IT’S TIME TO DETOX YOUR BATHROOM
You might not think your toiletries are sabotaging your health and beauty, but consider this: everything you put on your skin is absorbed into your bloodstream. That includes soap, shaving cream, body lotion, deodorant, mouthwash, toothpaste, makeup, and any other products you may be using.
No, I’m not suggesting that you grow your leg hair, stop using deodorant, or go to work without wearing any makeup. However, it’s high time we took a look at the hazardous ingredients in mainstream bathroom products.
Just as it’s your decision to make certain dietary changes, it’s up to you to decide whether to switch one or two natural alternatives or to throw out all your drugstore products at once and adopt a whole new, natural arsenal. Any small change in this department will be significantly beneficial.
STEPS FOR DETOXIFYING YOUR BATHROOM
- Remove all your bathroom products – from the medicine cabinet to the bathtub to that scary place under the sink!
- Thoroughly clean (or hire someone to clean) the bathroom.
- Throw away any products that you simply don’t use, including old bottles of prescription medication, old mini hotel shampoos, old make-up that’s been outdated in more ways than one, and anything that you have trouble identifying.
- Arrange like products together (i.e., hair products with hair products, makeup with makeup).
- Now look at the ingredients in your products. Does your soap contain lye? Does your toothpaste or mouthwash contain ethanol sodium fluoride, sodium saccharin, or yellow dye #5? If you use an antiperspirant or deodorant, does it contain ammonia, formaldehyde, phenol (known carcinogens), or triclocarban (a suspected cancer-causing agent with daily use)? Does your shampoo or conditioner contain cocamide DEA or methylisothiaolinone (other carcinogens and mutagens)? Does your shaving cream contain a-pinene? Other suspects to look out for include talc, mineral oil, aluminum, polyvinylpyrrolidine (typically found in hairspray), phenol carbolic acid, PEG-40, padimate 0, and the preservative BNPD (typically found in sunscreen).
- Determine which of these products you think you could live without and then select natural alternatives to them from brands like Avalon Organics, Jason’s, Young Living, and many others that are available at natural markets like Whole Foods.
- Clean the items you decide to keep before restoring them to their rightful place.
- Gradually replace carcinogenic toiletries with the natural ones that you like. You may be surprised by how much you prefer the natural products. (I don’t miss the drugstore items at all.)
Also keep in mind that, as you begin to apply your new dietary principles, you simply won’t need to use so many beauty products. You will naturally begin to have better breath (eliminating the need for mouthwash), your skin will become even more even-toned and radiant, and your body odor will become less offensive.
You may decide that there are one or two things that you want to keep. In my case, I decided to be relaxed about makeup. First of all, I don’t need to wear it every day. Second, I’ve removed so many hazards from my diet and the bathroom that my body can deal with just one or two synthetic beauty products (remember the “triage” system). So while I held onto my makeup, I got rid of every other offender. You see, the point is not to become a hippie and stop shaving your legs and armpits or dress exclusively in organic cotton and Birkenstocks. The point is to lift the burden of hazardous materials off your body so that it can fight all the other pollutants that you cannot (in most cases) control or even see.
Extract from Raw Food Detox Diet by Natalia Rose
