How to Read an Ingredient Label Like a Pro

Reading ingredient labels can feel overwhelming when you’re staring at 30+ chemical names. Here’s a simple framework to decode any product label in under a minute.

The Basics

Ingredients Are Listed by Concentration

The first ingredients make up the bulk of the product. The last few are present in tiny amounts. Focus your attention on the first 5-10 ingredients.

Watch for These Red Flag Words

• Fragrance or Parfum — Can hide dozens of undisclosed chemicals
• Anything ending in -paraben
• PEG- followed by a number — Often contaminated with carcinogens
• -eth (like Laureth) — May contain 1,4-dioxane

The 30-Second Scan Method

1. Flip the product and find the ingredient list
2. Check the first 5 ingredients — these make up most of the product
3. Look for ‘fragrance’ — if it’s there, assume phthalates
4. Scan for parabens — anything ending in -paraben
5. Text us a photo for a full AI-powered analysis

When in Doubt, Scan It

You don’t need to memorise every chemical name. Just text a photo of any label to 0485 033 003 and our AI will do the work for you.