FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Dr. Barbara Sturm products combine the power of naturally occurring and advanced science ingredients that are simple to use, highly effective, non-toxic, non-irritating, and absolutely cruelty-free. Dr. Sturm does not use aggressive, irritating ingredients. Beyond this, Dr. Sturm does not like labels such as ‘organic,’ ‘natural’ or ‘clean,’ which have no consistent definition and tell you nothing about a product’s safety or efficacy. We are committed to bringing you the very best ingredient science and being certified “organic” does not always yield the best ingredient.

All Dr. Barbara Sturm products are currently formulated without parabens except the SUN DROPS SPF 50 - we have chosen to add a low concentration of paraben to best preserve the product, maintain stability, and prevent degradation or contamination.

These ingredients are studied and regulated; their usage has been accepted by the European Commission and the FDA in the USA. This means this preservative ingredient has been tested numerous times to ensure it is totally safe.

Generally not, but with limited exceptions. “Fragrance,” when used in our products like the ANTI-AGING BODY CREAM, is selected for its pleasant scent but also for its proven tolerability. Most fragrances contain allergic substances, or “allergens”: if present, it is compulsory to state this on the label, even if the percentage contained is minimal. Where possible, we tend to use fragrances which do not contain allergens and which should therefore give rise to fewer problems. When fragrance is present in a Dr. Barbara Sturm product, is indicated in the list of ingredients as PARFUM or FRAGRANCE.

At Dr. Barbara Sturm we use macadamia nuts in a few of our products. These are: FACE CREAM, FACE CREAM MEN, EYE CREAM, CLARIFYING CREAM and SKI CREAM. Some of our products also contain Almond Oil. However, almonds are not nuts in the botanical sense and therefore, no reactions are expected when using these products. As some of our products are manufactured in a production facility in which nut-derivates are also processed cosmetically, we cannot 100% guarantee that our products do not contain traces of nuts.

Yes. And the packaging for our serums and drops is made of glass – which is particularly recyclable and can be used for a long time.

We as a company have a strong environmental ethos that we are acting on, including an already executed dramatic reduction in packaging materials, a shift from plastic to glass as a raw material and to other sustainable ingredients. This shift has begun and will continue. We are exploring eliminating the outer wrapping packaging and soft touch varnish from our products and we are changing from plastic jars to glass jars, and making our packaging (and therefore product size on the shelf) smaller.

All of our paper used for packaging is FSC certified, which means it comes from forests that are responsibly managed, socially beneficial, environmentally conscious, and economically viable.

We do not describe our products as “vegan,” although Dr. Barbara Sturm products are almost entirely vegan in fact. However, some of our products do contain cruelty-free Beeswax and a mix of both vegan and animal derived Xanthan Gum.

To find out more about the ingredients in our products, please see 'Active Ingredients' listed under each individual product or contact our Customer Service team [email protected].

Our products and ingredients are not and will never be tested on animals, under any circumstances. We have foregone registering or selling our products inside China because of their animal-testing requirements.  

Dr. Barbara Sturm consistently points out that “SPF” is itself a misleading term, referring only to protection against UVB, but indicating nothing about protection against equally dangerous and damaging UVA rays.

At Dr. Barbara Sturm we believe broad spectrum sun protection (against both UVA and UVB) is absolutely essential at all times that an individual will have meaningful exposure to UVA or UVB rays, the former of which can also penetrate car, office and airplane windows.  

The ingredient list (INCI) can be found on the product or on the packaging of every product and can be viewed directly in stores with the help of the Sales Staff.

All our products are developed and tested using non-comedogenic criteria to prevent the formation of comedones (blackheads).

The minerals that are used to produce talc can contain asbestos, which is why there are legitimate concerns about its potential effect on our health. The talc used in our ENZYME CLEANSER, BABY BUM CREAM and tinted CLARIFYING SPOT TREATMENTS is NOT made of minerals that contain asbestos and thus is not carcinogenic and completely safe. The talc we use is periodically and consistently reviewed by independent laboratories.

Dr. Barbara Sturm does not recommend that you use retinoids as a matter of skin health. Retinoids reduce the natural protective barriers of your skin by killing healthy skin cells and stripping the surface layers away. The new cells underneath are not mature enough to fulfil their tasks of protecting the skin against environmental stressors such as UV rays, pollution, pathogens or other irritants which in turn can lead to an inflammation cascade and ensuing post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation issues and skin breakouts. At Dr. Barbara Sturm we believe in rejuvenating and healing the skin by helping it fight inflammation and supporting it with strong antioxidants and anti-bacterial ingredients. Thus, we do not recommend combining our products with Retinol.

Dr. Sturm’s proprietary concentration of low and high molecularly weighted Hyaluronic Acid is as high as it can optimally be before turning into a solid that could not be absorbed by the skin. Skincare products that claim to have high percentage concentrations with a number greater than 2.5% Hyaluronic Acid are in fact referring to a fractional Hyaluronic “complex” that is actually a much lower concentration of pure Hyaluronic Acid.

No. Dr. Sturm began her career as an anti-aging orthopedic doctor with a speciality in combatting inflammation; when she shifted into aesthetics 18 years ago, she translated her inventions, practice and science into skin.

The dermatologically-tested Baby & Kids Mini Molecular collection is formulated without harmful and aggressive irritants and is gentle enough to use every day. However because a baby’s skin barrier takes a while to mature, we recommend you wait until your baby is at least eight weeks old before using any skincare. Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Baby & Kids Mini Molecular collection is for every parent who wants the best for their child’s skin.

Absolutely. All of our products are especially designed for sensitive skin and should be gentle enough to be tolerated by even the most sensitive skin types since Dr. Barbara Sturm avoids any superfluous and aggressive ingredients that can cause rather than combat inflammation and irritated skin.

However, everyone's skin is unique and skin can negatively react to any ingredient. For example, some people may find they are sensitive to natural ingredients such as essential oils or fruit extracts, and for this reason we display the full product ingredients within the product page of our website to enable customers to make an informed choice before purchase. Even the most 'gentle' ingredients can cause a reaction in certain people's skin so we recommend patch testing a small amount of the product on the inside skin of the wrist area to ascertain its compatibility.

All beauty products need to be used by a certain period. This is known as the 'period after opening' and can be easily identified by the PAO symbol. The symbol can be recognised as the shape of an opened jar, and will have a number inside; 9M will indicate 9 months, 12M is 12 months, and 36M is 36 months. Once opened the product should be used in this period, as after this time the quality of the product will deteriorate.

The full Dr. Barbara Sturm collection is hypoallergenic, or formulated to ensure minimum instance of allergic reactions. However, if you have noticed sensitivity reactions in the past following the use of cosmetic products, you can carry out a test. Simply apply a coin-sized amount of the product (taking it from a tester) to the inside of your forearm and leave it on, ideally for a whole day. If the area becomes red or has any type of reaction, then the product probably contains a raw material that is not tolerated. If there is no reaction, then you can use the product confidently.

Dr. Sturm only produces MC1 for patients, to be used under her medical care. MC1 can only be obtained from Dr. Sturm’s medical clinic, and then by appointment only. Please call the clinic.