Summer Skin Care Products

Summer is a great time to be outdoors.  With eating outdoors, swimming, hiking and camping, there are a variety of skin care products available to protect our skin from the sun and insects, as well as to keep skin clean, moisturized and hydrated.  

Having experienced sensitive skin, allergies and skin cancer, I have become more cautious about the products I use on my skin and my family's skin.  I used to be more concerned about whether skin care products contained gluten.  Experts suggests that gluten and all proteins are too large to be absorbed through the skin.  Gluten-containing products are only a problem if you swallow them.  It is recommended to avoid using gluten-containing toothpastes and certain mouthwashes.  It is also important to be cautious about gluten-containing lipsticks, hand lotions and sunscreens in case you are eating while wearing those products.  More recently, my focus is on avoiding skin care and cosmetic products that contain more harmful chemicals.

The David Suzuki Foundation has a Dirty Dozen list of ingredients to avoid in cosmetics and skin care products.  The list includes:
1. BHA and BHT
2. Coal tar dyes
3. DEA-related ingredients
4. Dibutyl phthalate
5. Formaldehyde-releasing preservatives
6. Parabens
7. "Parfum" or "fragrance"
8. PEG compounds
9. Petrolatum
10. Siloxanes
11. Sodium laureth sulphate
12. Triclosan

Check out these environmental and health organizations to learn more about chemicals and find safer product suggestions.

• Campaign for Safe Cosmetics safecosmetics.org
• Environmental Defence environmentaldefence.ca and justbeautiful.ca
• Skin Deep is a helpful website to learn about what skin care products are safest to use.  A product is either rated as low hazard, moderate hazard or high hazard.  This website is also great for checking out skin care products that are used year-round; for example, cosmetics, shampoos, baby soaps and hand soaps.
  
  
  

Consumers are powerful, and many companies are starting to change their products for the better.  Johnson & Johnson has stated that it would remove many harmful chemicals in its products by the end of 2015.  I am starting to see more things on the shelf that say "sulphate free" and "paraben free".  I would like to share a few of the websites and products that I have recently discovered.  I have also looked up many of these products with the Skin Deep Database.

Using a gluten-free toothpaste is very important to me.  I do not want to be ingesting gluten while brushing my teeth.  Green Beaver has a number of gluten-free toothpastes.  TheraNeem Naturals also has a gluten-free toothpaste and mouthwash that is also paraben free, sulphate free and vegan.  Community Natural Foods and Plant Organic carry gluten-free toothpastes.

Badger's organic and natural sunscreens are rated as low hazard on the Skin Deep website, but unfortunately the only place I could find them was at a health food store.  Green Beaver sunscreens are gluten-free, but they were not in the Skin Deep Database to see the rating.  If you are looking for sun protection for children from a drug store, Alba Botanica Natural Very Emollient Sunscreen for kids is one of the sunscreens that is rated as low to moderate hazard on the Skin Deep website.  It is also important to choose a big hat, wear long sleeves and sit in the shade (or bring an umbrella). 

I was so impressed the last time I was at Costco and found that their Kirkland shampoo was sulphate, gluten and paraben free, as well as vegan!  Even though this is a decent shampoo, there are better shampoos that are more natural in the health food store.  Some of the Hugo Naturals shampoos are rated well according to the Skin Deep data base.  The Hugo Naturals Vanilla & Sweet Orange Shampoo and Conditioner are gluten-free and vegan.  They also have some wonderful baby products.  I look for shampoos with less chemicals in them and more ingredients that you could eat!  The more natural it is, the more comfortable I am using the product.

Live Clean products can be found at most drug stores and Walmart stores.  They are petroleum free, paraben free, phthalate free, phosphate free, vegan and made with certified organic botanicals.  The apple cider clarifying shampoo smells wonderful!  This leave-in conditioner does not build-up in your hair and is nice for doing braids in the summer.

I love Free Spirit Botanicals for their incredible natural lotions.  They are made from tea, aloe vera, shea butter and calendula infused olive oil.  Christmas is a great time to order from the company, as they have really nice gift packs for doing your own pedicures and manicures.

Dr. Bronner's 18-in-1 Hemp Pure-Castile Soap is rated very well on the Skin Deep website.  It is biodegradable, vegetable based and made with organic oils.  It is a multi-purpose soap that can be used for body washing, shampooing, laundry (hand washing clothes), light household cleaning and so on.  The unscented baby soap is ideal for dry and sensitive skin as well.  It is great for traveling and camping in the summer.  I also make my own foaming liquid hand soaps and body washes by diluting the castile soap.  Start by purchasing a large bottle of the pure concentrated castile soap.  Use an empty foaming hand soap container and fill it 1/3 of the way with the castile soap.  Then fill the rest of the container with water and put the lid on.  Tip it back and forth to mix the water in with the soap.  Then you have a simple, safe and cost effective hand soap!

Thayers Witch Hazel is a very useful product.  It is helpful for insect bites, sunburn, windburn, acne and even diaper rash.  It also can be used as a toner and moisturizer for your face.  The unscented Thayers Witch Hazel is best for children's skin or sensitive skin.

Finally, I prefer to use a more natural insect repellant.  It is important to me to stay away from harmful chemicals like DEET.  As well as being an eye irritant and causing rashes, it has been connected to neurological problems and is toxic for birds and aquatic life.  I was asked by someone if I would post the recipe I use for natural bug spray.  I got my recipe for insect repellant from wellnessmama.com.

I hope these safe and natural products help you and your family enjoy the outdoors this summer!