U.S. Women Boosting Natural Beauty Spend

Natural beauty is no longer a niche. Consumers' consciousness of healthy eating has largely migrated to the beauty aisle.

In fact, almost 60% of American women read beauty product labels for "harmful" ingredients, according to a new report from natural beauty brand Kari Gran. Among women aged 35 to 54, that number rose to 65%.

Which ingredients are of most concern for these shoppers? According to the survey:

• sulfates (29%)
• parabens (22%)
• synthetic fragrances (18%)
• PEG compounds (15%)
• mineral oil (11%)

The online survey of 1,000 U.S. woman aged 18 and up showed that almost 40% of these consumers intend to boost their purchases of natural beauty products. Among millennials, that share was nearly 50%. Across age groups, pledges to "only purchase" or "purchase more" natural products primarily impacted skin care (39%), nail care products (33%), fragrance (31%), makeup (20%) and hair care products (18%).

Yet, the report says, "women are most disappointed in the volume of natural beauty products found in department stores." They are somewhat less so for drug and grocery stores, mass market drugstores an specialty cosmetic retailers.

The report notes: "Geographically, 62% of women in the Western U.S. claimed it was important, followed by 54% of those in the South, 51% of those in the Northeast and 48% in the Midwest."