When most of us are browsing aisles filled with a bedazzling array of luscious shampoos, body creams, luxurious shower gels and the like or we are floating past the enticing beauty counters of an upmarket department store, the image we have in our heads is likely somewhere along the lines of looking great for a special occasion or feeling confident for an important interview. The marketing slogans promote ingredients that promise to unlock the secrets to glowing, brighter/whiter, youthful skin or that will have you exuding the scent of irresistible mystic…
The reality of following a daily personal care routine involving an average of nine products (amounting to a cocktail of 100+ ingredients according to an Environmental Working Group Survey) might be quite different.
As today’s assortment of personal care products are manufactured with 10,500 unique chemical ingredients (according to EWG) some of which are potentially carcinogenic (cancer-causing/promoting), toxic to the reproductive system, known endocrine- (hormone-) disrupting chemicals (EDCs) or can potentially affect brain function/development, there is a growing need for awareness of the potentially toxic cocktail we are slathering on our skin, spraying underarm etc.
If you are a self-confessed girlie-girl like me, the thought of giving up your make-up (not to mention lippy), your salubrious haircare routine or your eau de sophistication is likely to send you into total denial. For years I convinced myself that being careful with my make-up (following an eyeshadow incident that left me looking like a one-eyed Quasimodo) and changing my shampoo/conditioner, shower gel, toothpaste, lip balm/lipstick (anything that might pass my lips) to paraben-, sulphate- and – and phthalate- free brands, would be enough to prevent beastly toxins from entering my system and wreaking havoc.
Years later when I actually plucked up the courage to research EDCs on behalf of an adolescent male client who had developed an admirable cup size (breasts), I could no longer fein ignorance and claim that if there was no risk of ingesting it, then it would not enter and accumulate in my body.
Unfortunately cosmetic ingredients are designed to penetrate with:
- parabens being found in breast tumours
- phthalates being excreted in urine
- persistent fragrance components being detected in human fat
Even government agencies such as the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIH) in the US are trying to raise awareness around EDCs in particular, pointing towards a large body of research linking them to:
- Reductions in male fertility and abnormalities in male reproductive organs
- Female reproductive and hormonal- health issues
- Increases in breast-, ovarian- and prostate cancers
- Increases in immune- and auto-immune conditions, as well as some neurodegenerative diseases
Whilst this is serious and the first step towards unburdening the body of these chemicals is to reduce on-going exposure via sources such beauty- and personal care products amongst others (more on cleaning materials, clothes etc in separate posts), this is not a cause to panic and dread a life without make-up, perfume, trips to the hairdresser, bubble baths and other luxuries.
Happily, there are plenty of companies that are ethical in their choice of ingredients and sourcing of raw materials, so there are plenty of products out there, however, finding them does require the reading of labels or if you are pushed for time you can just go on the EWG’s Skin Deep database for product ratings that considers all manner of ‘beasties’ including allergens, carcinogens and EDCs. You can search by product, brand or ingredient https://www.ewg.org/skindeep
Needless to say, if you love your beauty stuff, it can be a bit of a mine-field and compromises will be inevitable. I have now reached a stage of pragmatism and delight in the continual exploration and discovery of new products . Below is my current list of favourites, they may not all be 100% perfectly ‘clean’, non-toxic, natural or otherwise, but they are semi-affordable (partially even cheaper than the mainstream products I used to ‘invest’ in), accessible and I am minimising exposure:
- Shampoo and conditioner – Intelligent Nutrients (including travelling), Acure and trialling no-name, in-house formulations available at Scoop in Singapore (separate post on hair care forthcoming including hair dye)
- Make-up – Bare Minerals and Juice Beauty
- Body creams/lotions, shower gel and face scrub – Sukin, various for travelling
- Face (moisturiser and serum) – Luxe Botanics (separate post on my skin regime forthcoming)
- Eye-cream – usually the above face stuff, but Origins Plantscription if I run out
- Facial – SugarK/Kew Organics in Singapore do a nice sugarcane based peel
- Toothpaste – Auromere
- Lip balm – don’t need it any more
- Deodorant – Noosa Basics
- Hand sanitiser – I try to avoid anti-bacterial hand sanitiser if possible, particularly ones containing Triclosan and generally opt for something like Method hand soap or spray a bit of HOCl in situations that merit a stronger disinfectant
- ‘Perfume’ – this is an area where I am still looking and open to suggestions, but for now, I alternate between Aveda and Pacifica, currently trialling Acorelle
Naturally, there is still the odd compromise and occasional conscious exposure for example when I fancy a gel manicure, for the pedicure I have settled on Zoya for now, but this remains an area for further research for the time being.
I expect that I will have residual toxicity from years of unconsciously indulging in mainstream beauty products and that detoxifying from these will probably help to correct my tendency towards oestrogen dominance and the heavy painful periods that involves, but for now at least I am confident that I have taken a huge leap in minimising on-going exposure without too much compromise on my luxuries.