Natural Empathy - Frequently Asked Questions

faq

What is special or different about your products?

Natural Empathy is made in small, carefully controlled batches in the British countryside using fabulous naturally active ingredients. These ingredients are very pure and not diluted by cheaper oils, bulked out by fillers or contaminated by harsh, harmful chemicals.
The formulations do not contain questionable synthetic ingredients such as parabens or sulphates but are high in nutirents that are wonderful for the skin and hair.
We have selected small specialist suppliers who are passionate about what they do, share our vision for quality with respect for nature and will work with us to innovate and develop fresh ideas.
Our certified organic pure essential oils are blended by our professional perfumers who understand that fragrance is important as well as function. Some of these complex essential oil mixtures have more than twelve different constituents that provide sustainable, natural anti-ageing properties that boost your own bodies natural regenerative processes.

	I wonder if you could advise me which, if any, of your products contain nut oils or other derivatives in the ingredients?
	Hi Liz, our hand and body lotions contain avocado oil and our no1 face cream sweet almond oil too. Choose our popular no3 care and repair moisturiser and luxury body butter both with frankincense and myrrh and any of our wash off products which are free of nut oils. If you are sensitive to even trace quantities do a patch test first. We will accept the products back if they are not suitable.

	Hi, I have just read that you have launched a spa brand that will be rolling out across the country.Can you tell me where I will be able to book some treatments? Thanks. Sarah
	Thanks for your question and interest in Natural Empathy. Please check out www.decorospas.co.uk which is absolutely wonderful. Very different too, with its country house ‘William Morris’ feel and green therapies. Decoro has plans for a least 10 more spas and the next one will be York beginning later this year.

I have noticed some products in the market state they aren't suitable during pregnancy. Are any of your products unsuitable and are the best to use during pregnancy?

It is best to avoid all essential oils during your first trimester. After that there are still certain essential oils it is best to avoid and I will put together a list for you if you email me on philip@naturalempathy.com
However, we have deliberately avoided the essential oils that are of major concern during pregnancy and also removed the main allergens too. Furthermore, our formulations have been approved by toxicologists as safe for general use.
After your first trimester I recommend our Shea Indulgence body butter with frankincense and myrrh to keep your skin soft, supple, well hydrated and smelling wonderful.

Hi, your website and products look very interesting. I notice you don't use parabens, and wondered what alternatives you use to preserve your products. Many thanks.

We use an approved naturally derived alternative preservative system but also add natural vitamin E which also acts as a preservative. Additionally we try to use airless containers for our face creams to keep the potential for contamination to a minimum and try to use our labels to keep out the light (which causes discolouration and deterioration of essential oils).
Natural preservative systems are not quite as effective as parabens so the shelf life is generally a little less and not as forgiving when products are badly stored in too warm conditions. However, as a technologist used to handling difficult chemicals I feel the precautionary view of not using parabens is sensible.

I have very sensitive skin, will I be able to safely use your products?

Almost certainly, yes. We have many customers with sensitive skin who swear by Natural Empathy. We have worked hard to make sure that the range is beneficial to most skin types and in fact have conducted a lot of patch testing on sensitive skin and have found no negative reactions so far. The range has also been tested on the sensitive skin caused by some cancer treatments to good effect.
However, if you are unsure it is always worth conducting a patch test yourself and we would certainly accept a product back if it were to be unsuitable.

Hi, I purchased some of your fantastic products at Burghley Horse trials and now need more! just a couple of questions if that's ok? how does the cleanser work,is it rinse off or tissue off? is it possible to buy on line the small size of No2 moisturiser as going on holiday soon? Thanks Anne

Hi Anne, Thanks for the kind comments. The cleanser can be used as a non foaming face wash (rinse off) or as a wipe off product. As a wash off it takes a bit of getting used to because there are no suds but it does an amazing job. It can also be used as a sort of face mask as it will continue to gently draw out imputies due to the natural white clay content as the organic essential oils go to work careing and repairing. For best results though use it in conjunction with the bamboo wash cloth which is provided free with the cleanser and a little warm water to gently exfoliate and freshen.
Regarding the small size no2, at the moment this is not available on the net but if you buy 2 products I will send you one of these free, as a gift for going on your holidays :)

Hi . i have combination type skin and which other products which products would be good for my skin type ? imi x

Geranium essential oil features in many of our products because of its balancing properties and our citrus oils brighten the complexion and improve circulation. Also, the natural formulations restore balance to the natural sebum production and therefore you may find your combination skin improves with time. For best results, start with Care and repair signature moisturiser no1 and our Clean and Green natural cleanser.

What do you mean by 'natural parfum' on your ingredients lists?

We have incorporated a lot of pure essential oils in our formulations which are blended for specific purposes as well as for great fragrance. However, as there are so many we don't have room for them all on the label. Therefore, we highlight three of the key essential oils and group the remainder under the heading 'natural parfum'.
However, please don't confuse this with the simple term 'parfum' which usually indicates an addition of synthetic fragrance to the formulation that may hide a multitude of sins.
This may seem a little confusing but our formulations can contain 13 essential oils all with extremely long names! They are all certified organic and natural.

