Twitter surfing this afternoon has once again caused a sharp pain in my side. Essence Magazine is holding an event today and it appears that Johnson and Johnson is a sponsor of some sort. There’s a series of tweets under the #jbaby trend that have gotten me completely riled up in under 2.2 seconds. There’s a speaker who has “educated” the women there on the benefits of incorporating baby oil and baby oil gel into their skin care and every day beauty regimen.
Somebody please catch me before I faint! Baby oil? For your face? Your hair and nails?! OMG please make them stop! Ok, ok, sorry let me calm down and give you some useful information instead of my angry ranting.
Quick facts you need to know about mineral oil RIGHT NOW:
Petroleum based – Mineral oil is a byproduct of petroleum, the same petroleum from which gasoline is produced. As a byproduct it is of little value to oil refineries.
Inexpensive – Because mineral oil is petroleum byproduct it is significantly cheaper than oils based from naturally occurring elements (olive, safflower, almond, etc). This makes its use much more appealing to larger manufactures whose bottom line more financially motivated than wellness motivated. There is a plethora of other alternatives to mineral oil these companies could opt to use. Please note the key work in that sentence is alternatives, not in addition to (See my thoughts on the use of Additional elements instead of Alternative elements)
Skin barrier – Mineral oil is not absorbed by the skin, it simply sits on top of it creating a sealant. While sealing in moisture is of the utmost importance, preventing oxygen and other naturally occurring beneficial elements from reaching your skin is a surefire way to develop dry skin, wrinkles, acne, and even rashes. You skin needs to breathe.
Mineral oil does serve it’s purpose in relation to use in and on the body. It’s beneficial in the birth process to help ease the baby out of the birth canal, can be used as a means of cleaning your ears, and has in the past been used as a laxative (Wikipedia) However, it’s use in skin and hair care products is certainly not in the best interest of your body’s needs.
Will using mineral oil kill you? Nope it won’t. Will it impact your overall health? Depends on your viewpoint on your health. If aging gracefully is of little importance to you, by all means, mineral oil is a great option for you. If persistent dry skin is a way of life that doesn’t bother you, feel free to continue your use of baby oil to achieve that “shiny” look you love. If brittle hair helps you achieve your fabulous look, then you are all set.
As long as you are making an informed decision on what you’re putting on your body, I stand back with my hands up and get out of your way. Be informed, be educated, and decide based on what you know, not just what’s marketed to you. Please read your labels.
Smooth skin is a term I hear all the time, emblazoned across magazine covers and being promoted as something you can’t live without. Here’s my situation: I don’t have acne, and I rarely break out. But I have bumps that never go away, scarring and redness from previous blemishes that continue to linger, and I just lack an overall flawless finish. It’s really aggravating because I seem to have settled into this state with my complexion where I am not overjoyed at its appearance, but I’m not losing sleep over it either. But enough is enough. I have a few friends with flawless complexions, and nothing creates more envy in me than to see how beautiful and perfect their skin is. How do I get that too??
So I started browsing around and researching, and stumbled upon the wonders of zinc. And I learned that if you are deficient in this mineral, your skin will never look as great as it could. Great. But isn’t that the same for practically every nutrient we hear about? How can we keep up with every single thing?
But desperate times call for desperate measures, right? Time to add this supplement into my diet. It is essential for skin repair, which I think is what I need. Zinc seems to be the band-aid my skin needs, allowing cells to properly construct and maintain their cellular makeup. A great way to get more zinc is to consume shellfish and pumpkin seeds. Shellfish once or twice a week and pumpkin seeds sprinkled on salads or by the handful should do it.
Other bonuses: zinc is a natural insect repellant and sunscreen. In order to protect your skin and get some zinc on a daily basis you can get some organic sunscreen containing zinc and use it as day cream to get the best of both worlds.
Let me know how it works for you!
When you pick up the bottle of body wash in your shower you will likely see one of these two ingredients: Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and sodium laureth sulfate (SLES), listed as at least one of the top ten. This is the cleansing ingredient that not only cleans the dirt, oil and residue off you but also gives you the pretty lather you get when you squeeze the body wash on your sponge/loofa/wash cloth, mix in some water and proceed to scrub. Awesome, right?
The lather is the fun part about body wash, bubble bath, and even shampoo. It’s the part that gives you confidence that you’re getting clean, and let’s face it’s pretty to look at. It’s just as pretty to look at when you are washing your dishes, your clothes, or even your shower walls because the cleansing agent in your shampoo is the same as the lathering agent in your toilet cleaner. That’s some pretty harsh stuff to use on your body and in your hair.
