All tagged phthalates

How to Reduce Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds

How to Reduce Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds

Andrea
Blog

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are different types of chemicals that evaporate easily at room temperature. VOC exposure can cause short term and long term health effects including the following: eye, nose, and throat irritation, headaches, loss of coordination, and nausea, damage to liver, kidney, and central nervous system. Some VOCs cause cancer in animals, and some are suspected or known to cause cancer in humans. Because VOCs indoors can be up to 10x more concentrated compared to outdoors, it is important to take a look at the sources of VOCs in our homes.

What's In Your Toothpaste

What's In Your Toothpaste

Andrea
Blog, Body, Beauty

We now know our skin absorbs a great amount of what we put on it, and that certainly includes what we use inside our mouths. Toothpastes contain a long list of inactive ingredients that most of us have never heard of.

How to Choose a Non-Toxic Hand Sanitizer

How to Choose a Non-Toxic Hand Sanitizer

Andrea
Body, Blog, Beauty

Hand sanitizer has become a necessity for everyone in the post-COVID world. You can buy it just about anywhere, but you might not be aware that some are safer than others, and some work better than others. It’s worth noting that while washing with soap water is always a superior option, there are occasions that you simply can’t use soap and water, and you need a safe hand sanitizer to reach for. In June and July of 2020, the FDA issued warnings about hand sanitizers that contained methanol or were contaminated with methanol.

Best Clean Beauty & Personal Care Products At Whole Foods

Best Clean Beauty & Personal Care Products At Whole Foods

Andrea
Beauty, Body, Kids & Babies, Blog

Shopping for personal care and beauty products while picking up groceries can be so convenient, that its tempting to just grab whatever you see. The personal care and beauty items in Whole Foods must meet certain requirements determined by Whole Foods. The requirements include a ban on over 100 ingredients like parabens, phthalates, formaldehyde donors, oxybenzone and EDTA. Additionally, organic claims must be backed up by a third-party certification. There are ingredients that are not Whole Foods banned list, but can still be harmful and should be avoided like fragrance, phenoxyethanol, and polysorbate 20.

Scented

Scented

Andrea
Blog, Body, Household, Kids & Babies, Beauty

When it comes to cleanliness, we associate a strong chemical smell with being clean, when in reality “clean” has no smell at all. Fragrance is one of the 5 common allergens found in cosmetics and can trigger asthma attacks, skin irritation and skin allergies, and allergic reactions. Fragranced products can cause adverse health effects including respiratory, neurological, cognitive, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, immune, and musculoskeletal problem to migraine headaches, mucosal symptoms, and asthma attacks. Despite these facts, companies are not required to disclose the fragrance ingredients in their products. Studies have revealed toxic ingredients in fragrance such phthalates, octoxynols and butylphenol methylpropianol. In addition, fragrances emit harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Switching to Natural Products

Switching to Natural Products

Andrea
Blog

Food and drugs are regulated for safety by the FDA, but did you know that personal care products do not need government approval? For cleaning products, the EPA only requires a company to list active disinfectant ingredients. Over 40 countries have banned over 1,400 ingredients that are believed to be harmful in personal care products and cosmetics, whereas the US has banned merely 11. Many of the banned ingredients have been linked to cancer, disruption of the endocrine system, and organ toxicity, and can cause allergies and other negative health effects. Switching to natural products in which companies not only strive for safety and efficacy, but maintain transparency with customers, helps you ensure a safer and healthier lifestyle and home.

Non-Toxic Lip Gloss

Non-Toxic Lip Gloss

Andrea
Beauty, Blog

Most lip gloss on the shelves contain heavy metals, even though you won’t see them listed in the ingredient label. Luckily, there are non toxic lip gloss options sans heavy metals that you’ll love the look and feel of just as much as the others. Fitglow Lip Serum is my favorite non toxic lip gloss. They not only look beautiful, but contain organic, plant-based ingredients.