Beauty Products Made with Natural Ingredients

Well, this one is really a strange bird isn't it? I really thing what people mean is they only want products that are "good for you" or are not "harmful." It has never made any sense to me that a product (by nature, produced and thus is not "natural") will tout all natural ingredients as if that is somehow better by default. Hemlock, oleanders, and urine, and stomach acid are all "natural", but I would not put them on my face!

Eye glasses are unnatural if you think about it, the nose was not designed to hold up something that is man made! Last time I checked, the earth made petrolium too!

I get a chucke every time I see "natrual" on the packaging of any product.

I used to work for a cosmetics company, it would be really hard to find a website that will tell you anything other than their own bias on the issue, you would probably have to sort through a bunch of hype too.

M.

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Go to the cosmetic database and look up some of the cosmetics you use or would like to use. It has a list of the ingredients and what all the ingredients (scientifically, through studies) are linked to, if any. Sure, the earth made petroleum, but would you drink it? Your skin is the largest organ on your body and absorbs whatever you put on it. Just because something is naturally occurring, does not mean it's healthy for your body. Be careful though, because the FDA doesn't really regulate what can be labeled as "natural." Some "natural" products can have the worst ingredients!

www.cosmeticsdatabase.com

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Everything is a chemical. Water is a chemical. There's even a spoof going around, a petition asking people to ban dihydrogen monoxide (H2O) because it can get in our water systems, is filtered by our kidneys, etc.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dihydrogen_monoxide).

Unfortunately, we're all easily influenced by something we hear that strikes a cord with us emotionally. Someone produces a "documentary", and we react without doing our own research on credible sites.

Most "natural" and "organic" products are not FDA regulated. Many run frequent ads on radio/TV for a few months and are either shut down by the Federal Trade Commission or take their money and run.

Whole Foods took a step a few weeks ago by announcing that it is requiring all its personal care products (lotions, shampoos, make-up) that claim to have "organic" ingredients or to be "organic" to have official registry with OMRI through the EPA. They want that side of their business to have the same standards as their food side. Products not registered and approved by July, 2011, will no longer be carried in their stores.

This is somewhat of a personal crusade for me as a cancer survivor because many people actually endanger themselves more with unregistered products in an attempt to be healthier and not understanding everything fully.

Great question! Thanks!

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Chemicals in the USA are basically approved without much research. In fact we allow many things in this country that other governments have deemed to be unsafe for their citizens. Products are taken off the market after they have been proven to cause problems. So you could be using sometning that causes cancer or other diseases and not even knowing it for years. Every product that you put on your skin is absorbed so a good rule of thumb is if you wouldn't eat it don't wear it. There are many wonderful products out there that don't use toxins. Burts bees is a wonderful company and many of their products are comparable in quality to those that use synthetic chemicals. I hope this helps.

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Hi J.,

I agree with Michelle about the website as well. I do want to add that although the FDA doesn't regulate natural things they also do a horrible job at regulating "un"natural things. For example Quaternium-15 is in not just many, but most baby products. Q15 is a cheap preservative which creates formaldehyde when mixed with water and EVERYONE knows that formaldehyde causes cancer. The FDA also doesn't look at any food preserving chemicals contraindicating, but they do. Why don't they give us a fact sheet like the pharmaceutical companies are required to do?

The basic fact is that many people are beginning to see that the synthetic things in the world have led us down an unhealthy path. Are all things natural good for us? Of course not. But man-made products are creating new and improved cancers and conditions everyday. We simply need to be smart consumers. Reading the fine print is very important.

God bless,

M.

FYI...http://www.viviforyou.com/organic/danger.html

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These things are absorbed into your body and long term affects aren't always known, although there is emerging research. For example parabens have been used a lot as a preservative in cosmetics, hair products, lotions, etc.... There was some discussion as to whether using parabens could contribute to cancer. Some say they are safe, especially in the small quantities used in things like cosmetics. But if you are using several products with parabens I would ask could they add up? I just try to avoid them altogether. Here is a government website to read about parabens in particular.
http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/ProductandIngredientSafety/S...

Bottom line - choose companies you feel you can trust that do their own testing and is cognizant of the most recent research. That's what I try to do. I have wonderful lotions and lip balm if you would like a link. I sell them for a living and I totally trust the company. I am in the market for some new mascara, lipsticks and natural eyeliner. I'll be doing some research myself!

