Tips for Eco-Friendly Personal Care Products

The beauty industry is well known for being quite bad for the environment. As consumers of those products, it is our duty to understand what claims are being made, what they mean and what products are truly 'Eco-Friendly'. Also our shopping habits are a massive influencer on how companies evolve, meaning that if we demand for more ecological products companies are obligated to do so.

Below you can find practical, evidence-based tips for buying, using, and disposing of personal care products — focused on reducing pollution, lowering toxic exposures, and supporting genuinely sustainable formulations. This list is not extensive. You can see it as a starting point.

Plastic beads on a beach

1. Avoid intentionally added microplastics (microbeads)

Plastic microbeads and other intentionally added microplastics from scrubs, exfoliants and some makeup get into wastewater unchanged and contribute to the global microplastic burden. Reviews show that these small particles persist in aquatic systems and are a growing environmental concern. Choosing products that explicitly state “no microbeads / no polyethylene” or using natural exfoliants (e.g., sugar, salt, ground seeds or biodegradable cellulose) removes one direct source of microplastic pollution.

2. Prefer biodegradable, low-toxicity surfactants when possible

Surfactants (the foaming/cleaning agents in shampoos, body washes and cleansers) can vary a lot in environmental behavior. Emerging research highlights biosurfactants (microbially produced glycolipids and lipopeptides) as promising alternatives: they are often more biodegradable and less ecotoxic than many petroleum-derived surfactants, and recent reviews describe improving production routes and functional performance suitable for personal care formulations. Switching to formulations that list biodegradable surfactants (or brands investing in biosurfactant research) helps reduce persistent residues in wastewater.

3. Watch out for preservatives and other “micropollutants”

Preservatives (e.g., triclocarban, methylisothiazolinone, quaternary ammonium compounds) keep cosmetics safe from microbial growth — but many are detected in wastewater and receiving environments because conventional wastewater treatment often fails to fully remove them. Peer-reviewed reviews identify several widely used preservatives as hazardous micropollutants with aquatic toxicity and call for greater attention to their environmental fate. Where feasible, choose brands that transparently disclose preservative systems, use safer-preservative strategies validated by testing, or rely on package designs and single-use formats that minimise the need for high preservative loads — but remember single-use packaging has its own footprint (see packaging section).

4. Reduce exposure to endocrine-active chemicals (and support equity)

Large peer-reviewed studies have documented that many personal-care products contain chemicals linked to endocrine disruption (phthalates, some parabens, certain fragrance chemicals), and that product use patterns can create unequal exposures among communities. Choosing fragrance-free products, limiting fragranced cosmetics, and preferring transparent ingredient lists reduces personal exposure and downstream environmental release. Beware that “natural” is not the same as non-hazardous — always check for known problem classes rather than relying on vague marketing.

5. Prioritise packaging solutions with high recycled content and reuse/refill

Packaging often contributes a sizable portion of a cosmetic product’s life-cycle environmental impacts. Life-cycle assessment (LCA) studies show strategies with the largest environmental wins include using recycled plastic content, dematerializing (less material per unit), and enabling effective recycling or refill systems. Some studies report that moving to 100% recycled content can reduce packaging impact by ~40–60% compared to virgin plastics; energy reductions and design for recycling also help. When choosing products, prefer refillable systems, concentrated formats (e.g., solid bars, powders, or concentrates that use less water and packaging), or brands publishing independent LCAs.

6. Choose concentrated or solid formats (less water = lower footprint)

Water-heavy formulations (lotions, many liquid shampoos) are bulky to transport and packaged in larger containers. Solid bars (soap, shampoo and conditioner bars) or concentrated refills reduce transport emissions and packaging needs. LCAs and comparative studies consistently find that concentrated formats have lower per-use environmental impacts when they deliver the same performance. Also look for minimal secondary packaging.

7. Prefer transparency and third-party testing over green marketing

Ingredient lists and safety/environmental data matter far more than buzzwords. Peer-reviewed analyses show many hazardous chemicals are hidden under “fragrance” or appear in products marketed to specific demographics — so look for complete ingredient disclosure and third-party verification (e.g., independent LCA summaries, eco-certifications with clear criteria). If a brand won’t provide an ingredient list or the preservative system and biodegradability data on request, treat that as a red flag.

8. Use and disposal habits that limit environmental release

Small user habits make a measurable difference: use the recommended amount (over-use increases chemical loads), avoid rinsing large amounts of product down storm drains (which bypass treatment in combined/separated systems), and dispose of product packaging according to local recycling rules. For items with potential microplastic content (e.g., glitter makeup), prefer biodegradable alternatives or avoid them entirely. Wastewater treatment removes some but not all problematic ingredients, so minimizing release at source remains important. PMCSpringerLink

9. Support brands investing in greener chemistry and LCA

Science shows that product formulation and the materials supply chain determine most environmental impacts. Brands that publish peer-reviewed or third-party LCA results, invest in biosurfactant research, reduce virgin plastic use, and disclose preservative choices are more likely to deliver real sustainability gains. When possible, reward transparency with purchasing choices and public feedback — market demand helps shift industry R&D priorities.

Bottom line — practical checklist

• Skip products with “microbeads” or polyethylene listed.

• Prefer solid or concentrated formats and refill systems to reduce packaging.

• Choose fragrance-free or transparently formulated products to reduce unknown EDC exposures.

• Look for biodegradable surfactants / brands researching biosurfactants.

• Favor brands that publish LCAs or safety/environmental testing rather than rely on green claims.

References

1. Lamichhane, G., Acharya, A., Marahatha, R., Marahatha, R., Modi, B., Paudel, R., Adhikari, A., Raut, B. K., Aryal, S., Parajuli, N., et al. (2022). Microplastics in environment: global concern, challenges, and controlling measures. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 20(4), 4673–4694. doi:10.1007/s13762-022-04261-1. PMC

2. Nowak-Lange, M., Niedziałkowska, K., & Lisowska, K. (2022). Cosmetic preservatives: hazardous micropollutants in need of greater attention? International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 23(22), 14495. doi:10.3390/ijms232214495. MDPI

3. Makary Nasser (MN), Malvika Sharma (MS), & Guneet Kaur (GK). (2024). Advances in the production of biosurfactants as green ingredients in home and personal care products. Frontiers in Chemistry, Volume 12. doi:10.3389/fchem.2024.1382547. Frontiers

4. Vassallo, N., & Refalo, P. (2024). Reducing the Environmental Impacts of Plastic Cosmetic Packaging: A Multi-Attribute Life Cycle Assessment. Cosmetics, 11, 34. https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics11020034. MDPI

5. Johnson, P. I., Favela, K., Jarin, J., Le, A. M., Clark, P. Y., Fu, L., Gillis, A. D., Morga, N., Nguyen, C., Harley, K. G., et al. (2022). Chemicals of concern in personal care products used by women of color in three communities of California. Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology, 32, 864–876. Nature

6. Gkika, D. A., Mitropoulos, A. C., Lambropoulou, D. A., Kalavrouziotis, I. K., & Kyzas, G. Z. (2022). Cosmetic wastewater treatment technologies: a review. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 29. (review of treatment tech for cosmetic industry effluents). SpringerLink