Why Do Safe Cosmetics Matter?

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Did you know that skin is your body’s largest organ?

Because it’s an organ, what you put on your skin makes a HUGE difference. There are capillary networks in your skin that allow certain substances to enter the bloodstream – including medications like birth control or nicotine patches.

The ingredients – good or bad – in sunscreen, lotions, soaps, and makeup also enter your bloodstream through these capillary networks. If your personal care products include toxins – as so many do – they’re directly affecting your body.

For fear of hurting other organs, you wouldn’t choose to eat toxins. So why choose to apply them to your body?

How can cosmetics be harmful?

For years I assumed that any personal care product sold was safe. I couldn’t fathom the thought that a company would knowingly – or unknowingly – add hazardous ingredients to their products.  Yet that’s precisely what companies in the United States do every day – and it’s perfectly legal to do so.

Cosmetics and personal care products are under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s watch. But by their own admission, “FDA’s legal authority over cosmetics is different from other products regulated by the agency, such as drugs, biologics, and medical devices. Cosmetic products and ingredients are not subject to FDA premarket approval authority, with the exception of color additives. Cosmetic firms are responsible for substantiating the safety of their products and ingredients before marketing. Manufacturers are not required to register their cosmetic establishments, file data on ingredients, or report cosmetic-related injuries to FDA.”

In the U.S., the cosmetics industry funds and runs the Cosmetics, Toiletry and Fragrance Association. This association dictates what’s included in cosmetics – and, if you’ll notice, the cosmetics manufacturers themselves are calling the shots as a self-governing agency.

As a result, 10,500 different chemical compounds are used in personal care products, but only 11 percent have been tested for safety. What’s more, the remaining 9,350 chemical compounds that have not been tested are used in ninety-nine percent of all products.

To put that into perspective, only 1 in every 100 personal care products has been tested to make sure it’s safe to use.

It doesn’t have to be this way

Marketing unsafe personal care products is prevalent in America, but not the rest of the world. In Europe, all cosmetics are regulated, screened by an unbiased third party, and toxins are prohibited.

Safe products can be made. But because of the absence of universal safety standards in the U.S., safe products aren’t made.

What’s next

Throughout September I’ll share what cosmetics are problematic – and what safe solutions are available.

Talk back

Do you treat your skin as an organ? If so, how do you do it?

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Hilary Kimes Bernstein

Hilary Kimes Bernstein is a Christ follower, wife, mama, and journalist. She writes about making healthy decisions that honor God and happen to help the environment at Accidentally Green. Short and sweet - like her writing - Hilary is the author of several healthy living eBooks.

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