Beware of Greenwashing When Buying Cosmetics!

Nothing makes your Kitty snarl and growl like greenwashing. Greenwashing is what sheisty, shady companies (and industries, and governments...) do to sway modern consumers. By using slick PR campaigns and words like "natural," "botanical," or "eco-friendly," some manufacturers make caring, health-conscious and environmentally-aware people think that otherwise toxic/polluting products and practices are really "green."

Just because a product is labeled natural does not mean it's organic, good for you, good for the environment, or medicinal in any way. Botanical ingredients may have been grown irresponsibly with no regard for product purity; even certified organic ingredients can exist alongside toxic carcinogens and/or nonbiodegradable parts (yes, some of the stuff you use to exfoliate actually contains plastic bits).  

Take Archipelago Botanicals for instance. A nice brand, a luxey brand. Its attractively packaged bath, body and "aromatherapy"-type products line the shelves of fabulous boutiques and spas everywhere. According to one website purveying the brand, "Sunflower Oil softens and hydrates. Aloe Vera cools and calms. Vitamin E protects skin from damaging free radicals." Nice, right? And yet, there they are right at the bottom of the ingredient list where they often lurk: parabens. Parabens! Perish the thought! Skin-irritating endocrine disruptors are definitely NOT green!

That said, Archipelago doesn't tout itself as an organic, green brand. But some cosmetics emporiums who resell their lines do exactly that by grouping said products with so-called "green and natural" brands. I've seen it with my own eyes in a few boutiques. Many people don't think a few parabens to ensure product purity are a problem. After all, who wants moldy, spoiled products?

       Most people layer parabens (known most commonly as  methylparaben (E number E218), ethylparaben (E214), propylparaben (E216) and butylparaben) on several times a day, since the vast majority of cosmetics brands still use the toxic buggers.  If you have sensitive skin, the proclivity to develop tumors when exposed to estrogen-mimicking compounds, endocrine/metabolism problems, or you just plain give a crap what gets washed down the drain along with your body gels, shampoos, detergents,deodorants, and conditioners well then, parabens are a big, huge problem.

I think the single most helpful and influential website on the web is the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep Database. I consult it daily to learn what poisons are out there waiting to be consumed by a product whore like myself. Keep using the products in your arsenal until they're used up (unless of course you consult the database and find your lipstick or what-have-you is a level 10 offender!). It's never hip to waste good makeup or money. But when you shop to replace those former staples or get the hottest new thing, do so armed with knowledge.

If you're behind the movement but you don't have the time for research and unlimited resources with which to conduct your own product trials, then you can cull resources (including this blog) to get some good, honest information. Check the Skin Deep website or go to Organic Divas dot com. They only carry the very healthiest products for your and the environment (I have no relationship with them, aside from admiration). Further, they have compiled a list of the "Dirty Dozen" chemicals in cosmetics, which you can download and take along to the store. Genius! Just be sure to print on recycled/reused paper!

Do You Know What You're Slathering On Your Largest Organ?

Your skin isn’t simply a sheath holding in your guts and bones; it’s an organ itself. As evidenced by certain birth control methods and hormone replacement creams, or nicotine patches, your skin can absorb strong chemicals (beneficial and toxic) that have significant reactions in the body once they enter the bloodstream.

      Eliminating unnatural petrochemicals, harsh preservatives, and estrogenic compounds can have profound and immediate effects on your skin, and even your entire body. For example, switching to fragrance free formulas eliminates noxious chemicals like formaldehyde (used to fix fragrances), and may alleviate allergies and headaches. 

    When I stopped buying the dryer sheets I’ve used since I started doing laundry (because they were the same brand my mother uses), I got rid of chronic headaches I’ve had for years. The skin on my arms stopped the itching I’ve had since childhood when I got rid of my mother’s old standby detergent, as well.

    Despite my addictive use of hair color, my scalp and hairline aren’t burned up and broken down now that I have outlawed parabens and sulfates in all hair products in the house. In short, the entire family has healthier skin, but  learning about the ingredients in cosmetics and soaps can be a full-time project.

    Thankfully, the brilliant broads at Organic Divas have done the homework for you, even creating a little cheat sheet you can carry in your purse. If you really want to take your understanding to the next level, go straight to Skin Deep, the Environmental Working Group’s ginormous database. You can access the ingredients and safety ratings for virtually every beauty product on the market, including sunscreens. 

    So what are you slathering onto your skin? Mineral oils, petroleum products, plastics, stuff that goes into antifreeze? The chances are Yes! if your routine includes many old American favorites. Now is the time to reevaluate and question the safety and purity of everything you put on and into your body.

    When you’re on vacation, do you look forward to a nice, relaxing facial at your resort’s spa? Before you book appointments, research the facility’s lines, and possibly be prepared to bring your own healthy alternatives for the facialist to use. On my last trip, I checked into a spa, received the world’s worst facial rubdown, was charged triple what the service was worth, and later broke out with rashes and pimples that I’m still battling a month later!

    I should have known better. For months, nothing but pure, natural, organic products have touched my skin. When I came off the facialist’s table, I took a look at her arsenal. A no-name brand, seemingly one step up from generic. Two different kinds of parabens.  And then there was the Hexyl blah, blah, blah. Nothing I could discern but alcohol and glycerine. Impure, cheap crap loaded with preservatives in just one of several products this so-called “skin care expert” used on my face. Hello 100 zits and red rashes.

    Conversely, some spas (usually large franchises such as Relache Day Spas in Gaylord Hotels) offer organic products from natural brands like Eminence, and the services actually nourish and repair the skin. If you’re really lucky, your journey will take you someplace home to a Dr. Hauschka Day Spa! 

    For other services like exfoliation, refuse unsanitary pedicure razors and scrubs with plastic beads that can scratch the skin and damage our waterways when rinsed down the drain.