Coconut oil facial moisturizer

It has been a busy day here in my test kitchen (aka my regular kitchen). I have a couple new recipes I've tried that I'm pretty excited about.

First, I want to start by talking about  my old face cream. I was using Trader Joe's Enrich moisturizer most days. I liked it because it is SPF 15, has vitamins A, E, & C, is light weight, and smells nice. Sounds like a pretty good product at first, but after looking it up on SkinDeep I was surprised to see it was pretty bad for me. The 2009 version got a 6 on the hazardous scale, the 2012 was moved down to a 4. I can't remember when I bought the stuff, but even with my inconsistent use I think It was after 2012.

4 isn't a terrible score, but I'm wondering if some of the ratings are skewed because of the limited data on some ingredients. Here are two of the worst things about this cream, and many other commercial face creams I'm sure.

Worst on the list Retinyl Palmitate, danger rating of 8. This is a form of vitamin A that is commonly used as a sunscreen. Why it's bad: Studies are showing that when retinyl palmitate is exposed to sun it can cause cancer. So while you are wearing it to prevent skin cancer, it may be giving it to you. Oh cruel irony. In addition to cancer it is linked to "Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)."

OCTINOXATE is the next toxic ingredient, it's purpose is to enhance skin absorption. It is rated at a 6. Among the worst effects associated with this ingredient are developmental/reproductive toxicity, and organ tissue damage. 

Overall this product has moderate cancer risk, high reproductive and developmental toxicity, and moderate allergy and irritation concerns. Plus, it is stored in plastic, which I'm sure adds to the problems this may cause. You can read the full report on this product here: http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/product/437805/Trader_Joe%27s_Enrich_Moisturizing_Face_Lotion%2C_SPF_15_%282012_formulation%29/

Now, let's move on to what I made and why it is good for you.
If you have ever browsed the endless supply of DIY beauty products you have probably noticed that just about everything calls for coconut oil. This stuff has been gaining popularity, for good reason, and if you intend to make the same recipes as me you will want to stock up. I will be using this as the base of my cream.

This is the stuff I had around the house purchased from Costco. Don't be fooled by the photo, it is actually quite a large amount, 54 oz to be exact. When selecting a coconut oil you want to make sure it is: pure, organic (the whole point of this is to get rid of toxins), cold presses, unrefined, and extra virgin. This brand meets all those qualifications and costs a very reasonable $16. 

What is so great about coconut oil? Well for starters, it has a pH of on average of 5.5-7.8, making it a good match for skin (see earlier post), as it can balance the pH for most skin types. 

Coconut oil is easily absorbed into the skin and is a great moisturizer. It helps remove dead skin and repair damaged tissue. It also has a natural SPF of 2-8, depending on the brand.

The second ingredient I chose is vitamin E oil. Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant that plays an essential role in skin protection and repair. It helps heal tissue damage, and reduce the appearance of fine lines and aging (something I'm growing more concerned with). However, this important compound is not produced by the human body and must be added to your beauty regimen. I purchased a vitamin E oil from Trader Joe's some time ago. It is also important to make sure you are eating food that contain vitamin E. For the full report see: http://health.howstuffworks.com/skin-care/information/nutrition/vitamin-e-benefit-skin.htm This little bottle cost me around $4, certainly worth it.
I looked up the ingredients and found that it could contain both artificial and natural vitamin E. I could not find any research suggesting the artificial version is less effective or toxic in anyway.

The final ingredient you will need is Zinc Oxide powder. I purchased this 1 pound bag on amazon.com for about $10! The purpose of adding zinc oxide is to provide sunscreen. On top of providing SPF, zinc also can sooth mild skin irritations and has anti bacterial properties. How does it work? "Upon application, zinc oxide particles sit on the outermost layer of your skin, the stratum corneum, where they scatter and absorb ultraviolet radiation, protecting your living skin below. Zinc oxide is unique among sunscreen ingredients in that it is truly a broad-spectrum blocker, protecting from UVA, UVB, and even UVC." 

Information from http://www.badgerbalm.com/s-33-zinc-oxide-sunscreen-nanoparticles.aspx

 So here's how you make what I did. You'll need:
1/2 cup pure coconut oil
2 teaspoons vitamin E oil
1 oz (about 4 Tbs) zinc oxide powder*
bowl
electric mixer
glass container for the finished product

*Zinc oxide will change the texture and appearance of cream. It may be omitted for a lower SPF. The 1:4 ratio of zinc to cream makes       about an SPF 20 cream.

Add all ingredients to a bowl, whip with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Because of the fat content this stuff will hold air! Place in container when finished. Voila! Easy, safe, delicious smelling face cream.

When I made this originally I did not have zinc powder so what you see on the left is just coconut oil and vitamin E oil. You can see how smooth and fluffy it will get. It does harden slightly after a few hours, but it still remains pretty smooth and light and cream-like.

Once my zinc powder came in the mail I added it and re-whipped everything. I also added a little more coconut oil because was too thick, in my opinion, so my SPF is somewhere between 15-20, which is fine by me.

You can see how much more white it is after the addition of the powder. The cream is a little bit thicker but still nice and soft and easily spread. 

I put some on my hand immediately and it left a white powdery film on top. I still had some left on my fingers that was melted and rubbed it on my other hand and it absorbed much better. I would recommend letting it melt in your hand (should only take a few seconds because coconut oil has a low melting temperature) before applying it to your face. 

There you have it. It's so simple and cost effective to make a high quality, non-toxic cream. I can't believe it's taken me this long!