Why Microbead Scrubs Are Bad For The Environment (As Well As Your Skin)

Here at Face the Future, we have long preached the value of vitamin A and other methods of non-abrasive exfoliation over harsh, physical scrubs. Although your skin may feel smooth, soft and clean after a good old scrub, those physical beads are far too harsh and end up stripping away more than just the dead skin cells and debris that you expect. They take away the natural oils that make up the protective barrier; when this barrier is damaged, skin is left sensitized, damaged and vulnerable.

If this hasn't been enough to tear you away from your beloved scrub, a story that hit the headlines this week might be enough to persuade you.MPs are now calling for these little plastic beads to be banned from all cosmetic products. It's not because of the harm they are causing to our skins, but the harm they are causing to marine life.

Every time you rinse away those tiny plastic beads down the drain, they work their way into the ocean where they are causing serious problems for the creatures that live there.

Although we are much more savvy to the harm of abrasives on the skin, it seems we're still scrubbing away as 680 tons of the tiny balls were used in the UK last year. In fact, a single shower can wash around 100,00 microbeads down the drain.

Once in the ocean, these beads are ingested by animals that mistake them for food, where they become lodged in their gut and prevent them from eating the nutritious food they need to survive. If this animal is then eaten by a larger animal, the process then continues.

Those of you who enjoy the finer things in life may be horrified to know that a plate of oysters can contain around 50 plastic microbeads. Now, there's no evidence to prove this can cause harm to humans, but do you really want to be eating oysters with a side of second hand body scrub? I thought not!When the benefit of using physical abrasives is so very small to the skin, it seems incredibly pointless to be ruining our beautiful oceans and the marine life that live there. If MPs get their way, we could see an outright ban being put in place, so now is the time to switch up your exfoliation.

For any advice on a method of exfoliation that is kinder to your skin and the environment, call our skincare experts on 0113 282 7744.

Written for you by: Ellie, Face the Future