The Clean Beauty Movement: Beautycounter

The other morning I was watching CBS This Morning and learned that I’ve taken for granted that the beauty products I use are safe. Well, apparently they aren’t and there are harmful toxins in many of them including:

Retinol, used in many sunscreens and anti-aging products, which may damage DNA and cause skin tumors;
Formaldehyde, a preservative in some shampoos and body washes that can cause cancer; and
Parabens, preservatives used to prevent bacteria and mold in some face cleansers and lotions, but shown to disrupt important hormones in the body.

Beauty products that have been our go to brands have not been been cleared by the FDA and haven’t had to be. Unlike Europe, where beauty products are held to higher government standards, the US has been lagging but that is beginning to change.

“According to the Environmental Working Group, women put an average of 168 chemicals on their face and body before they even walk out of the door; men put on an average of 85 chemicals. Studies show some of those chemicals have been linked to health problems, including cancer and infertility.

A new bill in Congress aims to protect people from potentially dangerous chemicals found in everyday beauty products.

Beautycounter CEO Gregg Renfrew says consumers won’t find potentially dangerous chemicals in its products. “I think consumers want to know what’s in their products; they want to know, are these ingredients safe for their health? They want complete and utter transparency, and that is forcing the entire industry to change.”

I’ve had breakout and itchy reactions to a few product lines that I no longer purchase and I don’t even have sensitive skin. Now I understand that it wasn’t my skin but there is toxicity in many of those products.

It since there are no coincidences, when that very same morning I met a rep from Beautycounter on the plane and learned about this amazing line that had been the focus of that morning’s television feature I decided that it was time to pay attention to the new movement called: Clean Beauty.

So, I started to take a deeper dive into the products.

Here is what I have learned so far. Hopefully you will join me in watching this video and learning more about the clean beauty movement. I am beginning with the beautycounter line and have just ordered their line for my over 50 skin.