Nature, Meet Science

“Cleanical skin care marries cleaner, greener ingredients with scientific innovation for a result that's a win-win for skin.

- DIDI GLUCK

Jessica Richards, founder of Shen Beauty (shen-beauty.com), an emporium in Brooklyn, says her customers have expressed frustration in recent years about skincare options: Do they choose a product that’s “clean,” or one that has clinically proven results but contains potentially irritating ingredients like parabens, phthalates, or sulfates? While clean formulas are not regulated or defined by any agency of the U.S. government, they’re loosely accepted in the beauty industry to mean products that are free of ingredients identified as potentially toxic by organizations connected to environmental advocacy— or that are made outside the U.S. in countries with stricter formulating rules. “I usually deem a brand from Europe or Japan to be clean because they actually have regulations and an ingredient blacklist,” Richards says.