Sulfates are unhealthy for your body from head to toe. The level of cleansing that sulfates provides is high, which is great for household cleaning, but unnecessarily high for one’s body. This contributes to stripping essential oils and nutrients from your body and hair. Reports have shown that sulfates cause skin irritations and rashes, especially to individuals with fragile or sensitive skin. They can also contribute to blemishes, especially on young skin. Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacete (SLSA) is a milder, safer alternative that gives you’re the luxurious lather you desire and leave you clean, without subjecting your hair and body to a harsh irritant. While SLSA is almost a requirement for those with sensitive skin, to treat your body to the care it deserves using products that are made with SLSA versus sulfates allows everyone to preserve your skin’s health.
Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacete is commonly confused with both Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and Sodium Laureth Sulfate. When reading your labels it is important to note the difference in the name, as there is a drastic difference in the ingredients.
How safe is your skin? Take a look around your bathroom and take a peek at some of your favorites and see what you find.
I’ve been asking you to read your product labels and be more aware of what you put on your body, because it doesn’t just sit on the surface, it enters your bloodstream, your muscles, your bones, your organs. I’ve talked plenty about what you should be looking for that is good for your body. But I haven’t said much about what you should be avoiding. So I’ll be devoting a series of posts to giving you an overview of what you should be looking for to keep it away from your body. We’ll start with parabens. Parabens are quite the controversial ingredient and have recently been under review by the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS). To start from the beginning, parabens (methylparaben, propylparaben, ethylparaben, or butylparaben) are a group of preservatives commonly found in cosmetic and personal care products. Read the back of your shampoo, body wash, or deodorant labels and you will see at least one, if not a few parabens listed.
So wants all the fuss about? Well, parabens have been scientifically found to mimic hormones in the body which in turns causes our body to think we’ve produced too much estrogen. High estrogen levels are widely known to be highly linked to breast cancer. The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) states that all parabens have been proven to have endocrine-disrupting effects. Elevated estrogen can lead to depression, weight gain, and breast cancer. There are numerous reports on parabens being found in cancerous breast tissue. On the flip side, there are some claims that these reports are founded on faulty, misleading, and/or misinterpreted data.
My personal stance is these claims: Do I want to take the chance that the claims that this information is being blown out of proportion? Do I want to continue to expose myself to an increase risk of breast cancer? In a world where cancer is ravaging women, whether there is a family history or not, do I want to endanger myself?
Preservatives are a necessity in any product to guarantee that it doesn’t go rancid. Plain and simple, if you didn’t make it yourself and store it in your refrigerator and use it up quickly, it must have a preservative for your personal safety. The question is, are there alternatives to parabens, alternatives that do not have a link to breast cancer? The answer is absolutely! From rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary oil extract) tocopherol (Vitamin E ) rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary oil extract) alternatives are out there.
Be conscious when you’re making the choice in your beauty products. Factor in your short and long terms goals…cost vs health vs ease of access vs quality of life. Take a peek at the label on your favorite skin and/or hair treatment and see what you find. Leave a comment and let us know what you find and what you think.
Manufacturers are increasingly boosting their promotion of their products inclusion of the ‘good stuff’ they include in their products with an attempt to give the public warm and fuzzy feelings…distracting the, from the ‘bad stuff’ that they’ve failed or declined to eliminate from the same product. Above all else, my number one mission in life is to promote and encourage healthy skin and hair care practices. Ok ok, maybe ‘in life’ is a little strong, but it sincerely is a passion to educate and enlighten the public on this subject, creating more of an awareness of the importance of carefully selecting their personal care products.
The “care” in personal care should mean that products contain ingredients that provide your body sustenance, nourishment, and are overall advantageous to one’s physical and mental health and wellness. These product should also not contain ingredients are not linked to illness, are not harsh or abrasive, are not pore clogging, are useful without being mere fillers, and are overall skin and hair loving elements. Products that meet these criteria are not impossible, they can and do exist.
In 2010 it will be my focus to continue this mission by educating you on the good, as well as the not so good ingredients to be on the lookout for when shopping for your personal care products. In order to pamper yourself effectively, it’s important to know what’s in the products you choose to pamper yourself with. After all, truly pampering yourself is a not only a physical act, but is a mentally comforting experience. Knowing that the products you’re treating yourself to are good for your overall well being is the ultimate contribution to a fulfilling spahhhhh experience.
Wishes of much love and many blessings in 2010 and beyond!
