Beautycounter - Megan Larson
It’s no secret that I like clean, natural EVERYTHING! Living a healthy lifestyle doesn’t just mean eating well and working out though. From my food all the way down to my skincare products, this girl is cleaning house and going natural! That’s why I’ve invited Megan here to talk all things cosmetics!
Megan is a physical therapist turned clean beauty advocate. As an independent Beautycounter consultant, she and her team of 50+ women (and a few men!) work to educate consumers so they can make more informed decisions about what they are putting on their body. She loves helping people switch to safer skin care in a way that makes sense for them. She’s down to earth and kick a** so get ready for some educational content that is going to share hard truths around “natural” beauty labeling!
SHOP THE POST:
100% Natural — is it always the best choice?
While considering a purchase of new personal care products or cosmetics, it’s becoming more and more common to look for products on the natural, green, eco-friendly side of the aisle. All things that come from nature are always better — because Mother Nature knows best, right?
Well, it’s just not that simple. As an unapologetic advocate for consumer safety, I want to tackle an interesting and misguided consumer trend within the beauty industry — NATURAL beauty products.
Many naturally-derived ingredients are very safe to use, but they are not all created equal. There are many natural ingredients that aren’t as safe as we may believe them to be. On the opposite end of the spectrum, synthetic ingredients unfairly seen as the inferior ingredient choice. Contrarily, there are many lab-made ingredients that are perfectly safe. In some cases, they are actually safer than the naturally-derived alternative.
As consumers, we can take responsibility and educate ourselves so we can be confident in our purchases. The more information we have as consumers, the better decisions we make when it comes to product selection. When we know better, we do better.
Natural Pigments & Heavy Metals
When we are looking exclusively for for ‘natural makeup,’ we are sending a signal to manufacturers that we don’t want ANY synthetic colorants in the makeup we use on your skin. When we really look at natural colorants (those derived from plants and the ground), we discover that they can have much higher levels of heavy metals (lead, cadmium and arsenic) than their synthetic, lab-made counterparts. How is that possible? I will tell you! Heavy metals are naturally occurring in the Earth. They distribute themselves in the ground and when they are harvested and added to our cosmetics, we run the risk of exposing ourselves to high levels of heavy metals. The average consumer is not aware of this — so, you are now above average!
Adding insult to injury, the vast majority of companies are not actively testing for heavy metals or setting their own health protective standards. Most companies trust that their suppliers are within compliance of the industry standard, which is 10 ppm (parts per million. If a company is using natural/organic materials in their products, the presence of heavy metals is nearly unavoidable. However, companies and manufacturers can certainly have standards and practices in place to make products that are significantly safer!
When shopping for cosmetics and personal care products, here are a few tips to keep in mind …
Shop beauty brands that use a combination of natural and synthetic colorants and SCREEN INGREDIENTS for safety, regardless of their source. Synthetic colorants must be carefully screened and companies should actively test for heavy metals (although this is not required by law). Shop with brands who actively test for heavy metals and have set company standards below (fewer than 10 ppm — parts per million) the current industry guidance.
Avoid FORMALDEHYDE . It is s a known human carcinogen that can occur naturally and be synthetically derived. Shop the market for beauty products that do not actively formulate with formaldehyde or formaldehyde-releasing agents (a blend of chemicals added to products to create a formaldehyde preservative in the product).
Avoid FRAGRANCE. The use of ‘fragrance’ on an ingredient list is an industry loophole. Because a ‘fragrance’ is considered intellectual property of the company, they are not required to disclosed the ingredients used to make up the fragrance. Always look for beauty brands who are disclosing ALL ingredients on their labels.
Be mindful of ESSENTIAL OILS. Avoid ingredient labels that just list ‘essential oils’ without additional specifics. There is a general lack of transparency and quality control within the essential oils industry. Look for beauty brands that are testing their essential oils with the same scrutiny as other ingredients.
So, the bottom line is that natural isn’t always better and sometimes it is the less desirable option when it comes to ingredient choice. Educate yourself as a consumer so you can be confident in your decisions. There is so much to learn and to know on this topic.
Please reach out if you have any questions or would like to discuss further. If you would like to try any Beautycounter products, email me at megan.beautycounter@icloud.com for 25% off your order!
xx,
Megan
Investor // Landlord and DIYer // Realtor // Business Consultant // Globe Trotter // Converting Vegan.
