What are You Putting on Your Face?!

Have you ever taken the time to read the labels of the products that are in your daily beauty routine? Go ahead, grab one now and take a peek... I'll wait.

Do you recognize, or can you even pronounce every ingredient? Are there any ingredients that have a "-paraben" or "-phthalate" ending? How about: talc, imidazolidinyl urea, benzophenone, quaternium-15, or this long interesting one, hydroxymethylglycinate?
If so, I regret to have to inform you that you've been letting your skin soak up things like Formaldehyde, Asbestos, and other known carcinogens.

Here's a hint: AVOID REVLON & L'OREAL.

This isn't going to be one of my normal, happy-go-lucky blog posts. Today I'm getting a bit serious, and it's for your own good.

You're probably wondering why these crappy ingredients can be allowed in products made and sold in the U.S.
Isn't that what the FDA is for? Actually, the FDA has very little authority over what companies and manufacturers can put in their products. In fact, the FDA allows the companies to police themselves when it comes to deciding what types of ingredients to use. And when it comes to recalling products, that too is a voluntary decision for the manufacturer to make.

Here is a great website that fully breaks down the ingredients commonly found in products we all use daily

For a list of the most harmful things to look out for in your products check this one out

If you're ok with using products that have these types of ingredients, then by all means go for it. However, if you're wondering how you can help change this oddly passive system...

You can always vote with your wallet!

Seriously, consumers make the decisions that manufacturers MUST listen to. Their product isn't good for them if no one is buying it.

Bottom line: They want your money.

So why not force them to manufacture something that isn't harmful to you? It has to start with us as consumers educating ourselves and deciding that we want better options.

I have to say that I can absolutely relate to wanting to buy the newest, most promising shampoo or skin care products. I know what it's like to read the front of the bottle and see the words in glittery, colorful lettering saying things like "nourishing, amazing, smoothing, healthy, shiny, brightening, clarifying..." and hoping that this time I'm spending my money on my saving grace product that will fix all of my beauty woes. Yet, time and time again, after a month or so I find that it was just another dud.

I would usually gravitate to the products that advertised things like argan oil, jojoba oil, or anything that sounded the least bit natural. Despite the fact that the rest of the ingredients were well past my reading level, I figured "Well, at least it's got that really natural oil in it, that's why it's so expensive, it must really work..."

Then one day, it dawned on me.

I should look into these oils, figure out how exactly they can benefit me. And furthermore, why not buy these oils pure? The real deal, without any other chemicals that were so harsh that it turned my face incredibly sensitive and made my hair the most dry it's ever been.
So that's what I did for a couple months, doing my own research and being my own tester.
I learned that coconut oil, although it's an incredible oil for many reasons, tends to clog my pores.
I learned that avocado oil is the oil that I will forever swear by.
I learned that castor oil, although sounding medieval, is actually amazing too.
Currently, I'm delving into the world of essential oils, apparently they've got more uses than just smelling nice!

Since I've had that nice little epiphany, I am so happy to say that my hair is strong, shiny, growing fast and I can finally embrace my natural waves without having to subject them to intense heat styling, which caused so much damage!

But what's an even bigger deal to me is that my skin (which I've been trying to tame for the past 10 years of my life) is truly looking healthy. My skin tone is even for the first time since I started high school, and I rarely get breakouts anymore. But that's just my face. I've been applying avocado oil on my whole body every day and due to it's anti-inflammation and cell regeneration abilities, my entire body has great looking skin, I'm talking smooth, even and beautiful!

I no longer buy pre-made skincare products. I thoroughly enjoy mixing and matching my own personal combination of oils that I think will help my skin and hair needs.

You're probably wondering how to buy these oils and how do you know if they are of good quality? Here is a list of Key Words to look for when it comes to buying your own oils:

Cold-Pressed

Therapeutic Grade

Organic

Here is a more in depth look into high quality oils along with a list of reputable companies that sell them

I hope this post has inspired you to take a deeper look into what you are spending your money on and how to spend it on better quality, more healthy and all-natural options.

For an in-depth look at essential oils and all of the different ways they can replace artificial, made-in-a-lab products... check out my website! I spent a lot of time researching these different products and I'd love to spread what I've learned to others.

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