If your little bub has sensitive or dry skin, you probably avoid skincare with fragrances. But maybe you’ve noticed that Bubbsi not only soothes even super flaky, irritated skin—it also smells delicious. So, what’s the deal? What is wrong with having fragrance? What fragrance is in Bubbsi products, and is it all-natural? Does the fragrance involve coconut oil? Magic? A little of both? Here, we break down why so many fragrances are not a good idea for sensitive skin—even some that are labeled “all natural”—but why the fragrance in our ultra high-quality products is clean and non-irritating. And we give you the scoop on the Bubbsi fragrance that makes you, as one fan wrote to us, “smell like a cookie all day long.”

Are Fragrances Bad For Your Skin?

The first thing you should know: Not all fragrances are created equal. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) doesn't require cosmetic companies to disclose what ingredients are in their fragrances because it's considered a "trade secret" which leads to a lack of transparency about ingredient safety. 

What are the Harmful Ingredients in Perfume?

Many traditional fragrances contain synthetic chemicals, and can include phthalates—chemicals that make the scent last longer but are also known endocrine disruptors—or styrene, a chemical building block that in 2014 the National Academy of Sciences confirmed can cause cancer. So the fragrance category has gotten a bad rap because there can be thousands of "hidden" chemicals in a given scent, and some of them could be harmful.

Is Skin Sensitivity to Fragrance Common?

Sensitivity to fragrances affects more than two million people, according to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD). And, of the overall population, 30 percent suffer from eczema, according to the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases.

Certain fragrance ingredients can be a top cause of dermatitis, which is a general term for skin irritation, eczema being the extreme version.

Can All-Natural Fragrances Irritate Your Skin?

While browsing online or in stores for skincare products for your bubs, the label "all-natural" may give you some comfort. Some moms swear by essential oils or natural fragrant ingredients such as lavender and citrus oils, but many people don't realize they're also common skin irritants. Beyond lavender and citrus, many natural fragrances are not necessarily great for people with easily irritated skin. Essential oils are also not clearly regulated by the FDA. 

How is Bubbsi's Fragrance Different?

Bubbsi is committed to transparency, and also to using clean, low-hazard, and gentle ingredients throughout our products. Our signature fragrance is primarily a blend of coconut, vanilla and sandalwood notes and is 100% naturally-derived.  “Naturally-derived” means that all the ingredients are sourced from nature, but could potentially be derived in a lab. 

Our fragrance (like our formulas) is EU-compliant, meaning it doesn’t contain ANY of the 1,400 ingredients that are banned in EU personal care products (including phthalates and all the other yuckies). We consider this the highest bar for product safety.

Additionally, every ingredient in our fragrance is scored as “low-hazard” by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), which means our ingredients have low toxicity concerns based on available research.  

Finally, we go a step further by keeping out ingredients that could be potential skin irritants or allergens, like the natural essential oils we discussed earlier.  

For full transparency, we include our complete fragrance ingredient list on our website within each product listing under “What’s Inside?” so our customers have all the information they need to confirm safety.  

What Makes Bubbsi's Scent So Magical?

Bubbsi founder Sweta Doshi wanted the playfulness of the brand to come through in every aspect—including fragrance. Prior to founding Bubbsi, Sweta developed products for a leading fragrance brand, where she learned that fragrance evokes a lot of emotion. She wanted to enhance the natural coconut scent of Bubbsi products, and tried adding a touch of vanilla, which is known to be a broadly appealing scent, especially to kids. Bubbsi’s delicious fragrance is one of the things that make our products so fun to use. We like to say it has “coconut, vanilla and a spoonful of giggles.” These moms agree!  

Try Bubbsi's great-smelling, skin-softening products - the only skincare kids ask for by name!