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ummm b/c that stuff isnt good for your body!

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Correct the FDA does not regulate and that is why I am so glad that I found a Swiss Formulated company like ARBONNE just 6 years ago!

I am passionate about health and skin product ingredients and now I can educate myself as part of the benefit of being registered with such a committed and established "botanically based" company in existence for over 30 yrs.

I have used the same shampoo/conditioner for 6 years and now most all of their products as do my grown children!

The freedom to research for the sake of your health is at your fingertips! Its' your ONE body to take care of.

If you only knew what goes into your lip and skin care products???? (I have an article: Are your skin care products making you sick- if you care to email me!)

Here is my website for FREE SAMPLES as well as some other great info on SUNSCREENS and cosmetic ingredients:

www.beautifulfreedom.myarbonne.com

D.

http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/?inlist=Y

I agree with Michelle B; www.cosmeticsdatabase.com is a terrific resource. You can search just about any ingredient, including most natural ones, and find out exactly what concerns there may be about that ingredient, and get an overall safety score.

Hi J.. Funny you should even ask this as I was talking to someone this afternoon whose 20 something sister was talking about watching our for certain ingredients that have collagen because she was planning about how she looked when she was 50. LOL. Really!!! It is really scarey when you look at what your makeup has in it. Some even have formaldehyde - yikes - just look it up. And there is a whole range of prices when you are looking at natural beauty products.

Another reason that petroleum needs to be removed from cosmetics is an environmental one- we have to decrease our dependance on petroleum-gasoline products. Petroleum is even in traditional fabric softners and laundry detergent; i have switched to all plant based laundry products Seventh Generation.

Sorry I am having trouble with my computer. Mineral oils clog pores. Arbonne has awesome products.

Minerral

http://booshmagazine.com/why-use-natural-makeup/

Mineral oil and petroleum are made from petroleum same as gasoline. That's why it's better to use organic or all natural products without these in them. I use Desert Essence lip balm and their website is www.DesertEssence.com

because absorbing the chemicals can drastically change your body chemistry. it can cause early puberty and menopause, it can cause mental disorders like ADD/ADHD, depression, anxiety. It can cause skin issues that mimic eczema. there is just an abundance of issues that can come with it. It can even cause cancer when we are talking long term.

check out http://www.HealthySafeAndClean.com there is a lot of great information regarding it.

Good Morning J.,

It can be so overwhelming when you start looking into this.

I think for me, as a nurse, I understand that my skin is one of the largest organs in my body. Everything I do to it may or may not have an immediate and/or long term effect on my health. I will be honest, that even with my nursing background and limited understanding of the whole biochemistry and pathophysiology of many different things, it is just that, LIMITED.
Probably because we do constantly get mixed messages and mis-information.

The cosmetics database mentioned by a couple of others is a great resource. I also like the Environmental Working Group site, sorry I can't think of their web address. www.Mercola.com and www.naturalnews.com

But probably the first thing I ever read that gave me a better understanding of all this is a book called "The Hundred Year Lie" by Randall Fitzgerald. He does a great job of laying of the timeline of how and when certain chemicals were introduced to society and the resulting medical and/or environmental issue. NOT saying necessarily there is a cause and effect but makes you go HUMM. . .
Some of the facts he presents are:
- As of 1999 there are more than 25,000 cosmetic chemicals in use but less than 4% of these chemicals have been tested for safety in humans.
- Even if and when a chemical may be tested and proven safe it is for that chemical alone. Rarely, if ever, are chemical food, drug, cosmetic additives/chemicals tested together to check the synergy of them together.
- Things that have a fragrance may have over 100 different chemicals making up that fragrance that are protected by copyright laws and do NOT have to be listed on the label.
- Things that say "unscented" or "fragrance free" usually still contain chemicals to mask the odors of the other ingredients.

There is no regulation on the phrases "natural" or "botanically based".
My feeling is the lab made version of cucumber juice is still man-made chemicals and in the long term may be harmful or at least not as helpful as once thought. This has been proven over and over again in the vitamin/supplement industry. The man-made synthetic version of Vitamin C is not as effective as eating an orange or even an apple. The synthetic version of Vitamin E, was found NOT to be helpful and overall harmful to those with heart issues.

We just do the best we can with the info we have at the time. Just keep asking questions and reading. Take that mommy gut feeling and listen to what makes sense to you, not what someone is trying to convince you is right.

Good Luck and in good health,

L.