| Organic skin care is becoming big business. | | | | products such as body creams, body wash and |
| When you are choosing skin care, personal | | | | deodorants: |
| care and cosmetic products, you should become | | | | |
| a label detective. This is the only way to | | | | So effectively methylparaben can legally be |
| ensure you purchase honest and truly natural | | | | labelled as organic. Now, it is worth noting |
| and organic skin care products. | | | | that a recent study reported traces of |
| | | | methylparaben in human breast cancer tumours. |
| # 1: Learn To Read Product Labels | | | | |
| | | | The second definition of organic is, "The |
| Be aware of the Rule Of Thirds: | | | | sustainable system of agriculture that uses |
| | | | natural substances & methods to create |
| The top third of the ingredients label | | | | healthy nutrient rich and fertile soils" |
| generally lists the ingredients that comprise | | | | |
| around 90-98% of the product. Most of this is | | | | # 4: How much water is in the product? |
| usually water. Read on to find out why this | | | | |
| matters! | | | | In personal communication with a leading |
| | | | industry expert, I was told what can actually |
| The middle third generally represents | | | | be meant when companies put '73% Organic' on |
| approximately 5-8% of the product. | | | | their labels. Basically manufacturers can |
| | | | place a few organic teabags in a vat of water |
| The bottom third represents around 1-3%. | | | | and let them infuse into the water. |
| | | | |
| # 2: 'Natural' skin care is not always | | | | Because the water constitutes 70+ percent of |
| natural. | | | | the overall product, the manufacturer is |
| | | | allowed to claim that the product is 73% |
| There are two definitions of the world | | | | organic at the top of the label (remember # 1 |
| natural. | | | | in this article?). |
| | | | |
| The dictionary definition: "Existing in or, | | | | If you removed the water, the actual organic |
| formed by, nature". | | | | content of those fancy herbal infusions would |
| | | | probably be less than 0.05% of the total |
| The cosmetic industry definition: "Any | | | | product. |
| ingredient derived from a natural substance". | | | | |
| | | | # 5: Be aware of inconsistent labelling |
| Manufacturers commonly use the world | | | | standards |
| 'natural' on labels to deceive consumers. For | | | | |
| example, "Cocamide-DEA derived from coconut | | | | In some countries, ingredients that are not |
| oil". | | | | allowed in certified organic foods ARE |
| | | | allowed in certified organic personal care |
| Cocamide-DEA may well be from coconut oil, | | | | and cosmetic products. This represents a lack |
| but a synthetic chemical called | | | | of continuity or consistency in labelling |
| diethanolamine is used in the extraction | | | | standards. |
| process. It is known to cause cancer. An | | | | |
| ingredient is not really natural if it has | | | | How can food and cosmetics products have the |
| been processed in this way. | | | | same certified organic logo when ingredients |
| | | | that are allowed personal care and cosmetics |
| # 3: Organic doesn't mean what you think. | | | | are not allowed in food? Remember that if |
| | | | it's on your skin, you're drinking it! |
| An organic certification on a product label | | | | |
| is the only way to guarantee the integrity of | | | | # 6: Miracle ingredients don't exist |
| a product. The definition of certified | | | | |
| organic is as follows: | | | | Vitamin C, vitamin E, coenzyme Q10, active |
| | | | copper and other ingredients may be touted as |
| "An independent third party guarantee of an | | | | miracle ingredients. The fact is that there |
| organic claim". | | | | is no miracle ingredient for the skin or |
| | | | hair, just as there is no magic pill for |
| Always look for a logo that guarantees the | | | | curing illness and disease. |
| product's integrity. | | | | |
| | | | The quality of the skin is a function of |
| Certified organic products must contain a | | | | feeding the body and skin high quality |
| minimum of 95% organic ingredients excluding | | | | nutrients over time and keeping the toxin |
| water and salt/minerals, with a small | | | | levels of the body as low as possible. |
| allowance for natural, non-organic | | | | |
| ingredients that must comply with very | | | | When you use high quality, certified organic |
| stringent processing criteria. | | | | products, ALL the ingredients are active. |
| | | | They are ALL beneficial and they all feed the |
| There are two definitions of organic: | | | | skin. |
| | | | |
| Organic chemistry is concerned with | | | | # 7: If it harms lab animals it will harm |
| substances that contain carbon. Carbon is | | | | you! |
| present in all living things. Legally, the | | | | |
| cosmetics industry is allowed to label any | | | | If you read books by Dr Sherry Rogers, M.D, |
| product that contains carbon as 'organic'. So | | | | you will discover that in order to give a rat |
| if it contains petrol, it is organic. | | | | cancer or Parkinson's Disease, it is injected |
| | | | with some of the very same chemicals that you |
| Methylparaben is derived from petrochemicals, | | | | will find in your cleverly labelled organic |
| which are derived from crude oil, which is | | | | skin care, personal care and cosmetic |
| derived from living matter. It is a widely | | | | products. |
| used preservative in organic skin care | | | | |