Is Vegan Beauty For You?

It’s natural, cruelty-free and doesn’t use animal products. But before you decide, read the fine print.

- Nandini Banerjee

First there was herbal, then came natural, followed by organic. And now, the beauty world is abuzz with another genre— vegan. “Veganism is more than a diet. It’s an entire lifestyle change based on the idea that animals shouldn’t have to suffer or die so that we can have the things that we want,” says New Delhi based dermatologist Dr Chiranjiv Chabbra. “Any beauty product that is vegan does not contain any animal ingredients or animal-derived ingredients. To many, the term vegan also means that the product is free of animal testing.”

There are, however, several more aspects to this new beauty trend.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

To understand vegan products, it is first important to know the existing genres in the market. While organic means that all the ingredients in the product originate from sources that are pesticide-, GMO-, hormone- and antibiotic-free, natural can literally be anything, as long as its features an ingredient that references a natural agent growing in the wild. Cruelty free means that the product and its ingredients have not been tested on animals. When it comes to vegan products, these are usually plant-, flower-, and herb-based, though not necessarily devoid of synthetics. “Like vegans can eat Doritos (because that’s not real cheese), a vegan beauty product could be laden with synthetic chemicals, as long as no animals were harmed in the process. Therefore, it is important to read the ingredient list,” says Dr Chiranjiv.

WHO’S ON THE TOP?