Detoxing Your Personal Care Routine in Eight Steps

1. Take the biggest bucket or bowl you can find and then head into the bathroom you use the most.

2. Fill the bucket with ALL of your personal care items: lotions, shampoos, cosmetics, hair gels, hair dye, toothpaste, tampons, perfumes, etc… .

3. Sit down at the table and start reading.

4. If there are no ingredients listed consider tossing it. Chances are this item came in some packaging that listed the ingredients. Now it is gone. Consdier playing it safe by tossing it.

5. If it doesn’t say “natural”, “organic”, or “non-toxic” consider tossing it. Many companies use the words “natural” or “non-toxic” when products are in fact loaded with artificial chemicals BUT in general no company using all organic or natural products fails to mention it. In other words, save yourself time by eliminating those that don’t even try to ACT natural or non-toxic. Also, remember that “not tested on animals” means nothing in terms of the chemicals contained in a product and as such, while this may be an important ethical decision for you don’t let this claim confuse you in terms of choosing chemical-free

6. Keep everything that is certified organic. The good news is, these items are likely non-toxic and free of artificial ingredients.

7. Start reading and start tossing. While it is impossible to know all the ingredients there are a few rules of thumb that will likely result in getting rid of 90% of non-organic products. If it contains sodium lauryl sulfate consider tossing it. This stuff likely isn’t as bad as it has been made out to be but there is solid research showing an association between it and oral ulcers and certain types of cancers. In other words, consider tossing it. If it contains the word “paraben” (generally preceded by methyl-, ethyl-, butyl-, or propyl) consider tossing it. This stuff is often used to prevent clumping or bacteria growth but it is also a known endocrine disruptor which is particularly problematic during pregnancy.

Still have more in your bucket? A few more rules: Formalin and DMDM hydantoin are types of formaldehyde that are typically used in nail polish, blush, powder and cosmetics as a preservative. Citric acid and other vitamins are safer and can do the same thing and as such, consider tossing items with formaldehyde based ingredients.

Carefully toss the hair dye. This stuff actually has to be put in a landfill so don’t just simply put it in the trash. Hopefully you have some kind of hazardous waste place in your garage where you can put this (with your car oil and old paint). Hair dye and some medicated shampoos contain coal tar, FD& C Blue 1, Green 3, Yellow 5&6, and D&C Red 33. All of these have been shown to have some carcinogenic activity and as such, may be dangerous to pregnancy and fetal development. While pregnant and breastfeeding stick with henna and plant based dyes and shampoos. They may not work as well as you would like but for this period of time they are the much safer alternative.

Two last notes: a) Mascara. Most mascaras contain mercury. If it wasn’t marketed as mercury-free consider purchasing some that is. Most studies show that this is a relatively safe use of mercury but considering the danger of mercury in general you may want to consider crossing this off your list. b) Tampons and pads. Most tampons and pads are bleached using chlorine which releases dioxin into the environment and our bodies. Dioxin is a known carcinogen. Sound bad? Consider tossing these (don’t worry, there are organic alternatives).

8. Bucket empty? Consider simplifying and not repurchasing everything you just got rid of. Replace the items you feel you really need or just want with organic, non-toxic, plant based products. The good news is that everything in your trash has an organic alternative. The bad news, well, replacing them will cost something BUT the cost to your health of not replacing them may be more. In all likelihood all would be fine but in this instance why even take the chance? Keep in mind that even replacing one item is an improvement. What may surprise you is that in some instances the all organic plant based product may cost less. This is certainly the case with cosmetics where the very expensive department store products are often the ones loaded with man-made and potentially dangerous chemicals.

Read Part 5: Green Cleaning

Read other parts in the series: Bring Water with You, Making Eating Organic Easy, Reevaluate Your Relationship with Plastics, Clothes and the Chemicals They Come With.