Pins and Procrastination

The danger of buying “natural” products

Susie — Thu, 11 Sep 2014 11:00:59 +0000

The word “natural” has no meaning on a label.

What does natural mean to you? To me, it means something you could find in nature or close to its state in nature. To me, it doesn’t include artificial colors, harmful preservatives, lab-made chemicals, artificial fragrance, ingredients that aren’t proven safe for human health, or genetically modified ingredients. But all those things may be in products with “natural” in big letters on the label. Keep reading to know what to look out for.

Food

In terms of food, a product cannot be labelled natural if it contains added color, artificial flavors, or synthetic substances (see the FDA website). That means that that “natural” food you are buying can still contain genetically modified ingredients. Doesn’t quite sound natural to me. Natural flavors, too, are far from natural. Although there is a difference between natural and artificial flavors, natural flavors are still made in a lab, isolated and extracted and completely different from how they are in nature.

Something you also don’t see on the natural definition by the FDA is a consideration for pesticides. So you can be eating something ridden with pesticides that calls itself green and natural.

Cosmetics

Even more problematic than the “natural” label on foods is on cosmetics. Cosmetics are one of the least regulated products on the shelves. In fact, the FDA has no authority to require pre-market safety testing for cosmetics. And there is no legal definition for the words “natural,” “green,” and “safe” on your cosmetics. Your shampoo could put rat poison as an ingredient and still slap natural on the label and get it on the market without any safety testing.

Reporting of ingredients in cosmetics is on a voluntary basis. The FDA can’t even require product recall without going to court. Honestly, how much do we really know what’s in our cosmetics? There are no safety standards or labeling requirements.

If the word organic appears on your cosmetic label without the USDA label, it means nothing. It has as little regulation as the label natural on cosmetics. Even USDA organic certification for cosmetics is lax. A cosmetic label can be USDA certified as “organic” while containing only 95% organic ingredients. The label “made with organic ingredients” only requires 70% of the ingredients to be certified organics.

Cleaning Products

If you aren’t worried enough about cosmetics, the word “natural” has no meaning on your cleaning products either. Most companies use the word “natural” when some of the ingredients come from plants. Doesn’t sound reliable to me. That’s just something the industry does, it isn’t even a legal standard. The word “organic” also has also means nothing in absence of a USDA certified organic label. And if your cleaning product calls itself “non-toxic” it means nothing. There is no standard for that either. It’s hard to know what you can trust when these words have no standard meaning.

Image from Brand New Mama

So what can you do about it?

If after reading this you are left with a scary impression about how to deal with your labels, don’t worry. Although natural, and even organic, may mean nothing on a label, you can still find good actually natural products.

In general, it is safest to buy organic products. For food this means anything that is labelled as organic is safe, because that is actually regulated. If you shop at whole foods they also label non-GMO products. Educate yourself about ingredients. A short ingredient list with words you can pronounce is the best way to go. An app called fooducate can help you find out what foods to avoid (think of it in terms of finding high quality foods, not losing weight).

For cosmetics, you need to look for the USDA seal that says 100% organic. That way you know there are all high quality ingredients. If you have a smart phone you can download apps, like Think Dirty, where you can scan a barcode and it will give you a rating for how harmful the product is. The Environmental Working Group has a database of cosmetics that you can look up. Read the label of every cosmetic you buy. Even something labeled “fragrance free” on the front can have fragrance in it. Learn what ingredients to avoid. (follow this link to download a free printable with the 13 worst ingredients to avoid).

The same goes for cleaning products. The Environmental Working Group has a database of cleaning products as well. The Think Dirty app also has information on cleaning products. Read the ingredients of every cleaner you buy and bring your free printable on ingredients to avoid with you.

So, the bottom line is, you can trust an ingredient list and your own judgement much more than the words on a label.

If you want to go even a step farther, you can make your own products. Making your own cleaning products is way easier than you think (and cheaper!). You can read my guide on how to switch to green cleaning. Baking soda and vinegar can clean pretty much anything. Making your own beauty products is slightly more complicated, but still much easier than you would think. With some basic oils you can replace pretty much anything in your medicine cabinet.

Take action, and don’t fall for marketing tricks. You are your own best advocate. Make choices with your money and support products and brands that use good ingredients. You can make a bigger difference than you realize.

More resources:

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13 Ingredients to Avoid When Buying Cosmetics Free Printable

Susie — Thu, 01 May 2014 13:08:27 +0000

At the end of March I wrote a post about 13 toxic ingredients to avoid when buying cosmetics. I promised to include a free printable to accompany that post, so here it is!

I’m assuming you’re here because you care about what you put on and in your body. And this printable will tell you about the worst cosmetic ingredients that can cause problems ranging from allergic reactions to cancer. I fit all the information on one page so you can easily carry it with you. It can be your take-along guide to help you purchase safer cosmetics.

You can also use this guide to go through the cosmetics you already own and check for toxic ingredients. I was surprised just how common all these ingredients are, even in brands I thought were more “natural.” So be sure to read the label.

The safest cosmetics are those you make on your own, because you know exactly what goes in them. If you want to make your own cosmetics, check out some of my natural beauty recipes.

If you’re going to buy cosmetics, be an informed consumer.

Just click on the picture below to download the PDF:

Click the image to download the PDF!

If you want to learn more, try visiting http://www.safecosmetics.org

The post 13 Ingredients to Avoid When Buying Cosmetics Free Printable appeared first on Pins and Procrastination.

