A couple of recent stories have gotten me thinking about hypocrisy in the beauty industry. Certainly you’ve heard the news that the photos of the “real women” in the Dove Real Beauty campaign may have been
digitally altered. If true, this would seem hypocritical because they complain most companies use touched up models to sell their products while they do exactly the same thing except with chubbier, less attractive models. Of course, the company is mostly denying it, but what else can they do? Close-up photographs of real people never look as good as ones that have been touched up. Freckles, acne, wrinkles and age-spots don’t work in magazine ads.
Natural Hypocrites
The other story was one about the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) attacking “natural” companies for using raw materials that contain a potential carcinogen. It seems that companies like Jason Natural & Organic, Kiss My Face and Nature’s Gate Organic all use ethoxylated ingredients that have trace amounts of 1,4-Dioxane. The OCA believes it’s hypocritical to say you are natural, but still contain supposedly dangerous ingredients. While we disagree about the danger posed by trace amounts of 1,4-Dioxane, we can see the OCA’s point. It does seem hypocritical.
Getting what they deserve
It just goes to show you how difficult it is to build a brand by tearing other people’s products down. Photos can always be made more “real”. Cosmetic formulas can always be made “safer”.
Companies that claim to more real or safer than others are just setting themselves up for being exposed as hypocrites.
I for one am happy to see it. Perhaps next time they’ll focus on the good features of their products instead of what they think are bad features of their competitors.
Are the Beauty Brains Hypocrites?
Incidentally, we hear the claim on the Beauty Brains every so often that we are hypocrites because we accept advertising for products. We whole-heartedly disagree with this. While it is true that we do accept advertising and also get money for some affiliate programs, we don’t believe this is hypocritical because we do not allow the fact that a product is advertised on our website to cloud what we say about them If we don’t believe a product like Pink Patch weight loss, Kinoki Foot pads, or Jan Marini eyelash thickeners work, we’ll tell you.
However, we’ll accept ads from them and if you’re going to buy them, that’s fine with us. It is up to you to use your brain when making purchasing decision. We’re not here to tell you what to do. We’re here to help you make an informed decision.
There is one line of hypocrisy that we will not cross. The Beauty Brains will not make their own line of cosmetics. While it could easily be done, we believe it would create an unavoidable bias that would taint the information you get here on the Beauty Brains. The information, the science is what is important. That’s why the only products you’ll ever get from the Beauty Brains are books and other information products. And these are the only products we endorse.