PROFESSIONAL PODIATRY PRODUCTS

Specialists in natural products for footcare

OILS:

All of our Oils are supplied in amber glass bottles, with screw caps and dropper inserts. This is the standard packaging that has evolved after decades of use and discussion by aromatherapists, who have been in the forefront of using Essential Oils in the UK.
The amber glass is ideal at protecting the oils from light, which catalyses the degradation of oils by oxidation. Even so, it is best if Essential Oils are stored somewhere cool and dark, and this information is put on the labels. This storage information applies to you, the Podiatrist, when storing them in your clinic - a sunny window sill is not appropriate!
Screw caps with dropper inserts minimise the possibility of spillage. The dropper insert is particularly effective if a child manages to remove the screw cap...
Our labels include a brief warning about the fact that Essential Oils are capable of damaging polished surfaces. Also, that they are hazardous in the sense that it is important to avoid eye contact, and important to keep them away from children.

We do not approve of the use of rollerballs or bottles using caps with integral brushes. These both result in parts of the bottle coming into contact with areas of infection whilst applying the oil, then being returned to the stock bottle. Applying a therapeutic oil to an infection is a good idea; putting the infection back into the bottle is not!

Our Essential Oils are all natural plant extracts that are controlled to the highest levels of purity. Each essential oil is sourced from a known, approved supplier, and subjected to physical and chemical testing to ensure that it is a Pure Essential Oil of the highest quality, free of adulteration or contamination. All the Essential Oils used are subjected to analysis using Gas Liquid Chromatography (GLC), which is capable of routinely identifying constituents and possible contaminants down to a few parts per billion!

Clear glass bottles are completely inappropriate for storing Essential Oils, but green and blue glass is quite unnecessary - they provide no better barrier than amber glass, whilst the perceived more expensive image is reflected in the fact that they really are outrageously more expensive!

Top

CREAMS

The Creams that we supply are all made by us at Professional Podiatry Products. They are made by the addition of our own high quality ingredients to an unfragranced base Cream.
We use our own Pure Essential Oils - Tea tree, Lemon, Ravensara, Lavender etc
And cold-infused Oils that we brew ourselves using flower heads in Sunflower oil - Calendula, Hypericum & Arnica
And herbalists' Fluid Extracts too...

There have been concerns raised about the safety of many of the ingredients that have routinely been used in creams in recent years. These include the parabens (preservatives), sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS), and sodium lauryl ether sulphate (SLES). For this reason we only use a base Cream that is made without any of these ingredients, and will continue to avoid any ingredients that give cause for concern. That is why we refer to all of our Creams as 'hypo-allergenic'.

Top

POWDERS

We have been leaders in the development of talc-free powders. Because of increasing health concerns about talc, we now base all of our powders on a safe, edible, vegetable starch powder.

Read more below about the reasons for avoiding talc.

There have many many concerns raised about the wisdom of using 'talcum powder', which many are unaware is made from a mineral that is very similar to asbestos.
Talc is made from the powdered mineral magnesium silicate, so it is similar chemically to all forms of asbestos, which are also silicates. The crystals of talc also bear some resemblance crystals of asbestos. It is sensible, therefore, to be alert to the possibility that there could be some health issues related to use of talc. However, talc had become widely used ever since Victorian times - in cattle cake, in lipstick and baby powder, and latterly in pharmaceutical products - so there was a great deal of resistance to an objective evaluation of its safety. However, there is now plenty of evidence to suggest that continued use of talc is unwise...

"Several studies have established preliminary links between talc and pulmonary issues, lung cancer, skin cancer and ovarian cancer. This is a major concern considering talc's widespread commercial and household use. In 1993, a US National Toxicology Program report found that cosmetic grade talc caused tumours in animals, even though it contained no asbestos-like fibres. Scientists have been aware of the toxicity of talc since the late 1960s, and in 1971 researchers found particles of talc embedded in 75 percent of the ovarian tumors studied." Wikipedia

Cancer alert over talc: Women using powder every day 'are at risk'
Scientists fear powder particles applied to the private parts may travel to the ovaries and trigger a process of inflammation that allows cancer cells to flourish. Although previous studies have raised concerns over talc, the latest findings from the U.S. suggest that the risks are much greater than first thought. Now the researchers have urged all women to stop using talc immediately. (Daily Mail 27-9-08)

So, there's plenty of doubts about safety. Play safe - use a safe vegetable powder!

Top