I have spent a lot of time over the last few years learning all that I could about eating right, cleaning green, going natural and removing preservatives, chemicals, etc out of my food and home. But I have neglected one very important area...my personal hygiene/beauty products.
I am not what you would call a diva or high maintenance but I use a good number of products. I made a list of them all and then I went to www.cosmeticsdatabase.com and looked each one up. WOW...it was scary. You really should check it out. All of the products that I use are listed as moderate hazard with the exception of two that are high risk. The only low hazards that I had were for my Spry toothpaste and Aveeno body lotion.
One thing that surprised me was that two of the products that I use that are high priced and marketed as being 'natural', fair trade, recycle, upcycle options and all were the worst ones.
So now I am in search of products that are not full of harmful chemicals but still be able to keep me clean, my skin and hair soft and not be looking or smelling like I just crawled out from under a rock.
I'm not going to throw these products out because that is just pure waste. I've been exposed to them for this long it's not going to hurt any more to finish the bottles. But I am going to find alternatives so that when they do run out I know what I will be trying.
Anyone have any good advice or tips on this subject?
I went through this process recently as well. Talk about scary. I cleaned out all out bathroom cupboards and took stock of watch we have left on hand. We are now using up all our products and as they run out, they'll be replaced with low-toxicity, greener, fairer products. I'm sure each will take some time to research, but hopefully by spacing it all out, I'll have the time to make the best decisions.
ReplyDeleteO my gosh! I did the same thing today,,,researching blush and mascara...and what a shock I got. So...I have now to research healthy alternatives or do without. I think the thoughts of THAT scare me more than the dangers of using these products...
ReplyDeleteI make my own and it is not as hard as you would think it is. I started with this book http://www.amazon.co.uk/Natural-Beauty-Home-Revised-Easy/dp/0805070222/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1266404801&sr=8-1-spell, which makes very simple things, although I still use the recipie for cold cream and toner. I have got a bit more sophisticated with my moisturiser now and I use a simillar recipie to this site
ReplyDeletehttp://www.natural-skincare-made-easy.org/face-cream.html
For a body lotion I use almond oil with some nice essential oils in it. I have amazingly soft skin.
Its scary at first but easy once you get into it and so much fun!
Hmmm, maybe I should write a post about it!
Jen
agoodhuman...my plan of attack is the same as you mentioned. I am going to use up what I have and do the research so I will be ready to replace with something healthier when I run out.
ReplyDeleteWendy...YES the thought of going without some of these products is very scary to me too. I don't wear much makeup but feel completely naked without mascara and am NOT ready to go gray yet. I have a lot of research to do.
darkpurplemoon...THANK YOU sooo much for the book recommendations. I can't wait to check them out. I am leaning towards learning to make some of my own products. You really should write a post on what all you do. I think a lot of people are interested in getting these chemicals out of their homes and off of their bodies it's just overwhelming trying to narrow down the info.