	Hi, what is the packaging made of and how recyclable is it please? :) Thanks guys.
	Our bottles are polyethylene and can be recycled. We have made our labels easy to peel off so that recycling is made easier too and all our paper / card stock is recycled or from sustainable sources and can be recycled again. Lotion pumps can be washed and reused.

	Why is organic better for you?
	By using organic ingredients on your body, you are reducing the amount of potentially harmful chemical residues that are absorbed by your skin. However, whilst organic is often better, this is not always the case. Sometimes organic ingredients can be less predictable and be spoiled by naturally occuring impurites. Provenance and purity are therefore key and then organic where appropriate.

Are all your items totally organic ?

All our essential oils are certified organic but no, not everything is. This is because some of our ingredients are wild-crafted or are in fact organic without being certified as such. Also, the purity and provenance of our ingredients and the consistent high quality are also very important factors.
Our cold pressed, extra virgin rapeseed oil is probably the best there is. It is grown and lovingly nurtured on a small farm in Northumberland where the impact of processing is kept to a minimum to ensure a high level of nutrients. However, due to the colder, wetter climate a small amount of weed control is needed to ensure consistent purity but this is also kept to an absolute minimum.
We may introduce fully organic products to the range in the future but only if we can be sure of maintaining our high standards.
You may be interested to know that all Natural Empathy products are suitable for Vegans too.

I notice you use rapeseed oil in your formulations. Might I be allergic to it?

Very unlikely. Rapeseed allergies are usually associated with the pollen from the plants not the oil, and the pollen is very sticky and doesn't usually float about in the air. Furthermore we use a very pure high quality oil well known for its high level of nutrients. We have customers and staff who suffer greatly with allergies but are unaffected in this way by our products. We take great care in this regard as we aim to provide nature's best skin and haircare for everyone.

Why don't you have soil association or some other accreditation?

The world of natural beauty is changing fast and in fact becoming more regulated. Better controls are being considered to curb unsubstantiated claims. However, there are still too many different standards and the industry is currently working to produce a harmonised standard that can work accross all geographical areas.
Once these agreements have been made and formalised, we at Natural Empathy will look to accreditation. At the moment we could spend a lot of time and money aligning with an obsolete system...unwise. Probably next year.
However, all our certified organic essential oils are Soil Association accredited.

Why all the fuss about SLS?

SLS or sodium lauryl sulphate is a common ingredient in wash off products such as shampoos and body wash. It is in our view (shared by many) a very harsh cleanser more appropriate to degreasing applications such as car washes. Over use of this product can cause excessive drying of the skin and hair leading often to skin irritation.
We have replaced this ingredient with natural surfactants such as Chilean soap bark which is far more gentle and still very effective.

Why don't you use parabens? Are they unsafe?

Parabans are wide spectrum preservatives often used in mass market cosmetic / beauty products. Some studies have linked certain parabens to breast cancer but there isn't really any firm conclusive evidence. We don't use them because of the uncertainty and because there are natural alternatives. Some chemicals that were considered safe years ago are now banned and therefore if there is any doubt why take the risk?
Also parabens go against our philosophy of trying to only use ingredients that are in tune with our bodies and in tune with nature.

	Do you test your products on animals?
	We do not test any of our products on animals...except when our Labrador Inca has ichy skin after playing in the field. A dab of body butter usually does the trick.

	Would it be possible for you to publish a list of ingredients for each product - perhaps under the 'more info' tab on the website?
	All of our ingredients are listed on the bottles and boxes of product but we are also planning to put a list of the ingredients we use with a short description of their nature and purpose on the website in the near future. It just takes a little time to compile...it's coming soon.

Do you try to use local ingredients?

Focused on sourcing quality and sustainable ingredients from a range of local and responsible global suppliers we are dedicated to using the best quality, non-synthetic, non-petroleum based, ingredients available world-wide. These ingredients include cold pressed extra virgin rapeseed oil, used throughout the product range for its purity and health benefits to the skin and is sourced locally from Northumberland growers; and Shea Butter, used for hundreds of years as a deep moisturiser, from an African women’s co-operative

	My label seems to have come off my shampoo after a little while in the shower. Why is this?
	Oops, sorry! Yes, in the early stages we experienced some teething problems with this. We tried to make the labels peel easily so that the bottle could be more readily recycled and we didn't get the balance right. This has been subsequently resolved. I'm sure you will not have that problem again.

My lotion pump doesn’t seem to work, can I fix it?

Yes, sometimes if the cap isn’t tight enough the lotion pump mechanism can’t work because it isn’t gripped properly. Simply give the cap an extra turn or two and it should be fine. This is the price we pay to have a closing function on our lotion pumps so that they won’t leak when in your toiletry bag; the neck collar has to be held securely for it to work. This should be tight enough when you get it but the odd one gets through the system.