Posted: 8th February 2016
I’m an independent consultant for NEALS YARD ORGANIC REMEDIES. Apart from this I am a Registered Nurse & have a passion for people living as healthily as possible, so I want to spread the word about the harmful chemicals around us & how to avoid them where possible. I hope that you will find this interesting as well as glean some useful facts that will help you to spot the many harmful ingredients found in most skincare, toiletry & cosmetic products on the market. (References are from independent sources).
Some of us are already aware of some of these baddies in the form of Parabens which includes Methylparaben and propylparaben, two of a group of preservatives thought to effect hormone levels in the body and Sodium Lauryl Sulfate better known as SLS, is a widely used and inexpensive chemical found in many mainstream personal hygiene products such as shampoos, toothpastes, mouthwashes, bodywash, soaps, detergents and body wash, along with Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) and Ammonium Laurel Sulfate (ALS).
According to the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep: Cosmetic. Safety Reviews, research studies on SLS have shown links to:
These ingredients & many more are as stated above, not only beauty products, but toiletries, make up, deodorants & just about everything we use on our bodies. These aren’t keeping us beautiful & are actually quite harmful. Remember your skin absorbs whatever you put on it and absorbs directly into your bloodstream.
The marketing of “natural” products lures you into a false sense of security, eg .a stick deodorant with organic plant extracts, sounds good until you read that one of the ingredients was propyleneglycol (PG). PG is considered “safe” by the cosmetics industry, its ability to penetrate the skin quickly, carrying other chemicals with it into the bloodstream, and the impurities that can be generated by its manufacture, including 1,4-Dioxane, a probable carcinogen! Not so natural!
“Getting Lippy,” was a ground breaking report by the Women’s Environmental Network published in 2003, claimed that cosmetics and beauty products may contain ingredients that impair fertility, increase the effects of ageing and are linked to cancer, allergies and other healthproblems.
Also a US report found that one in eight of some 82,000 ingredients used in personal care products were industrial chemicals, including carcinogens, pesticides, reproductive toxins, and hormone disruptors. Many products also include plasticizers (chemicals that keep concrete soft), degreasers (used to get grime off auto parts), and surfactants (which reduce surface tension in water, like in paint and inks). So just imagine what that does to your skin, your body, to the environment & the animals in the environment. Even if you don’t pay much attention to the degrading of the environment & don’t care about the animals, you must surely care about your own health.
Some immediate symptoms of effects of the chemicals, some of you might have already experienced or know someone who has. These can include, itchy skin or scalp, redness, dry patches of skin, flaky skin, coughing or even wheezing when using aerosols, eg. body spray, deodorants, furniture polish, bleach!
So why should we be so concerned about our intake of chemicals such as parabens?
Well if you add the chemicals from beauty products you use, to household products that have further toxins in them, then add the chemicals that are used on our food, this leads us into a toxic cloud! You might think that by buying “natural” products you’re keeping yourself safe from the nasties but the fact, is that a product can call itself ‘ natural’ even if only 1 % of it contains natural ingredients.
The same as products claiming to be “organic”. Did you know that only 4% of the ingredients in the potion/product need to be organic in order for a company to claim that it is organic?!
Whether it’s a very expensive, OR very cheap beauty product, they all can have several harmful ingredients in them.
So the point of using ORGANIC & I’m relating this to any product, including foods, herbal remedies, skin care, toiletries, including shampoo etc. is to keep ourselves healthier where possible & help avoid potential future, health & environmental problems &further issues associated to using & absorbing these chemicals!
So that’s one reason why I joined Neals Yard Organic. Their products don’t contain ANY of these chemicals!
So how do you know we are any different to the others?
Well you just need to look at the independent reviews of its products, its company ethics & to know that the present owners are a herbalist & an organic farmer. This should give you some reassurance, but you don’t have to take my word for it, look at this independent review: http://katjakokko.com/en/changing-the-world-with-nyr/
Also Neals yard organic are multiple award winners for their products, their ethics, their fairtrade & for several years running, including RED magazine, Mother & Baby awards, Ethical company responsible business award, Green award, Natural Health Magazine award, even the Organic soils association has awarded Neals Yard with their official stamp.
You can also check for yourself what’s in & not in our products as we label each item with what’s not in it and all ingredients that are in the products are listed with each of them, in the online shop. Here is the link www.uk.nyrorganic.com/shop/juliettewood
If you prefer a catalogue to look at, then let me know by email juliette.wood1@aol.com, or phone me 01529 421320.
If you would like to receive organic & health news regularly you can join my facebook page at www.facebook.com/organicbeautyinsideout
If you would like to promote ORGANIC & the Neals yard organic products, then please also contact me on any of the details above.
To join the campaign to increase awareness of chemicals v organic then please share this with some people you know, or print it and take it to the notice board or staff room at work.
Juliette Wood
