A question I get asked OFTEN is “What clean beauty products do you recommend?”
Before I get started, I want you to know that I am not writing this to scare you, or to cause frustration and panic… I am simply writing this to help you understand the importance of selecting better quality ingredients that go on your body and why that’s just as important as what goes in your body.
First of all, one of the most important parts of my healing journey, that I have realized I wasn’t paying close enough attention to for the LONGEST TIME, was what ingredients are going ON my body. I was so focused on what was going in my body, and not necessarily so much on what I was putting on the outside.
Chemicals that are linked to cancer, immunotoxicity, organ toxicity, endocrine disruption, reproductive toxicity, and developmental toxicity are disguised in our beauty products that we’re using every single day?
Hidden Toxins
For example, formaldehyde is an ingredient used in many beauty products because it is not an ingredient banned by the FDA. Though, notably harmful when inhaled, it is widely used as a preservative in many products. According to the National Cancer Institute (NHI), formaldehyde has been linked to brain cancers, leukemia, and nasopharyngeal cancers. I will link a study to this here. Though, it is important to note that when discussing beauty products, cancers may be linked to the fumes as discussed here– but it is also something I know I do not want in my cosmetics- no thank you. According to Safecosmetics.org, some of the formaldehyde releasing preservatives you may find in products are Quaternium-15 (blush & mascara) , DMDM Hydantoin(sunscreen & makeup remover), Imidazolidinyl urea, diazolidinyl urea , and polyoxymethylene urea(blush & eyeshadow), Bromopol (makeup remover & body wash)- just to name a few. I don’t know about you, but I know I’m steering clear of these.
Beauty Products & Endocrine Disruptors
For the longest time, I felt that I was eating healthy, working out all the time… and I STILL was having so many metabolic and hormonal issues. Now, there were other areas I needed to work on as well- like balancing my blood sugar, balancing my minerals… but… fast forward a couple years, I started researching beauty products and realized that every single item I was using was a pool of toxic chemicals.
Endocrine disruptors, often found in cosmetics and other beauty products, are linked to reproductive disorders, disturbed thyroid homeostasis, and metabolic issues. I’m not here to say everything “natural” is safe, because even some natural ingredients are known to be endocrine disruptors as well.
We’re truly exposed to so many environmental toxins daily as soon as we walk outside of our front door. Heck, our homes are filled with them, too. Is this something to hyperfixate on and let it consume your daily life? No, but if we can make more conscious decisions daily- it adds up- positively or negatively, depending on the choices we make.
What can I do?
There is no denying that the laws in Europe and other countries around the world are more strict than they are here in the United States by the FDA. Why is that? I truly am baffled and confused as to how and why so many toxic ingredients are allowed in our cosmetics, foods, etc.
After I started making changes for myself, I realized… wow, I’m still doing all the things so ‘why don’t I look and feel better yet?’… And then during a webinar with a functional medicine doctor, I heard him say this… “Think about the years you have spent putting these toxins in and on your body… it will take about 1 month for each of those years to start transitioning into each healing stage”. WOW, why even try if it will take THAT long for me to heal? And what truth does that even hold, right?!
Well, sometimes we can feel so defeated…. and if you’re anything like me, you start to want to give up ESPECIALLY if you become so fixated on the things that are wrong in the world instead of what’s right and who’s trying to do good. And let me tell you, there is SO much more good than there is bad in this world, we just have to open our eyes to it.
So, I started to focus on the companies that are doing GOOD in this world. Who are trying to do everything they can to make life HEALTHIER & easier for us. I love me some easy.
I always tell my clients “Your home should be your safe place.” & this applies to so many areas in our lives… I don’t know about you- but I sure want to go to my favorite Mexican restaurant and enjoy a sugar filled spicy margarita and conventional queso every now and then! And when I do, I ENJOY the heck out of it! But I also make sure that my home is my safe place, non-toxic beauty products, clean pantry items, non-toxic cleaning supplies, etc. Am I perfect- if I would invite you into my home you would see I am NOT by any means… but I sure do love me a company I can stand behind!
Beauty Made Simple- Literally
Insert Crunchi. This company is one I have been looking into for a long time. In college, I wanted to drop out to become a make-up artist at one point.
My friends would be lined up at my door every night before we would go out for me to do their hair and makeup… I even got a job at Dillards in college to get discounts on Lancome (I didn’t save much money during this time)… and then came to find out that most of my favorite makeup products were contributing to my metabolic disorder and hormonal issues. Is any company perfect? No, but I know Crunchi is one that will do the work for me so that I can have some peace of mind in my everyday life.
Crunchi is a company that does the research, that cares about their consumers, that wants to teach women that ingredients matter and you are worth clean beauty products- & products that actually perform well. I’ve tried other clean beauty brands, but haven’t found anything that actually feels good and performs well that is also “non-toxic”. Crunchi also is a company who understands there is no “perfect” product, but they’re also researching and will adapt and modify if and when they need to in order to ensure the best quality for their customers. Below you’ll see all of the ingredients, straight from their website, that they steer clear from.
1, 4-Dioxane, 2-Bromo-2-Nitropropane-1,3-Diol (Bromopol), Aluminum Hydroxide (CI 77002), Animal Fats, Oils, and Musks, Benzalkonium Chloride, Benzophenones, Benzylparaben, BHA (Butylated Hydroxyanisole), BHT (Butylated Hydroxytoluene), Bismuth Oxychloride, Bisphenol A (BPA), Borax, Boric Acid, Butoxyethanol, Butylparaben, Carbon Black , Coal Tar, Diazolidinyl Urea, Diethyl Phthalate (DEP), DMDM Hydantoin, Ethanolamine Compounds (MEA/DEA/TEA), Ethoxylated Ingredients, Ethylenediaminetetraacetic Acid (EDTA), Ethylparaben, Formaldehyde, Formaldehyde-Releasing Preservatives, Grapefruit Seed Extract, Homosalate (HMS), Hydroquinone, Imidazolidinyl Urea, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate (IPBC), Isobutylparaben, Isopropylparaben, Japanese Honeysuckle, Loose Powder Titanium Dioxide, Mercury & Mercury Compounds, Methenamine, Methylisothiazolinone, Methylparaben, Mineral Oil, Nanoparticles (Nanomaterials), Octinoxate, Oxybenzone, Parabens, PEGs (Polyethylene Glycol), Phenoxyethanol (2-phenoxyethanol), Phthalates, Propylene Glycol, Propylparaben, Quarternium-15, Resorcinol, Retinyl Palmitate / Retinol, Synthetic Flavor, Synthetic Fragrance, Talc, Triclosan
If you’re at all interested, my link provides you with $10 off your first order of $50….
My personal favs are the foundation, facial sunscreen, mascara, goldenlight serum, and bronzer. I’m a pretty simple gal now compared to my college days! Click here to visit my page!
I’ll leave you with this…
I hope you know that no matter your choices, that you matter. You are valued. That it is okay to not be perfect. That this world is crazy, but it is also crazy beautiful if we just open our eyes to all the good things around us. It can be easy to consume all the negativity. It can be easy to fixate on all the things we shouldn’t do.
Take a walk in nature, give thanks for the beauty that surrounds you every single day. It’s easy to dismiss beauty when it is apart of our normal every day routine. And remember, God created you in His image. A beautiful piece of artwork unique in every way you are you.
In health and healing,
Josie K. NTP, RWP
