Happy Tuesday morning from my soap room! I wish you had "scratch & sniff" on your computers... I just cut a beautiful LEMON EUCALYPTUS, SOAP and my room smells WONDERFUL! It's been a couple of weeks since I posted. That can only mean that I've been busy making new products: Cold Sore Relief Salve and Healing Salve, to be exact. As skin care issues arise, I go into "Research and Development" mode.
Today, I would like to address the issue of ingredients. I'll try to keep my blood from boiling...as this tends to make me want to get my wine glass out of the cupboard early in the morning! The more I learn about what is in "MOST" of the skin care products (including VERY HIGH END) products, the more disappointed I am in our compliance authorities. ONE OF MY MISSIONS IS TO EDUCATE YOU ...about what could be causing "unknown health conditions" as companies continue to be concerned MORE about THEIR bottom line and LESS about the health of their consumers... CANCER is BIG BUSINESS in our country (I'm JUST SAYIN'). The following paragraph explains a LOT:
** According to the FDA, "does not require cosmetic products and ingredients to be approved by FDA before they go on the market, except for color additives that are not intended for use as coal tar hair dyes...... (SERIOUSLY?)
http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/ProductsIngredients/Ingredients/default.htm
As I get more educated on ingredients, I am also aware that not everyone has the time or personal interest in what these ingredients actually ARE... So, I would like to give you just a few examples of what you should be looking for as "questionable" at best to be using on your skin.
Ingredients are listed according to the quantity of each that is in the product. The list goes from MOST to LEAST used of each ingredient. MOST ingredients in products are surfactants (used for mixing/suspending water and oils together), preservatives and foaming agents. NONE of which have anything to do with the care of our skin!
I am currently looking at the ingredients on a "dry skin hand cream" from France with a fancy name and an equally "fancy" price.. Let me break these down into "user-friendly" terms. The first ingredient is WATER/AQUA -- Any product that contains WATER MUST have a PRESERVATIVE... MOST of time this preservative is ALCOHOL (which MAJORLY) dries our skin... which not only leaves our skin dry because it is pulling the moisture OUT of our skin instead of NOURISHING our skin. PERIOD! The second ingredient is SHEA BUTTER (the label says 20%)... which means that WATER is MORE than 20% (since that is the first ingredient) ... SOME of the rest of the ingredients are "natural" ... HOWEVER, out of the 30 some ingredients, only 1/2 of them are "borderline natural". CHECK YOUR LABELS PEOPLE!!!! If the ingredients AREN'T listed on your bottles, CHECK THEM OUT ONLINE!
INGREDIENTS to be "concerned" about putting on your skin: PRO-(anything), parabens, dimethicone, ethyl, butyl, phalates, ...
MY BELIEF is EVERYTHING THAT GOES ON YOUR SKIN SHOULD BE NOURISHING FOR YOUR SKIN and OVERALL HEALTH! What GOES ON your skin GOES INTO your body! Think about that as your are applying your face cream, sunscreen, baby products... Where are you putting your BODY WASH? GO NATURAL and FEEL THE DIFFERENCE!!!
Another trick that companies are using is to use the term "Active ingredients' which look all friendly and natural... This list DOES NOT include ALL ingredients... only the ones they want YOU to know about... WE NEED TO GET EDUCATED!
Today, I would like to address the issue of ingredients. I'll try to keep my blood from boiling...as this tends to make me want to get my wine glass out of the cupboard early in the morning! The more I learn about what is in "MOST" of the skin care products (including VERY HIGH END) products, the more disappointed I am in our compliance authorities. ONE OF MY MISSIONS IS TO EDUCATE YOU ...about what could be causing "unknown health conditions" as companies continue to be concerned MORE about THEIR bottom line and LESS about the health of their consumers... CANCER is BIG BUSINESS in our country (I'm JUST SAYIN'). The following paragraph explains a LOT:
** According to the FDA, "does not require cosmetic products and ingredients to be approved by FDA before they go on the market, except for color additives that are not intended for use as coal tar hair dyes...... (SERIOUSLY?)
http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/ProductsIngredients/Ingredients/default.htm
As I get more educated on ingredients, I am also aware that not everyone has the time or personal interest in what these ingredients actually ARE... So, I would like to give you just a few examples of what you should be looking for as "questionable" at best to be using on your skin.
Ingredients are listed according to the quantity of each that is in the product. The list goes from MOST to LEAST used of each ingredient. MOST ingredients in products are surfactants (used for mixing/suspending water and oils together), preservatives and foaming agents. NONE of which have anything to do with the care of our skin!
I am currently looking at the ingredients on a "dry skin hand cream" from France with a fancy name and an equally "fancy" price.. Let me break these down into "user-friendly" terms. The first ingredient is WATER/AQUA -- Any product that contains WATER MUST have a PRESERVATIVE... MOST of time this preservative is ALCOHOL (which MAJORLY) dries our skin... which not only leaves our skin dry because it is pulling the moisture OUT of our skin instead of NOURISHING our skin. PERIOD! The second ingredient is SHEA BUTTER (the label says 20%)... which means that WATER is MORE than 20% (since that is the first ingredient) ... SOME of the rest of the ingredients are "natural" ... HOWEVER, out of the 30 some ingredients, only 1/2 of them are "borderline natural". CHECK YOUR LABELS PEOPLE!!!! If the ingredients AREN'T listed on your bottles, CHECK THEM OUT ONLINE!
INGREDIENTS to be "concerned" about putting on your skin: PRO-(anything), parabens, dimethicone, ethyl, butyl, phalates, ...
MY BELIEF is EVERYTHING THAT GOES ON YOUR SKIN SHOULD BE NOURISHING FOR YOUR SKIN and OVERALL HEALTH! What GOES ON your skin GOES INTO your body! Think about that as your are applying your face cream, sunscreen, baby products... Where are you putting your BODY WASH? GO NATURAL and FEEL THE DIFFERENCE!!!
Another trick that companies are using is to use the term "Active ingredients' which look all friendly and natural... This list DOES NOT include ALL ingredients... only the ones they want YOU to know about... WE NEED TO GET EDUCATED!