DETERGENTS:
Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS), Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Ammonium Lauryl Sulphate, Cocamide DEA, Cocamide MEA. These are found in most body washes and shampoos; the effects these can have are, skin irritation, fertility problems, damage our immune system and our organs. It can promote the formation of cancer – causing substances known as nitrosamines in products during storage.

MINERAL OILS:
Parafinnum Liquidum, Petrolatum. This is a sly one. It makes your baby’s skin feel lovely and smooth, it soothes chapped lips & makes your body feel soft after a bath. But its made from crude oil, it blocks pores and dries out the skin, I personally give it a wide berth.

SILICONES:
Cyclomethicone, Dimethicone, Simethicone, Cyclopenthasicoxane Dimethicone. (Big fancy words eh?) Skin irritation, blocked pores, some silicones are tumour promoters & accumulate in liver & lymph nodes. Non-biodegradable.

PRESERVATIVES:
Parabens (Methylparaben, Ethyparaben, Butylparaben, Propylpareben, you get the picture), EDTA, Formaldehyde, Quaterniumis, Methylispthiazolinone. Used widely in lotions, skin creams & baby products. This irritates the skin, causes allergic reactions. Can be neurotoxic, studies have linked it with breast cancer & infertility, they are also hormone disrupters.

FLUORIDE:
Can you believe this has never been safely tested on humans. Fluoride does occur naturally in tea, fish and in some drinking water. In large amounts it damages bones & enamel, it’s not recommended in pregnancy & it’s unsuitable for babies. It has been linked with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), cancer, arthritis & osteoporosis. It may help reduce plaque, but lets face it so does good dental hygiene.

It is important to use toiletries and cosmetics that are as pure as possible.

There are literally 100s of chemicals that go into conventional face and body products and while not all are bad for you, some are.

It is estimated that woman put more than 200 different chemicals on their face every DAY!!, a huge number of which are potentially harmful and are thought to disrupt hormones. In order to have our bodies clean and smooth, all sorts of terrible chemicals are put into pretty packaged bottles.

The most harmful ingredients tend to be those that are added to make the products last longer – for example, preservatives; or to make it feel nicer on the skin, such as mineral oils and silicones. These ingredients have NO benefits to your skin and in fact can be quite TOXIC!!.

Excuse me while I have a wee rant here, but, did you know there is no legal definition of the word ‘Natural’, which in effect means manufacturers can say what they like.

A product can claim to be natural even it contains less than 1% natural ingredients.

Particularly nasty substances are often proceeded with the words ‘Contains’, we tend to read these notices as positive features, “ooh, look, this contains fluoride, it must be good”. Don’t be fooled!!

I am not trying to scare you into buying my products, but to simply inform you that if you are going to buy skin care products, you should be buying products without the following ingredients, I have tried to highlight the most common and the most dangerous.