3 Beauty Staples You Need to Swap

If you’re like me, you know that there are toxic ingredients lurking in your everyday home cleaning supplies and beauty routine but throwing everything out and starting fresh is a big financial commitment. So let’s start small and get there slowly, shall we? Here are 3 products I suggest starting with first:

DEODORANT

Conventional deodorants can contain endocrine disruptors, potential carcinogens and a host of other toxins, many of them unlisted, hidden within the ingredient “fragrance” on the label. But what’s even worse is their direct contact with one of your body’s most detoxifying areas: your underarms. Lymph nodes and sweat glands are concentrated there and the fact that underarm skin is thin and regularly exfoliated through shaving may make it more vulnerable to absorption. I know what you’re thinking because I’ve thought it too. All natural deodorants don’t work and I can’t be walking around all funky with wet armpits. Gross. Not cute. If you’re skeptical that clean deodorant will do it for you, try Schmidt’s. Engineered by a mother in the Pacific Northwest (we have to represent Seattle and PNW!), it’s pretty close to perfect. The entire line is spiked with absorbent plant-derived powders, like arrowroot, and the brand’s new sensitive-skin formulas are free of baking soda, which is a hero ingredient in clean, nontoxic deodorants.. but baking soda irritates some people.

Note: You may still get a little wet under the armpits as not all natural deodorants are also antiperspirants; however, you won’t SMELL. Wetness is completely normal and it happens to everyone even for someone wearing heavy duty, toxic deodorants so why not make the switch to the healthier option?

Another natural deodorant to try: Kopari

SUN PROTECTION

The most potent anti-ager in existence, bar none, is sunblock. Let’s just say I am PASSIONATE about sunscreen and encourage everyone in my life, whether they live in the Pacific Northwest, Alaska or Palm Springs to wear sunscreen daily, rain or shine. You can find some of my favorite sunscreens in this post. You can buy all of the anti-aging serums, lotions and potions you want but unless you start with sunscreen, those expensive serums are doing absolutely NOTHING. And ironically, chemical sunscreens are among the most powerful skin irritants in the beauty industry. Then there’s the fact that many chemical sunscreens degrade in sunlight after two hours, so slathering it on before work means you may not be protected by lunchtime. Add to that the potential endocrine disruptors and other toxins in standard formulas and you start to realize what a terrible choice chemical sunscreens are. Bad news.. let’s swap it out!

Mineral sunblock calms skin as opposed to irritating it and lasts until you wash or sweat it off. Another favorite clean sunscreen: Drunk Elephant and their tinted version here. Drunk Elephant is what I wear daily and then I apply my mineral powder throughout the day when I’m out and about.

Important: putting on a moisturizer/makeup with SPF in it is NOT ENOUGH. Always start with a clean/non-toxic sunscreen before putting on moisturizer or makeup, even ones with SPF.

EXFOLIANT

People make the assumption that clean skin care is less powerful when the opposite is often the case. Instead of fillers and texturizers, clean skin care often has higher percentages of the active ingredients it’s made with. When I first started down the path of researching what was actually in my skincare products, let’s just say I couldn’t pronounce 95% of the words on the back of the label. Remember the drug store exfoliating scrub we all used in high school? You know the one: St. Ives Apricot scrub. Do me a favor, try and read the label. Oh you can’t? Throw it out. Time to swap.

Two of my favorite clean exfoliators are Drunk Elephant Babyfacial and Exfoliating Instant Facial by goop. Why these two? Because both companies are passionate about creating non-toxic products that are made without a long, ever-evolving list of ingredients linked to harmful health effects from hormone disruption, to cancer, to plain-old skin irritation.

Important to note: products that advertise themselves as “organic” or “natural” can be misleading as neither term is defined by the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. Anyone can slap that on their bottle and people will think it’s “clean.” Be a wise consumer and look for the word “CLEAN” and check the label for mysterious ingredients. If you can’t pronounce more than 2-3 words on the back of the product, TOSS!

So, are you ready to start swapping out some of your products for a cleaner yet still effective beauty routine? I am!