How safe are your cosmetics?

Have you ever given much thought to how safe your make up is? Or if that face cleanser/hairspray/shampoo/whatever else you are using could be causing a long term effect on your health? Actually, I personally never thought too much into it. To me it was always more like -if it’s effective, I’m happy to use it. However, my mother is quite the opposite and likes to spend her time researching the ingredients that go into products before she buys them (She even makes her own face creams sometimes, however she is employed in the sphere of science, so she has time and ability for that sort of thing, lucky lucky!). So thank you to her, she has raised the awareness in me that things in the beauty industry are not so simple. Even “natural” cosmetics from companies such as “Lush” may have something to hide…

We all know the simple rules – avoid toners that contain alcohol, stuff with strong fragrance, etc etc, but how can we find out the real deal, unless we have a scientist to consult? I have a great way for you, right here!

I came across this website a while back, and only rediscovered it recently, only to realise how genuinely great it was!

Environmental Working Group’s website http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/

Here is what they do:

“We use the power of information to protect human health and the environment. EWG’s Skin Deep database gives you practical solutions to protect yourself and your family from everyday exposures to chemicals. We launched Skin Deep in 2004 to create online safety profiles for cosmetics and personal care products. Our aim is to fill in where industry and government leave off. Companies are allowed to use almost any ingredient they wish. Our staff scientists compare the ingredients on personal care product labels and websites to information in nearly 60 toxicity and regulatory databases. Now in its eighth year, EWG’s Skin Deep database provides you with easy-to-navigate safety ratings for a wide range of products and ingredients on the market.”

So basically, you can type in the name of the product you want to find out about, and you can read about the safety of the ingredients in this product, and see the rating of how good/bad it is. Also, if you want to specifically search which brands are the safest, you can go through their database.

Their only downfall- it doesn’t have absolutely EVERYTHING listed there. You may not find the less common brands, and I believe the products they test are more U.S. orientated. But it’s definitely worth sitting down and having a search about the products you most commonly use!

So, today, I am saying good-bye to by St. Ives Apricot Scrub for oily or blemish prone skin. Rating of badness – 8 out of 10 =(

Something this site is also very useful for is, if you are planning to buy an expensive product, it’s worth checking up on it through this site, just in case you are about to spend lots of money on something that will not do you any good! I have probably made that mistake quite a few times myself!