My Why
Today I wanted to take an opportunity to share something I've become very passionate about. Thank you for reading my why...
About six months ago I was simply washing my face when Ryan walked in the bathroom and picked up my face cleanser. He looked at the bottle for a few minutes, before looking at me and asking "do you realize how many ingredients are in this stuff?". Silly me, no I did not. I was using a well known, well respected brand...I thought there was nothing to know. When I turned the bottle around, the ingredients (many of which I could not pronounce) list covered 3/4 of the backside and ingredient number 6 is PEG 120 - know what PEG's are? Carcinogens. I found a few other upsetting ingredients and that was it for me, the search for safe skincare was on. Here's a fun fact I learned in the process, the FDA does relatively no screening of skincare products before they hit the market. What does that mean? In addition to the chemicals included in most products, others that have been labeled as natural or organic have not been proven to be either.
It took me over 6 weeks to find Beautycounter, but when I did I knew I had found what I was looking for. Included on the website, in complete transparency is the Never List. The products on that list, many of which I found in other products I used on a daily basis, will never be used in a Beautycounter product. In addition to the never list, each product has a full ingredient list included on both the website and it's packaging. Guys, that's a big deal.
So why am I sharing all this with you? Many of you know I am pretty obsessive about what foods I put in my body. Cancer and Alzheimers are not unheard of in my family, so it has long been important to me that I do everything I can to cut my risk for either. When I am cooking I will not use anything out of a can, jar, or plastic. I make my own sauces, tortillas, bake from scratch, etc. Our skin is the largest organ in our bodies, and here I have been so worried about taking care of whats on the inside that I completely overlooked the risk to the outermost parts of my body. Ryan pointing out just how many toxins and chemicals were in my face cleanser brought on the realization that I've got to also focus on taking care of what's on the outside, and what products I am using on it. After spending so much time researching what products are out there I came up with only one that I feel comfortable using, Beautycounter. It was so difficult for me to find a brand I knew was safe that it dawned on me, if I'm searching for this, others must be doing the same thing. Safe skincare shouldn't be something we have to spend weeks looking for.
With that in mind I decided to take things one step further and become a Beautycounter consultant. My goal is to spread awareness of safe skincare and share these amazing products with all of you. I 100% believe in this brand and am so thankful that I realized sooner than later the impact all these products have on my health. Bulleted below are just a few of the facts and statistics I've learned.
- The US has not passed a federal law regulating the cosmetic industry since 1938
- The European Union has banned nearly 1400 ingredients from cosmetics, the US has only banned or restricted 11
- Approximately 90% of women who are diagnosed with breast cancer do not have the BRACA gene
- Autism, ADHD, Asthma, and Allergies (the 4As) are on the rise in the US
- More than 200 synthetic chemicals, many known to be toxic, can be found in nearly all Americans
If you are interested in learning more or would like to try any of the products, please send me a message!
Check back tomorrow and we'll be back to posting wedding goodness!