Beauty over Safety? How the blind pursuit of beauty can jeopardize your Health.

Most consumers buy cosmetic products without questioning the ingredients, safety, and integrity of the product. I too am guilty of this in the blind pursuit of beauty. In May, Dr. Oz aired an episode on health hazards associated with beauty products and cosmetics. I'll save you the 60 minutes and cover a few key highlights:

1. SAFETY: All department stores from discount stores to high-end department stores have CONTAMINATED testers and samples. The free samples come with a cost and risk jeopardizing your health. E Coli, Streptoccocus bacteria are found on lipsticks and cosmetic counters. I remember getting a red eye from trying on YSL mascara with a disposable mascara brush at JFK airport. Ladies, if you go to get your make-up done, bring your own mascara! TIP: Go cosmetic shopping on a Thursday to try stuff on. Saturday is the busiest shopping day, more shoppers come through to try stuff on, which means more germs.
   
2. INGESTION: Your skin is a sponge. Whatever goes on topically is absorbed into the bloodstream. If a product contain trace amount of toxins, it will be absorbed into your body and accumulate over time. For instance, I noticed a particular anti-cellulite body lotion contains caffeine and Aminopylline. The packaging cautions against using it around the chest area if you suffer from asthma. Absorption of this product may lead to complications with your respiratory system! Definite chuck; I'd rather get cellulite than an asthma attack.
   

   

3. POWDERS: studies show that loose powder and mineral powder, if inhaled, is linked to cancer. It’s an inconvenient truth b/c I love my Laura Mercier mineral powder so much! However, the “buffing motion” that comes with the daily application of mineral powder induces inhaling, consuming, and ingesting Mica, Titanium Dioxide, and Iron Oxide (pulverized ROCK). That's right, you might as well be inhaling ASBESTOS ladies and gentleman. I wil l be switching to liquid foundation from now on.
4. LIP GLOSS: Did you know the average woman consumes 7 lbs of petroleum oil over 10 years? Shocking! Every time you lick your lips, you are ingesting lip gloss, lip balm, or lipstick. Petroleum oil comes from the mantle and is extracted while drilling for oil. Essentially, you are consuming oil from daily use of lip gloss. I recommend reducing your usage of lip gloss and petroleum heavy products. Save lip gloss and lip stick for special occasions and use organic lip balms with bees wax in place of petroleum oil.
   
5. 
   

   

6. PERFUME: Any product (lotion or toner) with perfume in it furthers collagen breakdown. I looove scents. I get suckered into buying stuff that smells good from Bath and Body Works and The Body Shop. However, anything with perfume breaks down of collagen and speeds up the aging process. It’s a zero game. A trade off. You don’t have to cut out scented body lotion completely (life would far less delicious), but rather, use non-scented facial products.
   

I have switched to Argan Oil as my 100% organic natural moisturizer. Argan oil is an essential oil from the Argan Tree in Morocco. It balances oil production and moisturizes your skin, hair, and cuticles. No more scented lotions for me!

With knowledge comes power. I will be purging my cosmetics drawer of some dangerous items. It's a small price to pay for saving my healthy and beauty. G' bye Laura Mercier mineral powder and G'byye Shu uemura lavender toning mist! Everything comes with a trade off—sadly the pretties (perfume, powder, gloss) in beauty products aren’t so pretty in the long run.

Stay beautiful and stay safe!

Ciao bella,
--B