Q. How are Natria products different from other skin care products?
A. Natria products are unique and superior to other products on the market because they contain advanced technology exclusive to Nature’s Sunshine. Natria products are fortified with a collection of ingredient complexes that provide the essential elements for complete skin nutrition. Formulated with natural ingredients, these complexes create the technology that forms the foundation of skin nutrition. These seven exclusive complexes are found throughout the Natria product line.

1. NatriMins—Important vitamins deposit antioxidants and vital nutrients directly to the skin.
2. NatriXtracts—Essential herbal and botanical extracts provide natural skin-nourishing benefits.
3. NatriNew—This powerful skin renewal complex dramatically reduces the visible signs of aging, restoring skin’s youthful appearance.
4. NatriSomes—Targeted liposomes release active ingredients into the areas of the skin where they are needed most.
5. NatriZymes—Specialized DNA defense enzymes protect against and help correct the visible signs of damage caused by sun exposure.
6. NatriPlex—A unique moisture replenishing complex protects against harmful external elements and ensures optimal hydration.
7. NatriSpheres—These hair repair spheres bind naturally to the hair shaft to help repair, restore, and restructure the hair.

Q. How is the Natria anti-aging technology different from the competition?
A. Most anti-aging products on the market today use hydroxy acids. These products typically have very low pH levels and can be not only irritating, but damaging to the skin as well, since they disrupt skin’s natural barrier and alter skin pH. Unlike competitive products, Natria incorporates NatriNew, an advanced, skin renewal complex that increases cell turnover by 25%, significantly decreases the appearance of lines and wrinkles, and improves firmness and elasticity. The NatriNew complex is found in Skin Refining Serum. This product has a pH level of 5.5, equal to skin’s natural pH, making it effective and beneficial. Instead of the irritation experienced with hydroxy acid based products, Skin Refining Serum offers calming and soothing properties. This anti-aging complex is also included in Five-Phase Eye Refine to fight the most common signs of stress and aging around the delicate eye area.

Q. How does Nature’s Sunshine determine the safety of cosmetic ingredients?
A. Nature’s Sunshine is a member of the Cosmetics, Toiletries, and Fragrance Association (CTFA). Along with the extensive testing performed by in-house scientists and quality assurance personnel, Nature’s Sunshine also relies on the unbiased, third-party research presented by the CTFA to help determine whether or not an ingredient in a topical product is safe. Since the FDA does not have authority to approve cosmetic products or ingredients, the CTFA established the Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) in 1976 to review the safety and proper use of common ingredients used in the industry. The following statement describes the mission of the CIR: "The Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) thoroughly reviews and assesses the safety of ingredients used in cosmetics in a open, unbiased, and expert manner, and publishes the results in the open, peer-reviewed scientific literature. The heart of the CIR program is the Independent Expert panel consisting of world-renowned physicians and scientists." Nature’s Sunshine uses only ingredients that have been determined through our own studies, and research from the CIR, to be safe and effective in cosmetic preparations.

Q. Are Natria products tested for safety?
A.Nature’s Sunshine has the highest quality standards for all of our products. To ensure that our personal care products have the same high quality as our herbal and nutritional products, Natria products have all been thoroughly tested by Nature’s Sunshine Research & Development and Quality Assurance departments. Three-month studies on every product include stability, safety, package compatibility and micro-challenge testing. As well as in-house testing, clinical studies at an outside, independent laboratory were also conducted by dermatologists and cosmetic scientists.

Q. What clinical studies were performed on the Natria products?
A. All clinical studies followed standard testing protocol and applicable regulatory requirements, and were conducted under Good Clinical Practice Guidelines. Every Natria product was dermatologist, safety, and allergy tested. A moisturization test called a transepidermal water loss (TEWL) study was conducted on all Natria moisturizers. Two of the Natria products have a sun protection factor of 15; these products were tested for their SPF levels. And two intensive, anti-aging studies were conducted – one on Skin Refining Serum and one on Five-Phase Eye Refine. The results from all of the clinical studies are available on the Nature’s Sunshine Web site under the "Fact Sheet" for each product. They are also printed in the Natria Product Catalog next to each product that was tested.

Q. Are Natria products tested on animals?
A. No, Natria products are not tested on animals.

Q. Why are parabens included in the Natria formulas?
A. Parabens are used as broad-spectrum preservatives in cosmetic formulations to prevent the growth of harmful microorganisms, especially molds and yeast. Parabens are derived from benzoic acid, which is found naturally in benzoin, Peru and Tolu balsams and several other balsamic substances. These ingredients work best when they are used as a combination (methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben), and require a very small amount to help preserve a product (less than one tenth of a percent). Parabens have a long-established record of safety. They are listed as GRAS (Generally Regarded as Safe) by the FDA and widely used in foods and cosmetics. They are absorbed and metabolized in the body with no accumulation.

Q. How do I determine my skin type?
A. Natria essential skin care is divided into two regimens: The Nourishing regimen is formulated for normal to dry skin types. The Balancing regimen is formulated for combination to oily skin types. One of the keys to successful skin care is determining what your skin type is, so that you are sure to use the correct products. People frequently misinterpret their skin type and buy the wrong products as a result. Nature’s Sunshine has developed an ideal tool that eliminates the guesswork in determining your correct skin type. This tool is the Skin Analysis Kit. This kit contains two tests: the Skin Type Analysis allows you to accurately determine skin type so you know which Natria regimen is best for your skin. The Dryness Analysis allows you to do your own personal "before" and "after" test with Irish Moss Hand & Body Lotion. This test determines the dryness level of the top layer of skin and shows the long-lasting moisturization benefits of Irish Moss Lotion.

Q. When is the best time to perform the Skin Type Analysis?
A. The ideal time to perform the Skin Type Analysis is 30 minutes after cleansing, before applying moisturizer or makeup.

Q. Does SPF 15 provide sufficient protection against harmful UV rays?
A. Dermatologists recommend an SPF 15 for daily use in a moisturizer. Natria Daily Defense Moisturizers provide broad spectrum UVA and UVB protection to defend against the sun’s damaging rays during common daily activities.