You’d have to be living on Mars or under a rock not to be aware about “green movement”, global warming, sustainable agriculture, organic products, too many chemicals in our daily use, etc. And even common sense tells you that a natural skin care product is better for you than a synthetic one.

The problem is, there are a lot of manufacturers out there who’ve heard these terms too. But they didn’t get the real meaning. They didn’t get in the game. They just figured that you think that “natural” and “organic” is better. So they stick the “natural” or “organic” words on the package, and wait for you to pick up the bottle.

Welcome to greenwashing. It is despicable how many manufacturers claim “natural” and sell you the exact same chemicals you were trying to avoid.

You know why?

The term “natural” is unregulated. The term “contains organic ingredients” can mean that a one hundredth of a percent of the ingredients is of organic origin. The rest can be from absolutely anywhere. And it usually is.

But maybe you think that “natural” is overrated? Maybe you think that the cosmetics industry is tightly regulated?

Sorry to be the one to break it to you, but nobody really regulates it.

Did you know that only 11% of the over 10,500 chemicals in your cosmetics have been screened for safety? Did you know that some major brands tested positive for lead in lipstick? (L’Oreal, Cover Girl, Christian Dior…)

If this perked your curiosity and you want to find out what actually goes on your skin, check out the site for Campaign For Safe Cosmetics. A wealth of information that will get any woman thinking. There is also a link to a cosmetics database, where you can type in your favorite product and see how it scores in terms of safety.

But lets get back to greenwashing. With the advent of concern about chemicals, tons and tons of products are spotting “natural” and “organic” claims. But do they hold up to scrutiny? 

One of such popular health store brands is JASON. On it’s hair conditioner JASON has a prominent label stating: “pure, natural and organic”. But when you actually look at the list of ingredients, you will see that only one of the minor ingredient is of organic origin.

Just last spring a whole slew of popular “organic” personal care products was found to contain carcinogenic Dioxane-1.4, including brands like JASON Pure Natural And Organic, Giovanni Organic Cosmetics and Nature’s Gate Organics. Common sense implies that their name alone should ensure that such chemicals do not make it into the composition of the products. But apparently that is not so. And non of these companies, by the way, are certified organic.

• First – read the ingredients. Claims can be meaningless and non-specific. Ingredients have to be listed. Here, of course, the major loophole are the terms Fragrance or Parfum. Manufacturers are not required to disclose chemicals that are used as part of these category, and thus it can be any one of literally hundreds chemicals used. So avoid fragrance, or look for a note that explains where it comes from.

• Avoid some really common and most dangerous chemical offenders. You can google them online and many lists will pop up. They will include parabens, phenol/carbolic acid, petrochemicals (mineral oil, paraffin, petrolatum), acrylamide, sodium laureth sulfate, dioxane (found in ingredients that include "eth", "PEG", "polyethylene", "polyethelene glycol", "polyoxyethylene", "oxynol"), etc.

• Look for claims verified by third party. While not all organic/natural certifications are created equal, they still bring more value to the claims. And some are very stringent. Here you can read a comprehensive list of organic certifications you are likely to encounter.

• Look for products that contain fewer ingredients.

• Simplify your routine. You probably don’t need as many products as you think.

• Make your own skin care products! There are many recipes in books and on line, and most of them are so ridiculously easy, you’d be wondering why you never tried them before. For example, if you are convinced you need toner (a very contensuous issue) for the Ph balance on your skin, instead of buying an expensive “contains real cucumber” bottle slice a piece of cucumber and rub it gently on your face. Or grind coarsely some oatmeal flakes, soak them in a bit of pure water – voila! You’ve got a first class exfoliant ready to be used.

I hope this article will help you in making more informed choices. After all, this is your health we are talking about, and that’s something worth the effort.