your skin moisturized, protected, and ready for anything.
3. Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Body Lotion
Aveeno has been one of the top names in skincare for decades, even earning dermatologist recommendations for most of that time. It also doesn’t have a huge cost for a single bottle of their daily moisturizing lotion, despite all of the benefits this product has to offer.
This daily body lotion is formulated using colloidal oatmeal to help restore your skin’s pH levels and maintain its moisture barrier to protect it from dryness, even during those cold winter months. It also contains rich emollients to moisturize your skin for a soft, supple feel.
Not only does this Aveeno lotion leave out the parabens, but it is also fragrance-free and non-comedogenic, so it won’t cause any allergic reactions or acne issues. It absorbs quickly, with no greasy residue.
4. Kooba Makeup Fine Point Eyeliner Brush
This fine-point eyeliner brush has a pointed bristle head that makes it simple to create a flawless, even line with a single sweep of the brush every time you use it. The bristles are soft, so they don’t irritate the delicate skin of your eyelid, plus they can be used with almost any type of eyeliner, including gel, liquid, or cream options. The bristles are also quite durable, so they last a while with regular washing.
This Kooba eyeliner brush has a short handle, so it fits nicely into your regular makeup bag, as well as a small travel bag for added convenience. This doesn’t affect how you hold it either, so you don’t need to worry about it slipping as you draw your lines. It even has a great low price that fits well into any budget.
5. Cetaphil Intensive Healing Lotion
Those with skin that is dry, rough, and flaky will need an intense lotion that can handle all of these issues. The Cetaphil Intense Healing Lotion covers them all, hydrating and healing your skin at the same time. It is even safe for sensitive skin, so you don’t need to worry about any irritation when using this body lotion every day.
The formula for this lotion contains ceramides and amino acids, which work together to hydrate your skin and restore its natural moisture balance. Sunflower seed oil and allantoin nourish your skin, soothing and calming any irritation.
What this lotion lacks are harmful chemicals, like parabens and fragrances. This makes it gentle enough to use every day for a full 24 hours of protection.
6. Vanicream Moisturizing Lotion
Vanicream Moisturizing Lotion doesn’t just leave parabens out of its formula. It also lacks a variety of other harmful additives, including dyes, fragrances, formaldehyde, and lanolin, so it is safe to use on your body, as well as the bodies of everyone in your household. It is even dermatologist tested to ensure this body lotion is as high-quality as it claims.
The smooth consistency of this lotion makes it easy to spread over all of your dry areas, plus it absorbs quickly for added convenience, with no sticky residue. You can even use it on your face without worrying about eye irritation or extra acne. This lotion is best for those with cracked, irritated, or itchy skin, but is safe for all skin types.
7. The Naked Bee Orange Blossom Honey Hand & Body Lotion
Though it is a bit pricier than many other lotion brands, The Naked Bee uses only the safest ingredients in their products, so you may find that this body lotion is well worth the cost. In fact, 70% of the formula is made of certified organic ingredients, including aloe vera, honey, sunflower oil, hyaluronic acid, and spirulina. These ingredients work together to heal any damage while adding moisture.
What this body lotion lacks are harmful additives, including parabens, mineral oil, artificial colors and dyes, phthalates, fragrances, gluten, sulfates, and propylene glycol. It also isn’t tested on animals, making it a safer choice for the planet as well as for your skin.
8. Eucerin Advanced Repair Lotion
Eucerin Advanced Repair Lotion is designed to combat and repair even the driest skin, offering protection for up to 48 hours. This means that you can use less of this body lotion without having to worry about red, irritated, cracked skin ruining your day. This lightweight lotion absorbs quickly into your skin without leaving behind any greasy residue, so you feel even better every time you apply it.
This formula contains ceramide-3, which strengthens your skin’s natural moisture barrier, and natural moisturizers that hydrate and offer protection against dryness and irritation. What this lotion leaves out are parabens, fragrances, and dyes, so it is safer to use as often as you need it. Eucerin Advanced Repair Lotion is also reasonably priced, so it is great for any budget.
9. Palmer’s Coconut Oil Body Lotion
Palmer’s Coconut Oil Body Lotion is rather cheap when compared to other brands but this doesn’t mean that this brand sacrifices quality to keep the price low. This body lotion uses certified organic coconut oil and monoi oil, which work together to moisturize and hydrate your skin, leaving it soft and smooth. Vitamin E-enriched sweet almond oil is also added to this formula to soothe your irritated skin.
