Any solutions? I cannot possibly recommend that you stop washing your hair, brushing your teeth,
or wearing makeup. You can still do all those pleasant and rewarding steps of your beauty regimen
without inhaling, swallowing, and absorbing toxins. There are many wonderfully effective gentle and
safe cosmetic products that won’t wreak havoc on your hormones, liver, and lungs.
If you cannot bear parting with your chemical-laden but it-feels-so-good-on-your-skin foundation,
you may be surprised to learn that its European-sold version contains much less toxic chemicals. As
of September 2004, cosmetics sold in the European market had to be reformulated to comply with the
new law banning many toxic ingredients. Now cosmetic manufacturers are required by law to make
versions of their products without carcinogenic or toxic substances to meet European regulations.
Such versions are not always available in the United States. Can you really expect a hair dye box to
carry a label saying “May Cause Bladder Cancer”?
Blaming the system for all our woes is very unproductive and oh-so-out-of-fashion. Remember that
through the ages, women happily used highly toxic cosmetic agents such as mercury, lead, or
belladonna to make themselves pretty.
So instead of nursing your paranoia and musing over the ugly side of the conventional beauty
industry, let’s adopt a constructive approach. The first step would be learning how to avoid products
that contain toxic, even carcinogenic, ingredients and instead choose products that are made with
ingredients less likely to add to your body’s toxic burden of harmful chemicals. Such products do
exist.
Green Fact
In January 2003, the European Union passed legislation banning the use in cosmetics of chemicals known to cause,
or strongly suspected of causing, cancer, mutations, or birth defects.THE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF GREEN BEAUTY
Let’s start our journey with some basic guidelines that can help you get through most of the
information packed in the chapters ahead. Here are Ten Commandments of Green Beauty. Memorize
them and repeat them every time you crave that new shimmery pink blush, dreamily squeeze and sniff
a flower-scented lotion at the beauty counter, or read about a celebrity must-have hair mousse in a
glossy magazine. Once you learn these commandments, you will gain a better perspective on what you
are really paying for at cosmetic counters, and whether any of this can hurt your skin and put you at
risk for a serious medical condition in the future.
- Thou Shalt Notbuy beauty products that contain phthalates, formaldehyde, phenols, sodium
laureth sulfate, coal tar, toxic dyes, and synthetic fragrances. - Thou Shalt Notbuy cosmetics based solely on advertising claims or celebrity endorsements.
Very few celebrities actually use the products they advertise. Neither do models whose faces
are used in the ads, no matter what models say in interviews. Read the label, scan the ingredients
list online using the Skin Deep (www.ewg.com) tool for chemical hazards, read online reviews,
and then decide whether this product is worth your money or not. - Thou Shalt Notbelieve that just because a cosmetic product is called “natural” it is generally
safer. Cosmetics may claim to be “natural” or made with “organic” ingredients, but may still
include paraben and formaldehyde preservatives, synthetic fragrances, phthalates, or other toxic