You may have seen words such as “Green beauty, clean beauty, eco beauty, natural beauty, non toxic, low tox, cruelty free and organic beauty” buzzing about EVERYWHERE!! It can be so confusing understanding what they mean, especially when we try and sift through the marketing jargon and “green washing”.
Generally these words simply describe a healthier more eco conscious personal care lifestyle. We’ve been passionate about supporting and championing this industry for some time now, and here’s why?
No need for Harsh Chemicals –
If we care about what we put in our mouths, we should care about what we put on our skin!
We know about eating better right? We know to favour whole foods, we are or want to incorporate more organic produce into our diets. We want to eliminate processed foods as much as possible. There are social trends around juicing, eating super foods, less meat, refined sugar and understanding gut health. There is so much information on food and health, that the message is being heard.
Green beauty is all about prioritising what we put on our skin in the same way as what we put in our mouths. The skin is our largest organ, it breathes and absorbs everything we put on it. Think about what we do to our skin everyday and have done so since we were all babies. We load it with body wash, moisturiser, shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream, primer, foundation, eye shadow, lip-gloss, sunscreen, nail polish and the list goes on and on. I’m sure I’ll be applying blush and lippy until I’m 95 years old. On average, women use about 12 personal care products a day, exposing themselves to 168 chemical ingredients. Men use about six, exposing themselves to 85 unique chemicals according to the Environmental Working Group.
So the question is, what are the health consequences from the build up of cosmetic ingredients? There is a lot of research around this hot topic, and the general consensus is that many of these synthetic chemicals found in cosmetics ‘particularly the ones we can’t pronounce’ are known carcinogens, endocrine disrupters, allergens, toxins and comdedogenic!!
As a start, if you do want to make the switch to low tox personal care products, choose brands that are absolutely paraben, synthetic preservative, synthetic fragrance and phthalate free.
Animal Testing is F*#%ed –
Well this is a bit of a no brainer, let’s just NEVER test on animals. The testing processes are disgustingly barbaric, and it still happens in most of the high-end cosmetic brands you are probably using.
So to be absolutely sure your products are free of animal testing choose brands that are certified cruelty free. The ‘Leaping Bunny’ certification is the international gold standard for non-animal tested consumer products. Peta is also another incredible organisation which has up to date information on companies that do or don’t test on animals.
Environmental Damage Control –
We only have one Earth, so lets take care of it! Don’t be ignorant to the fact that cosmetic ingredients, packaging and production take toll on our environment.
Ingredients such as micro beads found in exfoliators, are essentially tiny balls of plastic that wash into our oceans killing marine life, as they mistake them for food.
Similarly oxybenzone is a main ingredient found in chemical sunscreen, and is largely contributing to the bleaching of coral reefs.
Palm oil is one of our biggest gripes, and is used in countless products. The rapid deforestation that is occurring for this ingredient is phenomenal. Approximately 300 football fields every hour are being destroyed for palm oil production. So please choose brands that are palm oil free.
Lets also think about packaging and whether we need all the bells and whistles that often accompany many cosmetic products. We would rather spend money on a product for its quality ingredients rather than fancy packaging. We love supporting brands that use minimal packaging, and can be recycled all in aid of reducing our carbon footprint.
Community Spirit –
The incredible organic ingredients found in natural cosmetics are made all over the world and often in remote communities on small-scale farms. We love finding brands that have fair trade arrangements with these communities. When you choose fair-trade farmers are getting a fair price for their product and you are also investing in community projects, such as providing clean drinking water and improving their local healthcare.
Also look out for brands that give back in other ways, such as donating proceeds to non-for profit groups and charities.
Looking and Feeling Amazing –
Personally we think you get better overall results from high quality natural products. The ingredients aren’t competing with a bunch of fillers to do the job they are meant to. You will find you need less of each product, and they will do more for your skin. They apply better, smell incredible, work faster, last longer and are less irritating.
The clean beauty movement champions inner beauty over outer beauty. It’s all about being more mindful, prioritising your own health, wellness and getting better at self love from the inside out.
Need some Guidance?
If you have never tried cleaner / greener beauty products before, start by looking through your bathroom and ditching any cosmetics you have had for more than a year. Next, only keep what you actually use and love and donate the rest. Then look for the gaps in your products and replace them with greener alternatives. Before you know it, you will be a complete convert. We promise you wont go back and soon you will be a complete addict like us.
If you need some help choosing the right products for your particular needs, please send us an email and we can recommend some options for you to try.
Remember we are not striving for perfection with this switch, that would simply be impossible. If we can just get a bit better at trying to make conscious choices we will reap the positive health a happiness impacts for ourselves and the environment. The more we share this information the better too. We want to support and grow this movement as much as possible.
Happy Switching, Milly & Alex xx
