PRESS/FAQ's

Who is Ananda Mahony? 

Ananda Mahony is a naturopath and skin care specialist who grew up in the bushy outskirts of Brisbane. Qualifing as a naturopath in the late 1990’s, Ananda spent seven years in product research and development for various Australian vitamin companies and many years as a lecturer in food nutrition at the Australian College of Natural Medicine, Brisbane.

Her interest in skin health through the exclusive use of natural and organic skin care stems from both an innate tendency to question the status quo, something her parents instilled in her, and her own experience with adult skin problems.

Until her mid twenties, Ananda experienced blemish free skin but a typical age associated lifestyle of late nights and poor diet led to a severe bout of skin sensitivity and breakouts. This set Ananda on her search to find skin care products that could help alleviate the condition where she found that adherence to the purist of organic and natural skin care routines nourished her skin, leading to a complete skin health transformation.

Why was Vitale Natural started?

Naturopath and skin care specialist Ananda Mahony credits the inception of Vitale Natural in 2005 as coming from a combination of the growing sophistication of the natural and organic industry and from her experience with adult acne, healed with high integrity organic and natural skin care products.

Vitale Natural differs from other natural and organic skin care outlets because of the wide range of natural and organic brands, as opposed to a single brand, chosen for their organic integrity and their ability to deliver good skin performance.

In addition, Vitale Natural has a resident skin care expert in Ananda Mahony, providing a free online education service for customers wanting to make a positive contribution to their health through skin care, makeup and body products by avoiding toxic chemicals and synthetics.

Vitale Natural organic skin care is an online store with a destination store in Paddington Brisbane.

Vitale Natural Point of Difference: Stringent Testing and Education for Skin Health.

Ananda believes selecting the best quality and effective natural and organic skin care products is integral to the Vitale Natural vision of providing natural chemical free skin care to all Australians.

Ananda uses a five-point test to evaluate each new product that makes the natural and organic claim:

Natural and organic

All products must be free of potentially toxic chemicals and contain no synthetics that are not plant derived. The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in the US found that over 850 chemicals used in skin care products and cosmetics are known to be toxic. Note: recent changes to organic certification in Australia will now mean skin care products that carry the certified organic logo must contain between 70-95% organics. See Australian certified organic http://www.australianorganic.com.au/

Quality products   

High potency and effectiveness - natural or not, products have to be effective and so are chosen on the basis of the inclusion of active ingredients as well as the exclusion of potentially harmful or toxic ingredients.

Ethical ingredients

Products with questionable ingredients, synthetic or potentially toxic ingredients are not chosen. Nor are products containing animal parts or that have been tested on animals. Some of our products contain substances made by bees such as beeswax, bee pollen, propolis and honey.

Fair Trade products are a focus particularly when the ingredient used has an impact on the local environment and its people.

Purity   

Research confirms that antioxidants and phytochemicals are higher in organically grown plants, which assist in stopping free radicals that cause skin cell damage. Natural & organic skin care products and natural body care products contain nutrients, including naturally occurring vitamins, minerals antioxidants, amino acids, botanical extracts, pure essential oils and essential fatty acids in their holistic form.

Effective Formulations

Ananda & the Vitale Team tests each product to see if it supports and nourishes skin health. This process can take a week or up to a month for results.