Lots of women assume that the risk to skin from fragrance in skin-care products applies
only to synthetic fragrance “chemicals” and not to fragrant plant extracts and oils. When
it comes to the health of your skin this would not be a wise assumption. Regardless of the
source, most fragrances, natural or synthetic, can cause problems for skin one way or the
other. For example, lavender smells wonderful and it may have some anti-microbial properties,
but other than that there is no research showing it has any benefit for skin. But more importantly,
it can be a skin irritant and a photosensitizer.