Organic Body Products

There are body products popping up on shelves everywhere with the label “organic”.  They claim to be much more beneficial for you than other similar products.  You’re probably thinking “are organic body products really better for my skin?”  Well, organic body products are actually a complicated issue; there’s no simple answer, but here’s some help for sorting it out.

It’s true that using organic materials for body products is better for your skin and overall health.  Many products marketed for the skin include hundreds of toxic chemicals.  Since these ingredients aren’t directly ingested into the body, there is very little regulation on what can and cannot be used to make them.  And yet the skin does absorb these chemicals. For instance, most nail polish contains known carcinogens.  Some mouth washes have been linked to increased mouth and throat cancer.  Chemicals in deodorant can increase your risk of Alzheimer’s and breast cancer.  Other chemicals may cause asthma, ADHD, hormonal problems, and even decreased fertility.  These are just a few examples of the many dangerous ingredients in the products you use on a daily basis.  Isn’t it worth it to spend a bit extra on products without these harmful chemicals?

One word of caution before you throw out all your skin care. Since most producers can get away with increasing prices just by putting “organic” on the label, there’s been some deception in the market.  Producers will replace one ingredient with an organic counterpart and mark their product as organic even though it contains all the same dangerous additives.  Others will be even more deceptive by using the chemical definition of organic.  That means the “organic” ingredients they list simply contain carbon. 

The first clue in looking for genuine organic body products is to search for products with a certification seal.  Don’t stop there though.  You need to know the standards for certification for each seal.  For example, the USDA seal means is that the product is 70% certified organically grown materials.  The other 30% can be most any other toxic or unnatural chemical. 

To be sure you’re getting a 100% organically grown product, look at the ingredients list.  You should be able to recognize most of the ingredients on the label.  If there’s anything on the list you can’t pronounce, keep looking.  Also be aware of ingredients labeled with the word natural; like “natural coloring” or “natural flavors”.  These labels can be used to disguise harmful ingredients. 

While it may require some searching, there are legitimate 100% organic body products our there that can do your body a world of good.  They may just require a little extra looking and a bit more money. Here are some online sources of organic body products:

Organic body products at Amazon.com