This year, I've spent a great deal of time (ok, tons and tons) researching and testing clean beauty products so I could find replacements for basically every beauty product that I've ever used. I have become more chemically sensitive after having a significant mold exposure and things that used to seem just fine (but actually were not) like fragrance and other additives really started to bother me. I physically feel unwell when I'm around synthetic fragrance and can't use it on my skin without having a reaction such as itching or burning. At first I was fearful of trying anything, but with time and research I gained back my confidence. I plan to share many of my clean beauty favorites in my beauty blog, and encourage you to take a chance and try some of the wonderful products that I love. The truth is everyone can benefit from using products that leave out some of the most harmful beauty ingredients.

Parabens- Are able to be absorbed through the skin and they have estrogenic properties. They have been linked to cancer.
Synthetic colors- Made from coal and tar. Let me repeat this one, COAL and TAR. Not good. There is a link to ADHD and they are a known skin irritant. They are also suspected to cause cancer.
Fragrance- Associated with respiratory distress, dermatitis and allergies. (example....my skin burns when I touch and my throat starts to close around perfume,)
Phthalates- Used to make plastic soft and more flexible. Not necessarily listed in every product because of a loophole that may have this ingredient under the category of fragrance. Can be found in deodorant, hairspray, moisturizer and fragrance. They are a known endocrine disruptor (so scary) and are linked to early development in girls as well as breast cancer.
Sodium Laurel Sulfate- Known to be skin, lung and eye irritants. These are used in 90 percent of products, and can combine with other products to become a carcinagen.
Formaldehyde- You guessed it, another good, old carcinogen. It's found in so many things: shampoo, conditioner, cleaner, body wash and nail polish. There is absolutely nothing good about formaldehyde.
Toluene- Found in nail polish and....hair coloring and bleaching products. I do have a line called Original Mineral at the salon that I love that uses reduced toluene. Sadly, I have yet to find a hair coloring product (other than henna) that actually works. When I color hair for expectant mom's I recommend that they keep the hair color off of their scalps.
Propylene Glycol- This product has been linked to hives as well as skin irritation. It can be found in shampoo, conditioner, makeup, moisturizer, sunscreen and hair spray. A very small amount of this chemical, as small as 2 percent is high enough to cause these side effects.

I can still remember a time where I felt that none of this was important. I didn't really understand what all the fuss was about. Why did anyone really care? I've learned so much since then, and there are so many wonderful, clean and cruelty free products. There really is no reason to use anything that can be so clearly linked to health side effects. Our skin is our largest organ, and we soak up and collect the many chemicals that we are exposed to. I understand that none of us can be "perfect" in our exposure, but we can certainly do what we can to reduce our toxic load. We only get one body, and there is no need to hurt ourselves in order to be "pretty" or "clean"I look forward to sharing my clean beauty favorites here in the future. Stay healthy and beautiful! Megan

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