Despite the fact that we live in a society where everyone uses beauty, grooming or personal hygiene products on a daily basis, pretty much everyone I know (myself included) really has no idea what’s in the stuff we put on our faces, bodies and hair…until today. After reading this list of 9 weird ingredients hiding in your makeup bag (and your shower, your medicine cabinet, your purse, on top of your dresser, etc.), you may never look at your favorite products in quite the same way again.

Weird Ingredient No.1: Sodium Chloride (Table Salt). Rather innocuous but still surprising when considered in the context of the goods that utilize it, sodium chloride helps products create a foamy lather. Think shampoo, body wash, bubble bath - anything that gets all sudsy when it comes in contact with water.

Used in…Neutrogena Clean Replenishing Shampoo.

Weird Ingredient No.2: Oleoresin Capsicum (Pepper Spray). First salt, then pepper?! Capsicum is the active component of the pepper sprays used by police officers and sold for self-defense purposes, and it pops up from time to time in products that create a warming sensation, like creams intended for pain or itch relief. Just one more reason to keep those products away from your eye area!

Used in…Gehwol Warming Balm.

Weird Ingredient No.3: Diatomaceous Earth. Combine this stuff with nitroglycerin, and you’ve got dynamite! Seriously, my mind boggles when I think about how my bathroom is a virtual chem lab. Anyhow, diatomaceous earth is made from the fossilized remains of hard-shelled algae, and it’s used in beauty products for its abrasive qualities.

Used in…Philosophy The Microdelivery Exfoliating Wash.

Weird Ingredient No.4: Albumen (Egg Whites). Egg whites are frequently used in skin care products that promise any sort of "firming" or "drying" action. Wonder if applying a little egg white mask and then rinsing it off after a few minutes would have the same effect? Hmm…

Used in…PCA Skin Acne Cream.

Weird Ingredient No.5: Plastics. Plastics can take many forms - polyvinyl alcohol, polyethylene spheres, polymers - but they’re all used for the pretty much the same reason: To help give your hair, face or makeup form and hold. They usually pop up in mascaras, hair gels, liquid bandages and "gentle" exfoliating scrubs (you know, the ones with little beads suspended in a liquid…those are plastic!).

Used in…Max Factor 2000 Calorie Mascara; Blistex Silk & Shine Lip Protectant.

Weird Ingredient No.6: Simethicone (Gas Relief Drops). Prized for having pretty much the opposite effect of sodium chloride, simethicone is added to products to prevent foaming by reducing the surface tension of the air.

Used in…Nivea Body Original Moisture Daily Lotion with Vitamin E.

Weird Ingredient No.7: Urea. Urea, which has skin softening, antimicrobial and preservative properties, is synthetically made nowadays - good news, as it used to be extracted from horse urine. Ewwww.

Used in…Plus White Xtra Whitening Toothpaste with Peroxide.

Weird Ingredient No.8: Propylene Glycol (not Antifreeze, but close!). This stuff is similar to ethylene glycol, better known as antifreeze, but it’s not toxic - good news, since it’s in all sorts of products due to its moisturizing qualities. It’s also used on aircraft to prevent the accumulation of ice and moisture on the wings. Bizarre.

Used in…Banana Boat Summer Color Self-Tanning Lotion.

Weird Ingredient No.9: Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Shortening). Why does that lip gloss or eye pencil glide on so smoothly? Why does that body butter feel so decadent and luxurious on your skin? The answer is good, old-fashioned Crisco. Okay, maybe not Crisco, but…well, yeah. The cosmetic additive is exactly the same as the fatty foodstuff.

Used in…E.L.F. Brightening Eye Liner.

So there you have it - just a few of the unexpected ingredients that are working overtime to make you extra beautiful! Now you know who to thank. (Crisco, salt & pepper, the visionary who figured out how to make synthetic urea…)