what's in your beauty products?

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Aug 14 7:30 AM posted by Team Ricki

Friend of Ricki Christine Trice: Going green is sweeping the nation, for good reason, but there are tons of products that claim to be green & all natural when in fact they aren’t.  Understanding how to read ingredient labels will empower you to make educated purchases in body and skincare products, regardless of the brand, and often the best products are yet to be discovered or have a cult following.

Let’s face it.  We love fancy bottles of lotions and potions that smell fab and look pretty on our bathroom counters but we also want them to work. Brands will sell you on messages like “All natural wonder salve will solve all your problems and make you happier, too!” so you keep coming back for more. Try to ignore the branding for a moment & flip the jar around to its backside and read the ingredients.  You might be surprised.

3 Simple Rules of Engagement:

Less is more – too many ingredients mean less of the most potent ones.  If the front of the label reads “Shea Butter” and back label lists shea butter as the ninth ingredient, it’s safe to say the product is laden with less desirable fillers & you’re not benefitting from the shea butter at all.

Avoid water in moisturizers – our skin does not absorb water & in fact it dehydrates it.  If parabens are a concern of yours, avoid products that contain water as they need preservatives to keep them from going rancid.  Water merely dilutes a product to make a lighter consistency.

Oil Free is not the way to be – botanical oils are health food for your skin and rich in many antioxidants (read my lips ladies– anti-aging!) Avoid mineral oil, which also hides as “petroleum”, “petrolatum” and also “dimethicone” that can clog pores and deteriorate skin health.

The EWG (Environmental Working Group) is a wonderful consumer resource where you can learn about specific ingredients and product claims and currently list over 74,000 products in their database.  Natural grocers are a great place to shop as employees receive extensive training on ailments and ingredients and can help pair you with the most suitable product based on your needs.

Christine Trice is the Founder & Chief Bad Ass of OMG I So Need A Glass of Wine Or I'm Gonna Sell My Kids, prenatal massage therapist and the owner of Brown Bag Botanicals, where she teaches others how to decipher ingredient labels and make educated purchases in body & skincare, regardless of the brand. Entrepreneur, mom of two girls and four furbabies, wife to one, the self-proclaimed serial over-committer is passionate about her family, wine, philanthropy, wine, dog rescue, SUP and of course, wine.  She believes that you haven't lived until you've danced naked in a thunderstorm.  You can find her paddling the American River most any day that the sun rises with her dog, Molly. Connect with Christine on Facebook and Twitter.