Staying Beautiful, Clean, and Green

As you are probably aware, many beauty products and perfumes not only do animal testing, they also harm the environment. Now that you have a new little angel in your life, you have to be extra careful about keeping this planet a safe and happy place for your baby as well as all those grandchildren and ancestors you will have some day.

Most women start out the day with a shower, or at least women without infants who need watching constantly. Don’t worry, soon Daddy will be home or Grandma will visit and you can grab a quick 5-minute shower or a long luxurious bath. After the shower you will deodorize, fix your hair, and brush your teeth. Since you didn’t use make-up or perfume, you didn’t harm the environment, right? Wrong! Many common everyday products such as deodorant, toothpaste, shampoo, and, of course, hair spray can be quite harmful to the planet which you are trying to preserve for your new precious baby. How then can you look beautiful without having a guilty conscious? Shop smart and check your labels carefully.

The first thing to watch for is chemicals. Buy organic whenever you can. Many companies are signing on with the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. Sticking with those companies is your best bet for helping out the planet, and it’s usually the most economical too. The bad news is that some of your favorite companies such as Avon, Estee Lauder, L’Oreal, Revlon, Proctor & Gamble, OPI and Unilever have not yet signed the campaign. You can download the list of safe and compliant companies for free from safecosmetics.org before you go on your next shopping trip because it’s the right thing to do. After all, do you really want anything that is even rumored to have caused cancer next to your new infant?

Although you may not be able to prevent smelling like milk or baby lotion for awhile, you can prevent body odor. However, you do need to carefully read the label on your deodorant and avoid antiperspirants with aluminum because they not only cause skin irritation, they can also be harmful to your body because they block pores and eliminate toxins from being expelled. Aluminum-free deodorants or crystal stick mineral deodorants are just as effective and cause less harm.

Toothpaste is something else you hopefully use at least once at day; however, many brands contain harmful chemicals such as parabens, titanium dioxide, and fluoride. Fluoride, which is often used to help you keep a bright smile, is often found in whitening products even though it is poisonous if ingested in high quantities. Also avoid hair products that contain petroleum, coal tar, formaldehyde, phthalates, and synthetic fragrance.

By keeping all these tips in mind on your next shopping trip, you can help keep you and your family safe while you preserve the planet for years to come. After all, isn’t your family worth it?

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