Last week, the "free gift" lured me to the Clarins counter, a place I haven't visited in years. Clarins products are super silky, but strongly scented and, according to the Environmental Working Group, toxic. The EWG Cosmetic Database evaluates thousands of products for toxicity and purity and posts ratings and reviews. Before buying any cosmetics I usually search the Cosmetic Database first, but this time, despite knowing Clarins' scary rating, I dumbly succumbed to the "free facial" and free gift with purchase. For a week now, my skin has glowed. Others have complimented me, but I've been wilting under the guilty cloud of parabens and fragrances.
Parabens are preservatives used in nearly all mainstream cosmetics like soaps, creams, shampoos and conditioners, and make-up. A number of studies have identified parabens as human endocrine disruptors and linked the chemicals to breast cancer and reproductive toxicity. Like soy, parabens behave like estrogen in the body. Because many cosmetics also include ingredients that increase absorption, our skin--the largest organ in the body--can absorb parabens and process them as too much estrogen. Bad for breasts and bad for baby boys. Parabens are among what cosmetic purists call the "Dirty Dozen." Check out the list below and check out the labels of your own cosmetics.
- Sodium Lauryl Sulfates/SLS
- Parabens
- Propylene Glycol
- Phthlates
- Petrolatum
- Cocamide DEA/Lauramide DEA
- Diazolidinyl Urea
- Butyl Acetate
- Ethyl Acetate
- Toluene
- Triethanolamine
- Butylated Hydroxytoluene
If you have a bottle of hand lotion in your pocketbook or a compact of pressed powder, chances are it includes most or ALL of these chemicals. Even products labeled "natural" or "organic" are likely to include at least a handful of the dirty dozen. Now imagine how many products you use each day and how many chemicals each is composed of and you can imagine that our exposure to these dirty chemicals is not insignificant.
If your morning and evening toilette is anything like mine, you might use at least 13 products:- Shampoo
- Conditioner
- Face wash 2 x day
- Body soap
- Exfoliator
- Toothpaste 2 x day
- Toner 2 x day
- Anti-aging serum 2 x day
- Moisturizer 2 x day
- Under eye cream 2 x day
- Sunblock
- Deodorant
- Body lotion
If you wear makeup, add up to 10 more products:
- Foundation
- Concealer
- Blush
- Eye shadow
- Eye liner
- Mascara
- Lip liner
- Lipstick
- Lipgloss
- Powder
That's 25 different products! I envy my husband who uses 3 products: he showers with a bar of soap and a bottle of shampoo. He swipes on some deodorant and he's done. No 3 step skin care system. No expensive body lotion. No perfume.
Recent research on the health hazards of cosmetics is nothing new. In the middle ages, for example, everyone knew that lipsticks, face powders, and creams could damage the skin. White pancake makeup became fashionable in the first place to cover the pock marks and burns women suffered from creams containing mercury or silver. Some scholars have speculated that Shakespeare's Dark Lady herself was made ugly as he describes her in "My Mistresses' Eyes are Nothing Like the Sun" by caustic cosmetics. In the 1920s, authorities warned men not to kiss women wearing red lipstick because the lipstick contained arsenic. No one warned the women, by the way, who might have ingested up to 7 pounds of lipstick over their lifetimes from licking their lips. Yikes!
Like an alcoholic waking from a binge or an adulterer slinking home after a fling, I've shunned my chemical laden, but luxurious Clarins and returned this week to my clean and green cosmetics. There are lots of safe cosmetics available these days in health food stores and even at Target. Shopping online opens a word of organic and chemical free to conscientious shoppers.
My favorite brands are Weleda, Keys Soap, Pangea Organics, and Suki. I'm also dying to try Giselle Bundchen's new line called Seeja. All these receive top ratings from the EWG. Weleda's fragrance free almond line is perfect for sensitive skin and its rose under eye cream is rich, but not greasy. The scents in most Weleda products, which come from essential oils, are mild.
Keys Soap is vegan and 85% organic. Its products include very few ingredients and all are food grade. The scents are heavy and vegetal, however. Try Solar Rx sunblock, a chemical free mineral sunblock. It doesn't leave skin ghostly white like some mineral sunblocks and doubles as a daytime moisturizer.
For the best bar of soap you can buy, try any variety from Pangea Organics. My favorite is the Pyrenees Lavender with Cardamon. Their French Rosemary with Sweet Orange Toner smells light and leaves skin silky smooth. It works great as a midday skin refresher and moisturizer too.
Suki is a top of the line skin care system also made with organic and food grade ingredients. Its products are light and ideal for oily skin or those who don't like the feel of heavy creams in hot weather. My favorite Suki product is its sugar based Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser and its carrot serum called Pure Facial Moisture Nourishing. In the winter, I massage this oil onto my face, hands, elbows, and knees.
You can find all these lines at Whole Foods, but try Saffron Rouge, the organic answer to Sephora. Saffron Rouge sells skin care, body care, and color cosmetics.
To reduce the stress on your skin and reduce your exposure to chemicals, even natural ones, look for products that do double duty. Pangea soaps are mild enough for even sensitive skin like mine. Moisturizers usually reserved for your face can do double duty as body lotions or make up removers. Skip the eye make up and opt instead for a few minutes in the sun, good food, and cheek pinches for color.
My goal is to breeze out of the bathroom wearing only a few products and to still look young and beautiful, but natural. I'm on the cosmetic wagon again until at least the fall when Clinique advertises its free gift with purchase.
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