What does this mean exactly? Made with natural ingredients?

Most common response from people – it’s made with natural ingredients so it’s safe!

 Not Exactly.

I’m here to tell you what this means.

Companies use this phrase often ‘made with natural ingredients’ or ‘naturally based’ as a marketing scheme which makes their product sound like it is a natural product. But don’t be fooled. They are not 100% natural products. They may still contain harmful ingredients mixed with the natural ones.

Some natural ingredients can be harmful too! Just because it is natural, does not necessarily mean it is safe.

For the average person to actually know all this is pretty slim, so don’t feel so bad if you had no idea, you’re not the only one! I starting learning about this in 2012 and have been doing research and educating myself since. And let me tell you, there is a LOT to learn, it can be overwhelming at times, and there is a lot of false information on the internet. Trying to sift through the real information from the false stuff is a task on it’s own.

One source I use is the EWG Skin Deep Database. You can search almost any ingredient and it will give you the information they currently have on it. But beware, if there is little information on that ingredient it could be that it is too new on the market to actually know what the long term effects are, or they don’t have enough information about it yet. New ingredients are made in labs everyday which makes it nearly impossible to keep up. So while the information from this site is a great start, there is still much to learn.

Did you know it only takes 26 seconds for the ingredients in your products to enter the bloodstream?

Knowing this fact alone may spike your interest to use cleaner products. Do you eat organic food? Why wouldn’t you use organic products on your skin as well? Doing both will give you the best chance to detox your body. Speaking of detox… if that’s what you plan, then this is definitely something to consider.

What detox means to me: not only does it mean eating better and cleaner, but also eliminating toxins in personal care products, cleaning products and other various products around my home. Anything that gives off harsh chemical fragrances. I also have air purifying plants around my home. We are constantly battling environmental toxins so all you can do is your best.

Educate yourself, pick your battles, and make informed choices. And don’t ever let anyone tell you that you are making the wrong choice and put you down (totally guilty of doing this in the past, and I try not to do it anymore!). We all have choices. Imagine what the world would be like if we all supported each others choice?