Two New Herbal Essences Shampoos Are the First Mass Hair-Care Products to Be EWG Verified
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a nonprofit organization that, in its own words, "empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment." That includes a significant focus on ingredients in self-care and beauty products like sunscreen, which the group rates according to its safety criteria in an annual guide. And now, the EWG is expanding the visibility of its standards by offering the EWG Verified mark to a very select group of products, two of which are Herbal Essences shampoos.
According to a press release from P&G, Herbal Essences is launching two new sulfate-free shampoos, the Honey & Vitamin B Sulfate-Free Shampoo and Birch Bark Extract Sulfate-Free Shampoo, which are formulated to meet the requirements that earn the EWG Verified stamp of approval. This makes Herbal Essences it the first mass hair-care brand to receive the program's mark.
A statement from the EWG explains that the EWG Verified program "was created to fill the void left by our nation's antiquated law regulating the cosmetics and personal care products industry, which allows products to enter the marketplace without any testing to show that they are safe." So in addition to meeting certain ingredient standards, this means that Herbal Essences had to disclose more information about the shampoos' contents than what's typically found on product labels in order to provide more ingredient transparency for consumers.
"For almost 50 years, Herbal Essences has been committed to the safety of the people that use our products,” Herbal Essences brand manager Lynn Hicks says in P&G's statement, which explains that an unprecedented amount of product-composition, safety-testing, and quality-control details were disclosed in order to achieve verification. "Now more than ever, consumers are demanding transparency with their beauty products, and with this partnership, we can provide consumers with the reassurance that our products are clean, safe and verified by a trusted group like EWG.”
Herbal Essences Honey & Vitamin B Sulfate-Free Shampoo is formulated to moisturize and soften hair, and it features a honey, jasmine, and vanilla scent. Birch Bark Extract Sulfate-Free Shampoo gently cleanses without fading color-treated hair, and it smells like an aquatic combination of a floral bouquet and warm amber. Many people avoid sulfates over concern that they can strip color, but experts note that sulfates are no more damaging to color than other surfactants; that said, studies have shown them to be irritating to eyes and skin, making sulfate-free shampoos like these a good option for those with a sensitive scalp.
Both shampoos have matching conditioners, and all four products will be available for $6 each at drugstores and mass-market retailers nationwide in January 2019.
To see other products that have the EWG Verified mark, visit ewg.org.
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