Beauty Myth Wednesdays: Experts Tell You What Marketers Won't

If you're a regular reader, you know that we are enthusiastically pro-beauty and staunchly anti-beauty b.s. over here. In other words, we're all about feeling pretty, but we're not so fond of marketing messages that tell us we have to buy certain products or follow specific trends to have the "right" look. So today we're kicking off a weekly feature where we'll ask industry experts to weigh in on the myths that make beauty companies big bucks.

For the next month, you'll be hearing from Christopher Drummond, a makeup artist who just launched his own line of vegan makeup. He'll share his top five skin care and makeup myths and some beauty buzz words that are known to make consumers dip needlessly into their wallets.

MYTH #1: YOU SHOULD BUY BEAUTY PRODUCTS THAT ARE LABELED "HYPOALLERGENIC"
Christopher: The FDA requires that all products sold as cosmetics go through some kind of allergy testing. These tests are conducted or overseen by the companies themselves and they are not regulated. Each company has its own term for selling its products as non-allergenic. However, consumers should be aware that all this means from a regulatory standpoint is that the products did not produce allergic reactions in most subjects when they were tested. So in a nutshell, all products on the market are "hypoallergenic." This word is a marketing tool used to promote products and it doesn't guarantee that you won't be sensitive to a product with that label.

Check back next Wednesday for Christopher's next beauty myth.