FAQs

We at dermaplastics have made it our task to make products with harmless ingredients visible to you in pharmacies. Our goal is clear: We want to reduce the input of environmentally harmful substances into the environment through cosmetic care products: To protect the health of all of us, biodiversity and as an important contribution to climate protection. All products are regularly tested for their ingredients and adjusted if necessary. Our free offer helps you to make the best possible decisions without wasting time.

The easiest way is to search for a suitable care product from pharmacies via the category "Indications". Here you can display suitable products based on your diagnosis with just one click.
Another option is to use the search function and enter a specific product name. If you cannot find the product you are looking for, it may contain too many questionable ingredients or it may not have been listed yet. You can find out whether the product you are looking for has been tested in the list of brands.

Do you have any questions, suggestions or tips? Write to us at: info@dermaplastik.de

More and more manufacturers are switching to recycled plastic for packaging. Unfortunately, plastic cannot be recycled indefinitely. In addition, some types of plastic are very difficult to recycle because they contain additives. Since there is currently no truly environmentally friendly alternative to plastic, packaging is not included in the evaluation of care products from pharmacies. Incidentally, glass and aluminium also consume a lot of energy in production and recycling. However, unlike some types of plastic, these two materials can be cleanly separated in recycling plants and sent for recycling.

dermaplastics is completely independent. No company can directly or indirectly influence the dermaplastics influence the assessments that are made. In principle, every company can have its care products, which it sells in pharmacies, listed, as long as they contain harmless ingredients. Financed dermaplastics via advertising revenue and sponsorship.

Our claim is careful research so that a safe product can be selected in a simple way. Our task is to ensure the greatest possible transparency in all areas. We attach great importance to the exchange with recommenders, consumers and manufacturers. We are open to discussions and feedback. Timeliness plays an important role, as new scientific findings are constantly being published or older data updated. The number of ingredients in care products is also complex and sometimes difficult to assess. That's why we work closely with experts and scientists to answer questions. However, if you discover an ingredient, please write to us, because even we can make mistakes.

We welcome your questions, suggestions or comments at: info@dermaplastik.de 

Our services are free of charge for recommenders and consumers. In order to finance our team and our work, manufacturers of listed products have the opportunity to advertise their products separately. However, manufacturers have no influence on our procedure and the guidelines that lead to the listing of care products on our platform.

No. In principle, we do not list any care products from pharmacies that contain questionable ingredients.

We welcome your questions, suggestions or comments at: info@dermaplastik.de 

Plastic, also called synthetics, refers to industrially produced chemical substances from fossil fuels such as petroleum and natural gas. They are added to cosmetics and care products in the form of microplastics to make the skin feel better. In the form of macroplastics, they are used, for example, as outer packaging for products, as drinking water bottles or in household items. Many plastics contain additives that determine their properties and thus influence whether plastic is used in solid form (hard plastic) or in soft form (soft plastic), for example.

Microplastics

Microplastics are plastics with a size of less than 5 mm. Plastics are added to many care products as so-called primary microplastics to ensure a good feeling on the skin. Furthermore, microplastics are created when macroplastics, for example packaging, break down due to weather influences such as wind and sunlight as well as ocean waves. These grind large pieces of plastic into smaller and smaller plastic particles. In this case, we speak of secondary microplastics.

Microplastics have been accumulating on land, in the air and in the world's oceans for decades. Depending on the type of plastic, microplastics are non-biodegradable or very difficult to biodegrade, which can damage the environment and potentially affect human health.

Macroplastic

Macroplastics are plastics that make up outer packaging or everyday objects, for example. When macroplastics break down into microplastics due to wind, sun and ocean waves, they are not biodegradable or very difficult to biodegrade, can damage the environment and affect human health.

Liquid polymers consist of industrially produced chains of repeating chemical building blocks in liquid, gel or wax form. They are used in cosmetics and care products as exfoliating, thickening and binding agents. Many of them are based on fossil fuels such as crude oil and natural gas. In most cases, they are not biodegradable or very difficult to biodegrade.

Nanoparticles are tiny fractions of microplastics or zinc oxide and titanium dioxide that are intentionally manufactured, are not biodegradable and are between 1 and 100 nanometres (nm) in size in at least one orientation (length, width or height). Cosmetics containing nanoparticles have had to label the ingredients concerned with the addition "(nano)" since 11 July 2013. Many sunscreens contain nanoparticles such as zinc oxide and titanium dioxide as physical protection against sunlight. Further interesting information on the subject of nanoparticles can be obtained from the Nanoportal-BW.

Biodegradable substances are those that can be broken down into their components by organisms in the environment - for example bacteria, fungi or microorganisms - so that they are available again to the natural cycle of life without harming this cycle.

Endocrine disruptors are hormone-active substances that can harm the health of humans and animals. It is suspected that endocrine disruptors can, for example, impair reproduction and trigger cancer and behavioural disorders. Many of the endocrine disruptors are currently being investigated by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) investigated. Products listed on our platform are therefore not allowed to contain any suspected endocrine disruptors. The only exceptions are currently the ingredients retinol and salicylic acid, which may still be contained in products. Both substances are indispensable for the therapy of skin diseases. They should be subject to medical prescription only. The result of the studies of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is therefore still awaited for retinol and salicylic acid.

