NEW YEAR, NEW YOU……. BEAUTY

Hey Loves!  I hope everyone is having a great week! This month on Forever Freckled we are celebrating a new you! I found the best experts from different fields to help cleanse and improve ourselves in 2016. We are starting off with beauty and health.  If you haven’t heard about Beautycounter, you need to learn! This unbelievable website is dedicated to getting safe products into your hands. This article is a true wake up call and will hopefully motivate us all to take a closer look at what is contained in the products we use. We are so honored to welcome Andrea Hecht, Director of Beautycounter, to our expert blogger family. Take it away Andrea!

NEW YEAR, NEW YOU…

DETOX YOUR BEAUTY ROUTINE

YES, it is that time of year when gym memberships skyrocket, sales of the latest juice cleanses increase, and people vow to achieve a healthier lifestyle! While all those resolutions may seem so “healthy,” unfortunately, many people neglect the importance of detoxing their beauty routine. Thank you Keira Knightley for reminding us to “Be happy in your body. It’s the only one you’ve got, so you might as well like it!”

QUIZ TIME…DON’T CHEAT BY LOOKING AT THE ANSWER BELOW! Take a moment to think about all the cosmetic products you used today from the moment you woke up to the time you were ready to go to bed. You may be shocked by your answer.

Did you know your skin is your largest organ? So, why are so many people neglecting this organ? It’s equally important to focus not only on what we put in our body but what we put on our body.

Did you know on average, an American woman uses 12 beauty products every day? That means she’s likely exposed to 100 ingredients or more in those 12 products! And teenage girls use an average of 17 personal care products a day!

Did you know, in the United States, 1 in 2 men and 1 and 3 women will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes? It is important that we take a closer look at the impact our daily cosmetic routine is playing on our health.

Did you know that it hasn’t been since 1938 that a federal law was passed regulating the cosmetic industry? The law is only 1 1⁄2 pages long and only 11 ingredients were banned at the time!

Did you know that the European Union has banned or restricted about 1,400 ingredients in their cosmetic industry due to the potentially harmful effects of those ingredients to human health?

Did you know there are approximately 12,000 chemicals used in the cosmetics industry? About 90% of these chemicals have never been assessed for the impact on long-term health.

Don’t panic! There are ways for you to protect yourself and your family. Grab a glass of “heart healthy” red wine, head to your cosmetic cabinet and follow these simple steps to DETOX YOUR BEAUTY ROUTINE. You will be well on your way to achieving your New Year’s Resolution to a safer beauty routine.

DETOX YOUR BEAUTY ROUTINE WITH THESE SIMPLE STEPS:

1. How safe are the products you are using on yourself and your family? Not sure? Check now with this very user-friendly app. Visit the ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP (EWG) website (www.ewg.org) and download the SKIN DEEP Cosmetics Database app (http://ewg.org/skindeep). This database allows people to search over 73,000 personal care products on the market to see their safety rating. Ratings are scored on a 0 -10 scale. This is a MUST HAVE step in your detox routine. This is one app that everyone should download!

2.  Why should we avoid PARABENS? Parabens are a “class” of preservatives commonly used in skin care and make-up products to prevent the growth of bacteria and mold. All products containing water must use a preservative, unless they are to be stored in the refrigerator. It’s best to avoid any products ending in -paraben since they mimic estrogen and may play a role in triggering Cancer or other health issues.

3.  Did you know that PHTHALATES (pronounced THAL-ates), commonly found in many cosmetics products, can actually disrupt your endocrine system? So what are phthalates anyway? Phthalates, often labeled using the abbreviation DBP and DEHP, are used in cosmetic products to make fragrances stay on the skin, nail polish stick and bend around your nail and styling hair products stay more malleable.

4.  Did you know that FRAGRANCE is considered an industry “trade secret?” Therefore, companies aren’t forced to disclose the chemicals used to create their scent. The scents usually contain many chemicals, and companies don’t have to disclose what is really included. As a word of caution, check your labels and avoid products that list “fragrance” in the ingredients.

Afraid to take the “journey” alone? Feel free to contact me at beautycounterbyandrea@gmail.com, and I will gladly help you with DETOXING YOUR BEAUTY ROUTINE and recommend some safer alternatives.

Hopefully this is your wake-up call that what you put on your body is equally as important as what you put in your body! As Beautycounter CEO, Gregg Renfrew said, “This is a women’s health issue. It’s a family health issue. It is our issue. And it’s one we can do something about.”

Written by,

Andrea Hecht

Director

Beautycounter

www.beautycounter.com/andreahecht

Andrea Hecht, B.A. French, and M.Ed., is currently a Director for Beautycounter, a company dedicated to safer beauty. Previously, she taught 3rd and 4th grade for the New York City Board of Education.  Prior to that, she worked as a Corporate Event Planner with Merrill Lynch. Andrea is dedicated to teaching others about changes within the beauty marketplace so they can make safer and healthier choices for themselves and family.  She currently lives in North Caldwell, NJ with her husband and two children, Jonah 7 and Sienna 4. A graduate of the University of Michigan, Andrea is a “die-hard” Wolverine fan.  Other passions include preparing healthy recipes and exploring anything to make her feel inspired to learn and grow.