Since this body lotion uses only natural, raw ingredients, this means that it doesn’t contain parabens, sulfates, gluten, mineral oil, or artificial colors. It is hypoallergenic, so it is safe for even the most sensitive skin and can be used daily to keep your skin soft and radiant.
10. Nivea Vanilla & Almond Oil Body Lotion
Nivea is another budget-friendly body lotion that leaves parabens out of its formula. The Vanilla & Almond Oil body lotion is designed for dry skin, using moisturizing ingredients to transform it into smooth, healthy, radiant skin. It offers 24 hours of protection, so you don’t need to keep reapplying it throughout the day to keep your skin looking and feeling its best.
This body lotion is infused with almond oil to nourish your skin with each application and vanilla to give it a fantastic scent. It is lightweight and absorbs quickly, with no greasy residue left behind, so the only way to know it’s working is by how fantastic your skin feels.
11. Everyone Nourishing Coconut + Lemon Body Lotion
Everyone is a brand that believes in creating products that are as good for the planet as they are for you. That’s why this body lotion leaves out the harsh chemicals, parabens, phthalates, dyes, synthetic fragrances, gluten, and fillers from its formula. What they include are plant extracts and pure essential oils to create their fantastic hypoallergenic body lotion. Even the bottle is made of recycled materials for an even better lotion option.
This lotion is lightweight and quick-absorbing, with no sticky residue left behind. It has a lovely scent of coconut and lemon, so your skin smells as wonderful as it feels. Best of all, you can use this lotion on your face and hands as well as your body, so it is the only one you need to buy.
What Are Parabens?
Parabens are chemicals that are often used as preservatives in many of the cosmetic products that we’ve been buying since the 1920s. Many of the ingredients in these products would naturally biodegrade over time, which is why parabens are added to the formulas. They slow, or even prevent, the growth of mold and bacteria. This increases the shelf life of these cosmetic products, so the company can make larger batches without worrying about half of their stock going bad before it is sold.
There are many different types of parabens used in the cosmetic industry. The most common include methylparaben, propylparaben, ethylparaben, butylparaben, isopropylparaben, and isobuytlparaben. They could be combined or used on their own, depending on the paraben in question.
What Products Contain Parabens?
Many of the cosmetic products that we use daily contain parabens, especially those that contain a lot of water, including shampoos and conditioners. This is because parabens have antimicrobial properties, which prevent the growth of fungi and bacteria in these types of products.
Other items that you may use that could contain parabens include face cleansers, body washes, shaving gel, deodorant, sunscreen, toothpaste, makeup, and hair care products. Body lotion is also on this list since these products contain ingredients that may not last as long as their manufacturer would like, so parabens are added to the formula to increase their shelf life as much as possible.
Why Should Parabens Be Avoided?
Though there is no clear evidence that parabens are harmful, there are some studies that suggest this could be the case. There is some concern that parabens could be absorbed by our bodies, where they could mimic the hormone estrogen, which could then interfere with fertility and our reproductive organs and development. These issues could then affect the outcome of birth, though studies aren’t 100% conclusive on these possible issues. There is also a chance that parabens could be related to cancer, increasing the risk with prolonged use.
Many people may also experience skin irritation, which is something to consider if you’re using a body lotion full of parabens every day. Since these products are designed to improve your skin condition, a body lotion that does the opposite or makes your skin issues worse is one you likely want to avoid.
As well as negative consequences for our bodies, parabens may also be linked to ecological damage. There is some evidence that butylparaben is killing coral, which can be quite damaging to the oceanic ecosystems of our planet. When mixed, chlorinated tap water and parabens can create chlorinated paraben by-products, which could also be toxic, though further studies are needed to determine this.
Luckily, many cosmetic manufacturers have taken measures to keep parabens out of their products. They are choosing to use natural preservatives rather than chemical parabens to help improve the shelf life of their body lotions and other products, ensuring that these products are safer for their customers and the planet we live on.
Conclusion
At some point in our lives, we all need a good body lotion. Whether you live in a dry area or have to deal with the icy chill of winter, these weather conditions can take a toll on your skin. Even those in industries that require constant hand washing will need something to keep those important body parts from drying out and cracking.
A good body wash is the answer, keeping the skin over your entire body healthy and hydrated, so it looks and feels fantastic. You likely also want to choose a body wash that is safe for your skin, so it doesn’t make any of the issues you’re dealing with worse or cause a whole bunch of new ones. That's why many people are choosing the best paraben-free body wash, to avoid as many of those potentially harmful chemicals as possible for a healthier body.
Resources:
https://www.fda.gov/cosmetics/cosmetic-ingredients/parabens-cosmetics
https://www.ewg.org/californiacosmetics/parabens
