K-Beauty Glossary
What is Clean Beauty?
Unregulated marketing category
'Clean beauty' is a marketing term with no regulated definition. Usually implies: free from parabens, sulfates, phthalates, fragrance, formaldehyde-releasers, and other 'bad' ingredients. The honest view: some concerns are legitimate (MIT sensitization, formaldehyde-releasers), others are overhyped (parabens, silicones). 'Clean' doesn't mean 'effective' — many 'clean' formulations lack proven actives. A retinoid-containing 'non-clean' serum often outperforms a 'clean' botanical serum for actual skin outcomes.