A few months ago I felt a lump under my arm.
Every woman dreads that moment.
I called my doctor immediately and she was able to see me a few hours later.
For a year, I’d been thinking about how I should switch to an organic deodorant.
But I didn’t.
Every morning as I swept aluminum, paraben or other toxins under my arms, I thought…
THIS IS BAD.
THIS IS LINKED TO CANCER AND ALZHEIMER’S.
I SHOULD STOP DOING THIS.
But call it habit or a fear of smelling badly—I didn’t stop.
On my way to the doctor’s office, I fought opposing thoughts.
Thought One—I’m overreacting and probably don’t even need to see my doctor.
Thought Two—What if this is serious? What if by wearing deodorant I did this to myself?
My doctor felt the lump and suggested I go directly for a sonogram.
She tried to reassure me, saying she believed the lump was nothing. But she wanted me to check it out for my own peace of mind.
It’s true, I had already begun to think about my children without a mother, the grandchildren I wouldn’t know and the things I had yet to do.
The end of this story is a happy one.
Within two hours, I was examined and reassured that the lump was insignificant and would be gone in a few days.
But the experience got me thinking…
What else did I do every day knowing I shouldn’t?
I wear lipstick. Lipstick contains lead.
I wear body cream, which may contain Mercury.
Nail polish has a number of toxins.
Dousing ourselves in chemicals starts early. When my kids were small, I sprinkled Johnson and Johnson baby powder on their bottoms with every diaper change. Talcum powder is linked to ovarian cancer and Johnson and Johnson presently has many law suits against them.
We don’t stop to think about what’s in our skin care products. We assume they are safe, and we shouldn’t because the beauty industry is largely unregulated.
Here’s a fact:
Europe has banned 1,300 products.
America has banned 11.
Due to my latest scare and some common sense, I’m making changes:
I’ve been experimenting with some natural, safe alternatives for moisturizing my extremely dry skin.
And I wanted to share them here because these homemade recipes work!
They made my skin glow!
After trying a banana facemask (recipe below), I called my daughter into my room and told her what I did.
Laughing, she said, “You’re so weird.”
I took that as a compliment.
But then I made her touch my cheek.
“It’s like a baby’s butt,” she said, impressed.
Another compliment!!
To Cleanse and Exfoliate:
Recipe #1: Coconut Oil and Sugar
Recipe #2: Coconut Oil and Salt
Hydrating Face Mask #1
¼ mashed banana.
Apply to neck and face and leave on for 20 minutes.
Rinse with warm water.
Hydrating Face Mask #2
¼ of an avocado
½ tsp. honey
squirt of lemon
Apply to neck and face and leave on for 20 minutes.
Rinse with warm water.
Moisturizer:
Organic coconut oil
It’s great for face and body. As proof, after a recent massage, the masseuse asked what I used on my skin.
It’s an effective make up remover and hair conditioner.
Another small change…
When I apply deodorant, I pay attention. I use a smaller amount. I also use it less often. Turns out you might not need it as much as you think you do.
Also, I’ve experimented with homemade deodorant and got great results. I hardly use my pharmacy bought one any more.
But since no one in my family believed I was a fair test, my grown son agreed to be my guinea pig, and wore it to play basketball on a sweltering summer day. He texted me after: No smell.
Homemade Deodorant Recipe
3 tsp baking soda
3 tsp coconut oil
2 tsp arrowroot
2 tsp shea butter
A few drops of essential oil of your choice (I used Lavender.)
Melt the coconut oil and shea butter together.
Add arrowroot, baking soda, essential oil
Let cool.
Homemade Lipstick Recipe #1
1 tsp Vaseline
1/2 tsp honey
1 vitamin E capsule
2 drops cranberry extract
(Since making my own lipgloss, I read that Vaseline, petroleum jelly, is bad for us. Who knew? Once you start paying attention, the list of ingredients we shouldn’t use seems endless. You can substitute Vaseline with beeswax.)
Homemade Lipstick Recipe#2
1 teaspoon beeswax pastilles
1 teaspoon Shea butter or Cocoa Butter
1 teaspoon coconut oil
For color add: cinnamon, cocoa powder, beet root powder or turmeric.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Visit Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. Take the time to click on the link. It’s important.
On their site you will find the Red List with the names of ingredients you should stay away from.
There is also an app called Think Dirty. You can learn about potentially toxic ingredients in your personal care products.
I guarantee your bathrooms are stocked with products that contain dangerous chemicals. Watch: The Story of Cosmetics. You won’t believe what you don’t know.
HERE’S WHAT WE CAN DO…
KNOW WHAT’S IN OUR PRODUCTS.
MAKE HEALTHY CHOICES
SHARE WHAT WE LEARN
EXCELLENT INFORMATION, for EVERYONE. YOU SAVE ONE LIFE, YOU SAVE THE WORLD!
I’m passing this on to ALL MY family and Friends, and hope they pass on to their Family and Friends. THANK YOU for taking the time to CARE!
do ron ron and the STILL BEAUTIFUL ILENE
Thank you for commenting and for sharing. We each can do our part.
I went to buy an organic / natural deodorant at my local health store and read the ingredients (it was Burt’s Bees brand) and they were no different than the big brands like Dove and Secret…
Just goes to show you that even if something claims to be natural and good for you, you still have to thoroughly read through the ingredients these days.
…or just make your own products at home like you do 🙂
This is really good to know. It is incredible that a company is allowed to claim something is natural when it isn’t.
Seems if it’s good enough to eat (internal) and for the most part what you suggested is, than makes perfect pragmatic and healthful sense, to use on the body (external). Largest organ of the body is the skin making it a very BIG deal as you painstakingly pointed out.
All relevant, rational and useful information when applied both literally and figuratively as we go about making more informed purchasing choices regarding seeing ourselves as one miraculous systemic. The body/mind that is the vehicle for us- human beings – operating in the world for over a lifetime.
With your very prescient reminder ala this post, wake-up call to start valuing our bodies as more important then our possessions. Keep up the good work!
Fred Levine
Thank you Fred for commenting. And for your encouragement!
Thank you for sharing this information! A law hasn’t been passed regulating the cosmetics industry since 1938. On the previous comment by Ariela- "all natural" doesn’t mean anything, any company can put "all natural", "pure"… on the bottle. The important thing to look at is the ingredient list. Many of the ingredients in our cream, soaps, make up, etc have chemicals that are linked to breast cancer, learning disabilities, infertility and other health issues. A great alternative beauty brand is Beauty Counter. They don’t make deodorant yet but they have a great skincare, bath and body, cosmetics, kids and baby line. They have the strictest standard of safety in America, restricting over 1500 ingredients from their products. It is EWG verified and their mission is to get safe products into hands of everyone. You can order from their website at http://www.beautycounter.com/jaclynashkenazie , or make sure to put my name in the consultant box. If you have any questions or would like to sample any product you can reach out to me at jaclynashkenazie@gmail.com.