An expert’s guide to what "all natural" really means when it comes to skincare.

Fall/Winter 2008… When Emily Fritchey, President and Founder of Sunshine Botanicals was invited to speak at the 14th Annual Society of Plastic Surgical Skin Care Specialists annual meeting in San Diego this past May; her presentation was far from "fluff." Emily sat on a panel titled, "Oh NO!  How do I Know What to Choose?"  The panel included Ms. Fritchey and 4 well known physicians, bio-chemists and research scientists – each bringing their own area of expertise to the table to present the latest information about over-the-counter products vs.: cosmeceuticals and comparing their differences in results oriented skin care. 

Info about a number of sophisticated new ingredients and high tech "delivery systems" were presented as well as the new trend toward botanical and organic products.  Ms. Fritchey was invited to present the latest, up to the minute research about the efficacy and application of botanical and "natural" ingredients, and helped attendees understand how to spot "hype" vs. substance in the exploding natural products market.   Environmental awareness and patient demand for safer ingredients have brought these topics to the forefront of medical skin care specialists who are researching new trends in beauty and skin care.  

During her portion of the panel presentation, Ms. Fritchey presented some compelling before and after images of the results that can be achieved using pure, chemical-free, botanical ingredients on several different skin conditions. The most compelling image for this group produced some rather "jaw dropping" moments for the attendees – it was the incredible rate of healing that was experienced by a young patient who had deep facial lacerations from an automobile accident and her incredible rate of skin healing in only 4 days - using only a simple, single plant extract. This powerfully illustrated "the awesome healing power of nature"… to the total amazement of all attendees.  

Ms. Fritchey has a long history in the arena of aesthetics and professional skin care.  Her approach to beauty is from the inside out - natural health and holistic approaches to beauty, health and wellness are her "roots".  As a result of her passion for correcting skin problems and her fascination with the medicinal properties of botanicals and herbs, her company, "Sunshine Botanicals" was born.  Her husband, Dr. Philip Fritchey, developed her first products and inspires her passion to this day.  She has spent the past 20 years perfecting her line and carefully formulates what goes into every product, bringing holistic, highly effective botanicals into the world of beauty "must haves".

Her program specifically addressed the subject of how to tell the difference between "hype" and "substance" in today’s exploding natural products market place, and emphasized the importance of "knowing and trusting your source" when it comes to choosing truly pure natural skin care products.  "The beauty industry has exploded with natural products over the past few years, and the genie is not going back into the bottle.  It is important to understand that just because a product has natural ingredients listed on the label does not mean it is a pure and healthy product.  Many companies today choose to "angel dust" just enough of a natural ingredient into a product in order to be able to claim it for product labeling purposes, minimizing the concentration or potency of that particular extract or herb.  In addition, natural ingredients are too often blended with petroleum and/or chemical and synthetic ingredients, artificial colorants and fragrances before going to market as a "natural" product.