Tuesday, 14 June 2011
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The Ugly Truth About Beauty Products
Makeup has come a long way since the days of when Queen Elizabeth used to wear makeup and it contained lead.
But even today, makeup isn't regulated - so a lot of highly toxic chemicals go into our lotions, foundations, shampoos, food...everything!
But this is the price we pay for convenience and vanity.
Of course, in today's society it's impossible to avoid bad chemicals. It's just not possible because everything is contaminated with it, even air. It's pretty ironic. We put makeup on to either enhance or fake our beauty, but by doing so we are unknowingly making ourselves uglier.
Putting on some foundation to have a clean looking face? Well by doing so you're just making your skin worse and worse every time you do. Are you using concealer to hide those dark under eye circles? Well you're probably making those dark circles worse.
The end result of all this vanity is that your face will be aged a lot more than it should be. But the effects of these chemicals are not only superficial ones. The chemicals in our makeup get absorbed by our skin and enters our body. A lot of times these chemicals are carcinogenic or highly toxic. Take a look at a VERY short list of common makeup ingredients.
It may be a lost cause since there are toxic chemicals everywhere, but I decided that I'm going to cut down on the level of chemicals from makeup. There's a lot less variety but I'm going to go towards natural or semi-natural makeup. Some brands that I know of are Torres, Tarte, and Bare Escentuals. However, it's important not to shop by brand if you want to go more natural. You have to look at the ingredients yourself and decide if it is healthy/natural enough for you. I'm just happy that I have been too lazy to wear makeup 95% of the time.
Now that I am a bit more interested in wearing it, I want what's best for me. Of course, the best thing would be to not wear makeup, but I don't have a strong enough resolve for that.
Anyone else interested in using more natural products? Were you aware of the hazards of makeup products?
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- From: Kittyluve@xanga
- Name: Kittyluve
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Comments (12)
I am aware of most of this which is why I make most of my own beauty products(lip balms, facial scrubs, lotions etc) and I rarely ever wear makeup in the first place.
I go to Lush. I know it's not "the best" in the world (as I've been made aware) but it's better than not caring at all. I've been trying to transition from Pantene to their shampoos/conditioners, and their soaps/lotions. I already use their foundation which is really a "color supplement" which I love. It gives me just enough light coverage to cover up under eye circles, but i know there isn't a lot of nasty chemicals inside.
That's why you're supposed to wash your face.
and there is a lining of dust on my desk, which probably contains thousands or millions of bacterias/viruses
plus dead skin cells
excuse me while I go powder my nose
I don't wear makeup on a regular basis, so I'm not really worried.
Makeup doesn't need to be regulated, people need to educate themselves and start refusing to buy stuff that's bad for them.
I tend to buy more natural products, because my skin and hair feel and look better when I do. But I don't go crazy over it.
Somebody had a great comment on a post by a user who was using cocoa powder as eyeshadow, and it looked awful. This commenter said something to the effect of, "Why are we going back to rubbing nuts and berries on our faces when we're living twice as long as those people?" Technology is a good thing, as long as we have basic common sense about our health. In the end, if I'm aging, it's because I'm still alive! I'll do what I can to look my best, but I'm not going to break the bank or use something that doesn't work in an effort to keep looking 16. That won't happen anyway. :D
@theflowerstem@xanga - Well everyone should was their face. But washing your face wont reverse the damage the make up does to you while you're wearing it. Your pores soak it up.
@P0RCELA1N_D0LL@xanga - That's what you have an immune system for ;)
@WaitingToShrug@xanga - I think it should. It would leave people with a lot more choices for more natural make up. There's not much out there.
@Kittyluve@xanga - I think our immune systems would damage the harmful ingredients before they damaged us. There are also chemicals that cancel out the harmful effects of other chemicals. It's not the chemicals that is aging the skin, it's the fact that the pores are blocked and can't breath. If people want to prevent skin aging then they shouldn't wear makeup and just fix any skin problems they may have.
@Kittyluve@xanga - Are you asserting that, if the government would legislate the ingredients used in makeup, makeup companies would go on ahead and change their formulas? Forcing companies to use certain products will drive the prices of the cosmetics and their production up. Some companies would go out of business, some would hike their prices for the consumer- makeup would become a luxury item for only the very wealthy.
Now, if a lot more people became interested in natural kinds of makeup and started buying, those producers will increase production. Some conventional brands will start to offer natural lines (you can see this happening now), or revamp all of their formulas. Those who it's important enough to, will buy the more expensive natural products, and those who choose will still buy the cheap stuff. Makeup remains available to many women, rich and poor, and gives them pleasure and confidence.
Government interference in business is not the answer.
My grandmothers and mom have done just fine and looked beautiful (great skin, etc.) until they were old, using the cosmetics available to them in their times. It's great that cosmetics keep evolving, but I'm honestly not very worried about it. I have dry skin, and I've found great products that help me from a variety of different lines. I don't intentionally seek to do damage to my skin, but I'm not very worried as long as I'm buying decent products (not usually cheaper ones). My foremothers haven't suffered ill-effects, and I don't expect to, either.
I think that by a woman's 20's she has her skin pretty well figured out. At least, I really hope so, lol. It's taken me til now to figure mine out and so I know what to expect with each season and what to do when something happens, how to react to each specific type of pimple or whatnot. I wear makeup daily too (inherited dark eye circles, I look like a zombie even after enough sleep!) and I'd rather not have randomly blotchy skin if I don't have to, thank you :)
What I'm trying to say, I guess, is that if someone wants to wear products, then they should. It'd be great if that person was knowledgeable about those products, but it's not a perfect world. As for me, I know what ingredients wreak havoc with my skin and which don't... so that's my guideline. Also, I tend to buy products based on whether or not they match my skin tone (it's tricky to match!) not necessarily by if it's organic or not.
I just don't wear makeup. Problem solved.