Beauty does have a price but it is not in terms of monetary value that we are talking about here. What you are paying for and applying tonnes of to your face and body could be a threat to your health and wellbeing.
This is because some makeup and other beauty products are full of toxic ingredients. Millions of women (and men too) across the world slather an assortment of beauty products daily without realising the kind of danger they are putting themselves into. The best alternative is to use beauty products made of natural ingredients; they are just as effective, if not better and they will not pose a danger to your health.
Makeup
The hazards of using facial makeup
There is a high possibility that your arsenal of makeup contains a variety of toxic chemicals. If that isn’t bad enough, your makeup can actually become contaminated with bacteria due to everyday use. Talc, which is a known carcinogenic, is found in face powder, eye shadow and blush. So, keep a look out for talc on the product labels when purchasing any of those beauty items.
Alpha hydroxy is a common ingredient in anti-aging and line-reducing creams. Applying alpha hydroxy on your skin can prevent wrinkles but at the same time, the chemical can also damage your skin and increase the chance of getting skin cancer. It is quite pointless to look all younger and firmer only to suffer from life-threatening illnesses later on.
Your lipstick lasts long and radiates a tempting bright colour. Some brands even boasts that their lipsticks stay on all day even after eating and drinking. What is it in these lipsticks that help to deliver such long-lasting effects? Many women thank aluminium for being the key ingredient that makes their lipsticks last throughout the day, but aluminium is also a culprit due to its toxicity to humans.
Last but not least is that mascara that you use to thicken and lengthen your lashes. Just like makeup, the mascara brush harbours bacteria as well. What is worse is that the bacteria can be easily transferred to the eyes.
So what do I use then?
Organic makeup is pretty expensive, so you might be wondering how do you continue staying pretty without exposing yourself to all those health risks. The truth is you don’t really need makeup as there are plenty of ways for you to be beautiful without relying on those chemicals. For starters, if you keep your face clean and moisturise well, then you would not have the need for makeup because when you take care of your skin, it will definitely show. With enough sleep and adequate consumption of water, wrinkles can be reduced too.
If your skin is dry, some natural products that you can use to moisturise your skin include cocoa butter and olive oil. Vitamin E is also a known supplement for the skin. For the lips, beeswax makes a good substitute for lipstick. Did you also know that the multi-purpose olive oil is touted to be effective in lengthening your lashes? Just coat a toothbrush with some oil and apply onto your eyelashes. Olive oil is also good for reducing wrinkles around the eyes. And of course, it wouldn’t hurt to get a good night’s sleep.
Nail polish
The dangers of using nail polish
Women everywhere continue to use nail polish even though the dangers of using them are quite well-known. Some men use clear nail polish to protect their nails, further increasing the number of people exposed to the hazards of nail polish. If you have used nail polish, you would have definitely been affected by the fumes emitted from the nail polish. The intoxicating and overpowering smell comes from toluene, a carcinogenic substance. Most nail polish also contain phthalates, known to cause low sperm count, system damage, birth defects and reproductive system damage on top of raising the risks of cancer.
What can you use to replace nail polish?
Like what was mentioned earlier, a general good care for your well-being goes a long way and this goes the same for your nails. In this case, a healthy diet is absolutely essential for your nails as it will prevent it from splitting and breaking. This should be followed by regular filing sessions as the grooming of nails is just as important. If you would like to have shiny nails, then the good old olive oil would do its trick to keep your nails looking bright. Simply take a soft piece of cloth, dab some olive oil onto it and rub the oil on your nails until you start to notice the nail taking on a bright shine. While there isn’t an alternative to colouring your nails yet, you must admit that well-conditioned nails are more attractive than nails painted with toxic chemicals.
Hair dye
Why not use hair dye?
Did you know that if you dye your hair regularly, you could get bladder and liver problems, even cancer? This is because hair dye contains chemicals which are toxic to humans. A family of chemicals called Arylamines is a key ingredient in hair dyes because Arylamines causes the dye to last longer even after numerous washes and makes perming possible too. Unfortunately, Arylamines has been found to increase the risks of bladder cancer. Therefore, if a particular brand of dye boasts of its long-lasting colour, you know well enough by now to stay away from it.
Another carcinogenic substance is a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and ammonia. Mixing these two substances produces carcinogenic chemicals that do not exist prior to the combination. Even if you aren’t aware of the carcinogenic effect of these chemicals in the hair dye, it isn’t difficult to see how damaging they are to our health. The effects are almost instantaneous – some users’ scalps turn red minutes after the dye has been applied to their hair. Needless to say, this is a reaction to the presence of strong chemicals in the dye.
How do I dye my hair the chemical-free way?
There are a number of ways to dye your hair naturally. For example, you can use dyes made from plants. Henna is a common dye derived from a plant of the same name. You can even make your own dye with the ingredients that you have in your cupboard although it might take some experimenting before you get the colour that you want. Nevertheless, it is certainly better than harming yourself with haphazard chemicals.
Perfumes
It pays to smell sweet
If you don’t know already, certain people can be highly allergic to perfume. That is the reason why you’d sometimes see an instruction at the back of the box advising you to test the perfume on a small part of your skin first before dousing yourself in it, for fear of triggering a severe allergic reaction. What is it that causes the allergy? Chemicals, of course. Benzaldehyde, ethanol, limonene and linalool are common chemicals found in perfumes which trigger irritation to the upper respiratory tract, headaches and nausea. Benzaldehyde is even used as a local anaesthetic which can potentially cause damage to the kidneys and lungs as well.
It isn’t just the user who is exposed to health risks from the use of perfumes. Perfume can be fatally dangerous too to people in the surroundings. Just a whiff of perfume is capable of triggering an asthma attack in an asthmatic person. You’d probably never thought that perfumes could be that harmful, so be considerate from now on when you wear your favourite fragrance. You may be worrying about how you smell but for others, it could be their life which they have to worry about. From something as minor as a headache to something as major as cancer, perfumes are also the causes of them as they contain various chemicals that are far too many to list here.
How do I smell nice naturally?
There are alternatives out there that are natural and will have you smelling fresh all day long, so there is no reason why you should continue posing a risk to your health with all those manufactured fragrances. Cocoa butter is not just good for dry skin but it also adds a tropical beach smell to your skin. Natural extracts can also be used as a good substitute for fragrances – dabbing vanilla behind the ears is an effective way but almond extracts work great as well. Herbs such as lavender are not just useful for the house but are also a lovely-smelling natural alternative too. Lavender also possesses calming effects, so dabbing some lavender oil on yourself is like killing two birds with one stone.
You might find that you would need to substitute every beauty product you own now with natural alternatives but health is definitely the priority over beauty, isn’t it?
