Tuesday, October 09, 2007

What's in my lipstick??!

This article in Sunday's San Francisco Chronicle should be a must-read for anyone who wears cosmetics or cares about someone who does. The title of the article is "Five Questions for Mark Schapiro," who wrote the book "Exposed: The Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Products and What's At Stake for American Power."

The real question for me is, why is it that Europe has so much higher standards than the United States when it comes to regulating toxic chemicals? Why is it that European consumers can get so. much. more information on these things-- and American consumers cannot?

The article mentions the American culture of trusting corporations-- that is, trusting that products from large corporations must be overseen by the government or, at least, must be safe. Because otherwise people would get hurt and corporations would be forced to reformulate or get sued for lots of money. Right?

Well, a few consumers groups like Center for Environmental Health do the work the government should be doing. CEH had been testing products like children's lunchboxes, costume jewelry, candy and toys for lead for the past decade. And CEH has been forcing companies to reformulate.

The trouble with cosmetics is that its such a vast, vast market, and it does not have to reveal ingredients. Now, the skin is a very sensitive and intelligent organ, and I respect my skin. I also sometimes use makeup, and I often use cleansing and moisturizing products. I try to use simple, organic products or stuff straight from the kitchen (oats to scrub, olive oil to moisturize). So, considering how much is absorbed through the skin, well... I try not to use anything on my skin that I wouldn't eat. Because it's getting in my system, one way or another.

It seems the Europeans get this concept, as well as the "knowledge is power" idea. American consumers are still in the dark about what's in our cosmetics, cleansers and moisturizers. And we need to ask the questions if we ever want to find out exactly what those dyes, colors, stabilizers, emulsifiers, and preservatives do in our bodies.

Find out more at http://www.safecosmetics.org/.