WHAT IS REALLY IN YOUR HEALCARE PRODUCTS?

Your skin is the largest organ of the body and also the organ with the best abilities for defense. Its main purpose is to act as a bodyguard, protecting your insides from the outside world.  Your skin is a reflection of your internal health.  Changes on the outside may signal health problems on the inside.  Your skin makes up 16% of your body weight. It protects us from the environment around us and purifies our system by eliminating waste fluid. It regulates your body temperature and breathes. Needs to be kept pH correct

Ingredients

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate – Foaming and cleansing agent and used to produce lather.  The Cosmetic Ingredient Review recognizes that SLS produces eye and skin irritation.

So why is a dangerous chemical like sodium lauryl sulfate used in our soaps and shampoos?

The answer is simple - it is cheap. The sodium lauryl sulfate found in our soaps is exactly the same as you would find in a car wash or even a garage, where it is used to degrease car engines.

In the same way as it dissolves the grease on car engines, sodium lauryl sulfate also dissolves the oils on your skin, which can cause a drying effect. It is also well documented that it denatures skin proteins, which causes not only irritation, but also allows environmental contaminants easier access to the lower, sensitive layers of the skin.

Perhaps most worryingly, SLS is also absorbed into the body from skin application. Once it has been absorbed, one of the main effects of sodium lauryl sulfate is to mimic the activity of the hormone Oestrogen. This has many health implications and may be responsible for a variety of health problems from PMS and Menopausal symptoms to dropping male fertility and increasing female cancers such as breast cancer, where oestrogen levels are known to be involved.

Parabens – Parabens are chemicals that are cheap & effective preservatives. Parabens are known to mimic estrogen.  Estrogen is necessary for a woman’s growth & development but it is important to be aware of other potential sources of this hormone

Mineral oil – Mixture of refined liquid hydrocarbons derived from petroleum.  Used in cosmetics and again, is cheap & inexpensive.  It is an occlusive oil, which means that when used in skincare formulations it creates a barrier or sits on the surface of the skin.  This interrupts normal skin function. In high concentrations, mineral oil may become comedogenic, meaning it can clog pores.

Propylene Glycol – A cosmetic form of mineral oil found in automatic brake fluid, hydraulic fluid, de-icer, paints and coatings, floor wax, laundry detergents, pet food, tobacco, industrial antifreeze and many more products.  Propylene glycol is also found in baby wipes and some processed foods.   On the skin & hair, propylene glycol works as a humectant which causes retention of moisture content of skin or cosmetic products by preventing the escape of moisture or water.  Strong skin irritant and can cause liver abnormalities and kidney damage.  Propylene glycol is used as a preservative in flavored coffees.

Lauramide DEA –foaming agent. Linked to allergies and immunotoxicity concerns

Gluten - Many people avoid gluten in their diet or the diets of their family.  If you do not want to consume gluten, you might consider personal care products that do not contain gluten.   If you are vegan or vegetarian, give some thought to using products that are vegan certified.  

Animal Products or Animal By-products – Animal rendering plants supply the cosmetics industry.  These ingredients are in more products than you probably imagined.  Rendering plants are where dead animals are recycled into usable products.  Remains and waste from slaughterhouses are the primary contributors.  Slaughterhouses process not only euthanized animals, carcasses of dead farm, zoo & shelter animals, road kill and meats from supermarket unable to be sold.  To avoid these ingredients look for vegan skincare products; for more info go to www.rense.com/general39/animal.htm

Phthalates – Produced from oil and act as plasticizers. They are used to manufacturer things designed to be flexible and durable such as PVC. They are used in nail polish to prevent chipping and perfume to help the scent to linger.  Phthalates are hormone disruptors. 

Coal Tar color – color additive. Coal tar dyes are made from the liquid or semi-solid tar found in bituminous coal. Their safety has never been 100 percent assured.  You may remember FD&C Red # 2, which was widely used not only in cosmetics but also in many food products such as maraschino cherries and cereal before it was banned in 1976 because it was potentially carcinogenic

Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO)  - Plant-derived (botanical) ingredients were among the very first cosmetics and large percentages of many agricultural commodities have been genetically modified. This use of biotechnology in agriculture has occurred largely to assist farmers in the production of crops for food and other uses. In some cases, however, Genetically Modified Organisms have been developed to assist in the production of cosmetic ingredients. For example, canola has been modified to produce high levels of lauric acid, a key ingredient in soaps and detergents, at a reduced cost to consumers. Cosmetic ingredients potentially derived from Genetically Modified Organisms include ingredients such as corn oil, corn flour, soybean oil, lecithin and proteins produced by yeast. There is much controversy over GMO in personal products.

DEA & TEA—wetting agents that help shampoo create a richer lather.  Can react with nitrites found in some shampoo ingredients.  The reaction between these chemicals can cause a cancer causing compound know as Nitrosamines.  Avoid shampoo with an ingredient known as Bronopal.

MIT (Methylisothiazolinone)-Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have found a correlation between this ingredient  found in shampoos and nervous system damage.

Formaldehyde—is considered a human carcinogen.  Was “supposed” to be banned in personal care products in 1983—especially hair dye and nail polish.  Children’s bubble bath may still contain formaldehyde as well as many other products.  Formaldehyde may be hidden in other ingredients such as DMDM Hydantoin, Diazolidinyl Urea, Imidazolidinyl Urea, Quaternium-15 and Bronopol.

Sodium Fluoride—a major ingredient in rat poison and toothpaste.  For more information go to http://stopgumdisease.here.us.

Products to be mindful of-baby shampoos, body washes, oils, wipes and children’s bubble bath.  Kid’s bubble bath has a warning label because the sodium lauryl sulfate eats away at the mucous lining of the skin and causes urinary tract infections.

Note:  Some products have “hidden” dangerous ingredients.  I.E. Some raw materials have been treated with chemicals such as formaldehyde or may have been exposed to pesticide residue, and these “hidden” ingredients are not required to be listed on the label.  Reputable manufacturers routinely test ingredients for carcinogens and if found, these ingredients are rejected or they are purified before being used. 

THE ARBONNE DIFFERENCE - Pure, Safe, Beneficial

Arbonne creates Swiss formulated personal care and wellness products for the entire family that are pure, safe and beneficial.

At Arbonne, we don’t add harmful ingredients to our formulas that we wouldn’t use ourselves.  We use timeless botanicals and only the finest grade ingredients in our formulas.  Arbonne products are formulated without harmful toxins and chemicals.  Arbonne products are formulated without:

* Animal products or animal by-products
* Formaldehyde-donating preservatives
* Sodium Laurel Sulphate (SLS)
* Petroleum-based ingredients
* Benzene
  - Mineral Oil
  - Petrolatum
  - Phthalates
  - Toluene

* Parabens , Propylene Glycol, Lauramide DEA, Gluten, Coal Tar Color, Genetically Modified Organisms

We are 100% vegan, gluten-free and much more….what we put into our products isn’t the only thing that separates us from other brands, it’s what we leave out that puts us in a league of our own!

Kerry Bradshaw,  Independent Consultant, Arbonne International

208-250-6495

Kerrybradshaw39@yahoo.com