PFAS is the abbreviation for "per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances".
In cosmetics and personal care products, for example, they serve as hair dye, filler or as solvents or binders. They enter the environment and our food chain via wastewater. PFASs are extremely persistent in the environment. Environmental concentrations are therefore steadily increasing due to widespread use on land to water, in the air and in living organisms such as humans. PFAS are strongly suspected of causing thyroid and liver disorders and have also been linked to obesity, diabetes and an increased risk of various cancers. There is also evidence of impaired fertility and developmental and behavioural problems.

More info is available here.

Silicones such as dimethicone feign smooth and supple texture on the skin's surface. However, since creams with silicones are not absorbed into the skin, damaged skin cells are not regenerated. For the Environment silicones are extremely harmful. They enter the wastewater in large quantities every day. In nature, silicones are difficult or impossible to break down. They therefore accumulate in water bodies and can even reach groundwater and thus drinking water.

Surfactants have the property of being able to dissolve water-insoluble soiling such as greasy dirt particles from the skin in water. They are therefore found in numerous cosmetic products. Among the surfactants, however, there are some representatives that have both a clearly skin- and mucous membrane-irritating effect.

These representatives of so-called anionic surfactants can be recognised by the suffix "-sulphate". They are petrochemically produced from crude oil and natural gas, are difficult for microorganisms to degrade due to their branched structure and therefore remain in the water longer than plant-based surfactants. Products containing these surfactants are therefore not listed on our platform.

Aluminium enters the body through cosmetics such as antiperspirants and toothpaste. It is suspected of being involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease and breast cancer. The Federal Office for Risk Research (BfR) published on 20 July 2020 a Statementin which it is stated that "adverse health effects from the use of antiperspirants containing aluminium are unlikely according to the current state of scientific knowledge". However, the BfR itself states that the concentration of aluminium in the body as a whole could add up, as this substance can also be absorbed via other cosmetics, drinking water, food, food contact materials and medicines. Products containing aluminium are therefore listed on the platform of dermaplastics not listed.

Active pharmaceutical ingredients are not a mandatory component of the basic formulation of, for example, a cream or lotion. Products containing active pharmaceutical ingredients must comply with certain legal requirements and serve to cure or prevent diseases. An assessment of the toxicity and environmental compatibility of active pharmaceutical ingredients is not part of this platform.

Some care products contain so-called azo dyes. They are marked in cosmetics with the initial letters CI (Colour Index) and a 5-digit number. As components of cosmetics in the decorative sector, such as lipsticks, eye shadows or bath products, they can trigger allergies. If they get into the body, they can transform into carcinogenic aniline. The synthetic azo dyes of particular concern include yellow dyes such as CI 14720 (Yellow 5) and some red dyes.

All UV filters on the market are not biodegradable. However, sunscreens are indispensable especially for people with high risk factors such as fair skin type or outdoor work. For this reason, sunscreens are listed at dermaplastik if they do not contain any other ingredients of concern. However, there are some UV filters such as benzophenones that are hormone-active and carcinogenic. Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are also very toxic for microorganisms in the water. Titanium dioxide is also no longer permitted in food since 2022. Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are also often added to sun creams as nanoparticles. It is unclear whether these nanoparticles can pass through the skin barrier. Products with these UV filters are therefore not listed.

Additives are substances that give plastics their properties, such as elasticity or breaking strength. There are about 10,500 additives. Some of them are dissolved out during use or when the plastic items decompose and can be toxic to humans and the environment.

Fossil fuels are fuels that were created millions of years ago from the decomposition products of dead plants and animals. In addition to lignite, hard coal and peat, fossil fuels include above all natural gas and crude oil. What all energy sources have in common is that they produce considerable amounts of greenhouse gases during extraction and consumption, which accelerate climate change.

Petroleum-based ingredients are derived from the fossil energy source petroleum. Petroleum-based substances are significantly cheaper than cultivated raw materials from nature and can provide a pleasant skin feeling. However, the production of these ingredients contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and thus to climate change.
The labelling whether the products contain petroleum-based ingredients has no influence on the listing, but serves as additional information. Petroleum-based ingredients are highlighted accordingly in the product description.

Palm oil-based substances are vegetable oils obtained from the oil palm. The palm is cultivated in monocultures in Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia. The production of palm oil-based substances contributes to the destruction of rainforests through the ongoing development of cultivation areas. It displaces indigenous peoples and threatens biodiversity. Supply chains and production processes generate high levels of greenhouse gas emissions that accelerate climate change.

The labelling of whether the products contain palm oil-based ingredients does not affect the listing, but serves as additional information. Palm oil-based ingredients are highlighted in the product description.

There are already signs of an increasing scarcity of water due to climate change and environmental pollution. Saving water will therefore play an increasingly important role in the future. Some companies are already reducing water in the manufacturing process of some products or by changing the formulation compared to the pre-product. As a matter of principle, a care product from pharmacies is only labelled as water-saving on the dermaplastik platform when the manufacturer has proven this in writing.