There are a number of cosmetic companies making fabulous skin products with minimalist or nonexistence packaging readily available for the masses to buy at malls and department stores. For many this is a way to "save the planet" from garbage, but is it really that simple? Could we be harming ourselves more than we think?
Studies have shown transferred bacteria is even more dangerous than we thought and can cause a pandemic in days and in some cases in a matter of hours. Not in vain it's said the most disgusting thing to touch is the handle of a supermarket cart. Millions of dirty hands touch these handles every year and aside from the occasional rain they never get cleaned.
Our hands are filled with thousands if not millions of germs and viruses we spread around to everything and anyone we touch. Sneezing and wiping our noses while forgetting to wash them or sanitize them afterwards spreads tons of viruses that make us sick with everything from flu to common cold. Handling money - another source of nasty bacteria and viruses, can spread disease rapidly as no one thinks to wash after touching a bill or a coin. Now imagine the same hands touching that supermarket cart, the money or wiping a nose on top of your fabulously scented bath-bomb, soap or other unpacked cosmetic. The though of using a contaminated cosmetic makes us cringe.
Transferred bacteria, depending on the surface it's attached to can multiply quite rapidly. An unwrapped soap or bath-bomb is a perfect environment for bacteria and viruses to grow. Dust and dirt also settle on unwrapped cosmetics while oxidation spoils the product much faster, requiring manufacturers to use more potent preservatives to compensate the lack of packaging.
Although I couldn't agree more we have a serious problem with garbage, we also have a serious problem with viruses and bacteria. For consumers the solution might not as simple as to avoid packaging all together. So what to do?
Many companies, By Valenti included, have attacked the problem of garbage produced by our own products in a more ecologically conscious way without stripping the products and our clients of protection. We look outside the box for more eco-friendly alternatives to packaging, and include in our packaging designs biodegradable, reusable or recyclable materials to solve a problem. Many go the extra mile and offer a refund for every empty container the consumer returns to them in an attempt to reuse or properly discard the disposables without creating a larger problem in our environment.
We understand what transferred bacteria does and that's the reason we wrap our products to avoid contamination. We take the necessary precautions while manufacturing our products to provide our clients of a sterile cosmetic, so it wouldn't make any sense to leave them unprotected for transferred bacteria to freely grow on them.
Next time you shop for a cosmetic product, consider avoiding those unpacked ones all together. You never know what else you could be taking home along with them.