Do you know what’s in your medicine cabinet? 13 Ingredients to avoid when buying cosmetics

Susie — Mon, 31 Mar 2014 12:38:11 +0000

Of the thousands upon thousands of ingredients used in cosmetics in the US, 1 in 8 is an industrial chemical. Does that shock anyone else? On average, women use 12 different cosmetics a day and men use 6. Odds are, you are using harmful chemicals in at least one of those cosmetics. 1 in 3 cosmetics in the US contains a carcinogen. And these are products you use on a daily basis!

The selection is mind-boggling!

It is best to educate yourself about the potential effects of these products. This blog will continue to post alternative natural cosmetic recipes in the future where you can make your own, and also recommend natural safe brands.

If you are interested, I’ve also made a free printable with all this information on it.

So, here are some of the worst offenders to look out for:

BHA and BHT
- What to look for on the label: butylated hydroxyanisole or butylated hydroxytoluene
- Used in: makeup and moisturizers as a preservative
- Possible human carcinogen
- Can induce allergic reactions in the skin
- Interferes with hormone function (endocrine disruptor)
- Long-term exposure to high doses of BHT is toxic in mice and rats, causing liver, thyroid and kidney problems and affecting lung function and blood coagulation
- Toxic to aquatic organisms and potential to bioaccumulate in the environment (meaning it doesn’t easily degrade and can build up in the environment after it has been rinsed down the drain)
Synthetic colors
- What to look for on the label: They will be labeled as FD&C or D&C, followed by a color and a number, or P-phenylenediamine
- Used in: cosmetics that are colored, especially hair dyes
- Coal tar-derived colours are used extensively in cosmetics, derived from petroleum
- Potential carcinogen
- Correlated with increased occurrence of tumors and certain types of cancers
Parabens
- What to look for on the label: paraben, methylparaben, butylparaben, and propylparaben, etc (with paraben included in chemical name), sometimes part of fragrances
- Used in: cosmetics as a preservative
- Interfere with hormone function (endocrine disruptor)
- Possible carcinogen
- Cause skin irritation and rashes
- 75-90% of cosmetics contain some amount of parabens
Formaldehyde-releasing agents
- What to look for on the label: DMDM hydantoin, diazolidinyl urea, imidazolidinyl urea, methenamine, quaternium-15, and sodium hydroxymethylglycinate
- Used in: cosmetics as a preservative
- Primary cause for contact dermatitis
- Known human carcinogen
- Can trigger allergies
- Can weaken the immune system
- Linked to symptoms ranging from headaches to respiratory issues
Artificial fragrances
- What to look for on the label: fragrance or parfum
- Used in: most types of cosmetics (even some considered fragrance free)
- Fragrance recipes are considered trade secrets, so manufacturers are not required to disclose fragrance chemicals in the list of ingredients
- “Fragrance” can indicate the presence of up to four thousand separate ingredients
- Symptoms reported to the FDA include headaches, dizziness, allergic rashes, skin discoloration, violent coughing and vomiting, and skin irritation
- Evidence suggesting that exposure to perfume can exacerbate asthma, and perhaps even contribute to its development in children
- As fragrances can contain many other chemicals, they can be carcinogenic, endocrine disruptors, etc.
Petrolatum
- What to look for on the label: petrolatum, petroleum jelly, mineral oil jelly, mineral oil
- Used in: lip balms, moisturizers, and hair shine products
- Petroleum product, petrolatum can be contaminated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons which are carcinogenic
- Promotes sun damage
- Interferes with skin’s ability to eliminate toxins
Siloxanes
- What to look for on the label: Cyclomethicone and ingredients ending in “siloxane” (e.g., cyclotetrasiloxane)
- Used in: cosmetics to soften, smooth, or moisten
- Endocrine disrupter
- Can also harm neurotransmitters
- Bioaccumulates in the environment
SLS and SLES
- What to look for on the label: Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) & Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES)- It is frequently disguised in pseudo-natural cosmetics with the parenthetic explanation “comes from coconut.”
- Used in: foaming cosmetics, like shampoo and body wash
- Possible human carcinogen
- Can affect the nervous system
- Can irritate skin and eyes
- Our body may retain the SLS for up to five days, during which time it may enter and maintain residual levels in the heart, liver, the lungs, and the brain.
Triclosan
- What to look for on the label: triclosan
- Used in: antiperspirants/deodorants, cleansers, and hand sanitizers as a preservative and an anti-bacterial agent
- The EPA registers it as a pesticide, giving it high scores as a risk to both human health and the environment
- Suspected carcinogen and endocrine disrupter
- Long term adverse effects in the aquatic environment
- Stored in body fat, it can accumulate to toxic levels
- Bioaccumulative and contributes to antibiotic resistance
DEA, MEA, and TEA compounds
- What to look for on the label: diethanolamine, monoethanolamine, triethanolamine
- Used in: cosmetics as a pH adjuster and also to make cosmetics more creamy or sudsy
- Causes skin and eye irritation
- Carcinogenic in high doses
- Endocrine disruptors
- Bioaccumulates in the environment and toxic to the aquatic environment
PEG Compounds
- What to look for on the label: Polyethylene Glycol
- Used in: cosmetics as thickeners, solvents, softeners, and moisture-carriers
- Possible human carciongen
- Harmful to the nervous system
- Can interfere with human development
- Increases permeability of skin (leaving you more vulnerable to bacteria and other chemicals in the environment)
DBP and DEP
- What to look for on the label: Dibutyl phthalate and diethyl phthalate
- Used in: nail polish as a solvent for dyes and to prevent polish from becoming brittle
- can cause developmental defects
- Possible endocrine disruptor
- Can impair fertility
Oxybenzone
- What to look for on the label: oxybenzone, phenylmethanone, or chemicals containing the word benzone
- Used in: sunscreen
- Endocrine disruptor
- Highly absorbed by skin and known to cause allergic reactions

Sources:

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