You may be on top of your gut health game, but have you ever thought about how your beauty routine is effecting your gut? Beauty, skincare and self care products with toxic ingredients could be negatively impacting your gut health and exposing yourself to harmful toxics.

Everyday we may be exposing ourselves to a huge number of chemicals and toxins every day such as parabens, BPAs and many others from the food we eat, the liquids we drink, the air we breathe and of course the products we put on our skin.

Microbes 101 

We may only relate the health of our gut down to our diet however as expanding research is suggesting, this is far from the truth. We have established that our diet is an extremely important factor as by eating many types of foods we feed different types of bacteria in our gut. However we now know that as humans, we have multiple microbiomes and not just the ones we have in our gut. Microbes are not just found in our food, they are everywhere making outside exposure unavoidable. Our environment goes into our bodies, fact. So just as important as what we consume on the plate, what we are consuming in the external (especially beauty products) plays a huge role in our microbiome health. Toxins impact our bacterial composition in a disruptive way, causing a reduction in beneficial bacteria and an increase in pathogenic bacteria. Emerging evidence shows their potential role in inflammatory diseases. Stating that toxins in everyday skincare and household products can disrupt our bacteria, by causing inflammation and as result an increased risk of inflammatory diseases.

Toxic watch 

Toxic ingredients to avoid

Say hello to the back of the bottle, and goodbye to the following ingredients:

• Parabens:  These stop bacteria growing in products such as cosmetics, face and body creams, bubble bath, shower gels.
• Phthalates: These carry fragrances in products such as lotions, nail polish, shampoos, soaps and perfumes. They are also found in plastic packaging and can leach into the products they contain. If you see “fragrance” or “perfume” on a label, it may contain phthalates unless it’s listed otherwise.
• Bisphenol-A: Used for its preservative properties in cosmetics and used in plastic packaging and the lining of food and drink containers such as cans tins.
• Triclosan: a common anti-microbial (bacteria-killing agent) used in toothpaste, deodorant, hand sanitisers, disinfectants and soaps.
• Perfluorinated chemicals: Used for their water-resistant properties. Found in certain lotions and nail polishes.
• UV filters: such as oxybenzone, oxy methoxy methyl cinnamate, and methylbenzylidene camphor. Found in sunscreens.
• Lead: up to 61% of lipsticks contain mineral metals such as lead. Science indicates there is no safe level of lead exposure. Lead is a neurotoxin and can be dangerous at small doses

Why avoid these toxics?

Beauty is one of the least regulated consumer industries in the world. It is legal for companies to use chemicals known to be harmful, or that have never been evaluated for safety. And this is why it is more important than ever to know what you’re putting on your skin. The impact really can make a real difference to your health. The toxins are xenobiotics, these are substances that are not usually found in the human body . These toxins are endocrine disruptors, as they disrupt the body’s own hormones by mimicking them. As the name suggests, endocrine disruptors mess with the endocrine system, which regulates our body’s essential rhythms like metabolism, mood, and reproductive processes.  Many of these are mimic oestrogen in the body and cause hormonal imbalances. With hormonal imbalance, the impact on all functions and systems within the body is compromised. 

Clean up your act 

Clean beauty definition: Clean beauty products are made without ingredients shown or suspected to harm human health.

Clear transparent labelling and what to look for:

Clean beauty means that a product is safe, non-toxic, and has transparent labelling of ingredients. Unfortunately just because a product is organic, natural or green, doesn’t mean it’s non toxic. The FDA doesn’t regulate or define claims often used in green washed products. The current word ’clean’ should ensure that the product is free from multiple toxics, however it is important to know your source and put your money into trusted companies.

Clean beauty also comes with cruelty free, two separate entities. However when a company prides themselves on clean ingredients, they usually are also cruelty free. 

Where to find whats good

Best clean resources:

Goop’s clean beauty favourites list is a great source for recommendations of product swaps. 

https://goop.com/beauty/personal-care/clean-beauty-and-why-its-important/

Credo’s clean standard check list, is one of the best sources for ingredients to avoid, as well as being a trustworthy place to shop. They supply only clean beauty brands that are also cruelty free and vegan. The staff also that work in credo are highly knowledgeable and can recommend great swaps. My first time in a credo was my catalyst towards clean beauty consciousness!

https://credobeauty.com/pages/the-credo-clean-standard-1

The process to a clean cabinet 

Finding new products, is a journey. You may be asking if you should throw out all your products, with this new found awareness. I would recommend checking the back of the bottle of all non clean products first. If a product does include a toxic front the list, it is in your best interest to stop using it. You may be thinking that buying a whole new set of products can be expensive and sometimes out of the question. So swapping out one product at a time. Once you run out of something, searching for a new clean replacement can be a fun and sustainable way to transition.

Cleaning up makes a life changing difference so have fun learning, discovering and experimenting with new products.

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