Toiletries and cosmetics and health?
Most cosmetics and toiletries, even many high-priced, prestigious brands, are complex mixtures of industrially-produced chemicals.
There is increasing evidence that using these chemically-laden products on our bodies exposes us to health and well-being problems ranging from irritating skin conditions to cancer.
There are also increasing concerns about what these chemicals are doing to the environment.
The skin is the largest organ in the human body. It is our bodies’ interface with the world.
It is estimated that 60% of what is put on the skin is absorbed by or through it. This is the principle on which nicotine and hormone patches work.
Many women use over 20 toiletry or cosmetic products a day, bombarding themselves with hundreds of different chemicals. Men and children also use increasing quantities of body care products. More and more people are suffering from skin sensitivities and allergies, while more serious diseases are more prevalent than ever.
Children and fashion and image-conscious teenagers are particularly vulnerable. They are starting to use bodycare products at a younger age. This means high exposure at a time when their bodies are growing and developing and thus more vulnerable. Skin problems resulting from hormonal changes can be exacerbated by the use of petrochemical-based products, many of which are heavily marketed to teenagers.
What are the alternatives?
Finding genuinely natural and organic bodycare products is not always easy.
There is a huge amount of misleading and inaccurate labelling and advertising of toiletries and cosmetics and very little regulation.
Many products that are described using the words 'natural', 'herbal' and 'organic' contain far more synthetic chemicals than herbs.
In Europe only 1% of ingredients need to be natural for the manufacturer to be able to legally make the claim 'natural' on the label.
Don't be fooled by marketing and hype. You have to read the label very carefully!
Some of the ingredients to avoid include parabens (there are several types), sodium lauryl sulphate, sodium laureth sulphate, mineral/petroleum oil, propylene glycol, phthalates, PEGs (polyethylene glycol compounds), DEA (diethanolamine), TEA (triethanolamine) and synthetic colours or fragrance (often called ‘parfum’).
The good news is that effective, genuinely natural and organic alternatives exist!
The beneficial and therapeutic properties of many plants, sustainably and ethically harnessed, form an abundant resource.
A growing number of reputable manufacturers use this resource to produce high-quality toiletries and cosmetics of all kinds.
The Organic BodyCare Shop
At The Organic BodyCare Shop we aim to help raise awareness of the issues around toiletries and cosmetics and to help our customers to make informed choices.
Informed consumers can demand safer products.
By using safer products, we can reduce the cocktail of chemicals we expose ourselves and our environment to on a daily basis.
The Organic BodyCare Shop stocks a wide range of products sourced from carefully selected suppliers.
We consider ingredients thoroughly and, wherever possible, stock products certified organic by bodies such as the Soil Association, BDIH, Ecocert and their worldwide equivalents.
Not every product we stock has an organic certification. There are many excellent products that are not certified organic but which otherwise meet our strict criteria.
Whether a company is organically certified or not, we do not necessarily stock all of their products if they do not all meet our criteria.
None of the products we stock are tested on animals and we use fair trade sources where possible.
We list the full ingredients for all the products we sell and have endeavoured to provide you with unbiased and impartial information about those ingredients.
To help you find products that contain ingredients you like or that you want to avoid we have a Product by Ingredient Lookup facility on our Ingredients Dictionary page.
We do not stock any products that contain:
- parabens
- sodium lauryl/laureth sulphate
- mineral/petroleum oil
- propylene glycol
- phthalates
- PEGs (polyethylene glycol compounds)
- DEA (diethanolamine)
- TEA (triethanolamine)
- synthetic colours or fragrance
As with many new things, using natural and organic body care products for the first time can entail a bit of trial and error to determine what best suits your skin type and personal preference.
We want you have a positive experience.
Please contact us if you have any queries. We will be very happy to help!
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