Safe
sāf/
adjective
adjective: safe; comparative adjective: safer; superlative adjective: safest
1.protected from or not exposed to danger or risk; not likely to be harmed or lost.
synonyms: secure, protected, shielded, sheltered, guarded, out of harm's way
antonyms:insecure, at risk
I don't know about all of you, but I like to feel safe and stay out of danger. I used to think that I a l w a y s chose a safer option when dealing with my, my husband's and especially my children's {life}. So why is it, that it wasn't until 5 months ago, that I watched a film that made me question a lot about the safety of myself and my family? I watched a documentary after I stumbled upon it being mentioned in a Facebook thread of an old friend discussing her more natural and "Green-living" lifestyle- I was intrigued. I immediately wanted to watch it myself and the following night, I did.
To best paraphrase the documentary for you, I took the following excerpt from it's website, www.thehumanexperimentmovie.com:
"The Human Experiment lifts the veil on the shocking reality that thousands of untested chemicals are in our everyday products, our homes and inside of us. Simultaneously, the prevalence of many diseases continues to rise. From Oscar® winner Sean Penn and Emmy® winning journalists Dana Nachman and Don Hardy, The Human Experiment tells the personal stories of people who believe their lives have been affected by chemicals and takes viewers to the front lines as activists go head-to-head with the powerful and well-funded chemical industry. These activists bring to light a corrupt system that’s been hidden from consumers... until now."
The statistics stated in this film shocked me- there's no other word to describe it. But the 3 major statistics that stood out to me the most were the drastic increases in breast cancer, autism and reproductive issues over the past 30 years; all of which could very likely be caused by the 80,000+ chemicals on the market today. Chemicals are in just about everything that we use on a daily basis. Our food, shampoo/conditioner, body lotions, face creams, baby wash and detergent, plastic containers, bedding...the list is endless.
Right then, at that moment of viewing the film, our household changed. I purged. I went onto ewg.org and looked up my most commonly used cleaning products, skin care and baby/kids products. I was horrified to see their ratings. I threw away a huge Black trash bag full of items that were deemed unsafe and toxic & started all over again. I found which household and beauty products were recommended as the "most safe" and that's what I knew I wanted for my family. I was so upset to see a bag full of products that we used daily on our bodies that have chemicals in them known to cause cancer and reproductive issues and I unknowingly used them without a single question as to whether they were safe or not!
I never thought I could buy products listed as natural or organic for myself and my babies and they still could include toxic ingredients...I was not educated! While searching for new beauty products, one brand consistently came up as one of the safest, non-toxic, options to use for: makeup, moisturizers, shampoo/conditioner, face cleanser etc. and it was called Beautycounter. I had never heard of it prior to searching ewg.org.
The following day, I went to my girlfriend's house for a play date and another one of our girlfriends was there. We were catching each other up on the past week of our lives and I started telling them how horrified I was by the film I watched the night before. I shared with them the statistics that I heard. I went on to explain ALL the different products I had in my own home that included chemicals known to cause cancer and reproductive issues. I mentioned that I found a brand called Beautycounter and asked if they ever heard of it because it was listed as having some of the safest, non-toxic, products on the market and I needed to start researching more. My girlfriend Megan mentioned immediately that her sister actually worked for the company and she, herself, had started using the products for the same reasons I wanted to. As days and weeks went on and our text chains got increasingly longer, due to comparing ALL the products in each of our homes that included Parabans, Formaldehyde, Phthalates, and PEGs- we had no idea how harmful they all were! My 2 girlfriends decided to join the movement and become reps for Beautycounter. They have educated me even more on the good, bad and ugly ingredients that I need to look out for!
Since December, I have gotten rid of most of my old products and replaced them with safer, higher quality, more concentrated products little by little thanks to the help of my Beautycounter ladies. Yes, they are a little more expensive than the products at your local drug store, but they are SAFE to use on yourself and your children and are more concentrated- so a little goes a long way!
My girlfriend Megan and I have partnered up for this blog post and we are going to giveaway a Nourishing Eye Cream on our Instagram accounts, so stay tuned ...YAY for FREE, SAFE beauty products!!
I want to share a few of my personal favorites with you!
When I wake up in the morning, I use my Nourishing Cream Cleanser to wash my face- it makes my skin so soft and hydrated! All I need is a dime-sized amount- I've only used about 1/2 of my bottle and I've had it since December!
I like to use the Cleansing Balm at nighttime to clean off my makeup and any {cotton candy} sugar (haha) from my face/neck. But, I also use a little dab as a moisturizer on extra dry spots after cleaning my face and leave it on there to do it's job...a tiny bit goes a long way due to all the pure oils packed into the formula. I've used this on dry patches on my legs, as well as using it on the girls to get off stubborn marker and temporary tattoos : ) Worked like a charm!
I don't wear a lot of makeup daily, unless I have an event to go to, or a meeting with a customer {don't want to scare people off!}. So, the Tint Skin Hydrating Foundation is PERFECT for me. It's not full coverage and it's light and (once again) moisturizing for my skin...it does not leave me feeling "cakey" or dried out at all but gives my skin an even, fresh look!
Two products that I use everyday are the Blush Duo and Outline Eye Pencil. They both makes me look awake and not like a mom-zombie and are much SAFER options than what I was using before (win-win)! My old blush/bronzer palate ( I won't list the brand) was FULL of chemicals that cause reproductive issues and I had no clue! The Beautycounter Blush Duo comes in different color combos- I use Tawney/Whisper for my skin color and it's a perfect natural-looking match for me. For the eye pencil, I use brown- it goes on smoothly and isn't hard to remove...no more scrubbing tar off my eyes- wahoo!
Two of my favorite products are from the charcoal line- Charcoal Soap and Balancing Charcoal Mask. They both help to detoxify and remove impurities from your skin without actually drying it out. However, it can become drying if you use it daily, so I would recommend once or twice a week only.
I hope that you all, my readers, are compelled to go to ewg.org and check out your beauty and household products. See what their safety ratings are and if they are actually safe to use! Look up your laundry detergent and bathroom cleaner...chances are, it's polluting your clothes and bodies with dangerous chemicals. I have had too many family members and friends die of or be diagnosed with cancer, to sit back and not educate myself.
I'm in the severe minority of my girlfriends who have been extraordinarily blessed with no fertility issues- but that doesn't mean there can't be a "next time".