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Get savvy & learn to spot greenwashing

What is greenwashing?

what is really in your shampoo?

It makes me sad that there are companies out there creating toxic products that are then using marketing spin to imply to customers that the products are something, such as ‘organic’ or ‘pure’ when they are not.

Green washing is defined as “Greenwashing (a portmanteau of “green” and “whitewash”) is a term describing the deceptive use of green PR or green marketing in order to promote a misleading perception that a company’s policies or products (such as goods or services) are environmentally friendly.”  (thanks wikipedia!)

What about green washed skin care?

As the Director of FDA’s Office of Cosmetics and Colours (FDA 1988) said some 21 YEARS AGO! “Consumers believe that ‘if it’s on the market, it can’t hurt me’ and this belief is sometimes wrong.”

You, as a savvy consumer, need to become a label detective.  Each time you shop ask yourself, what am I really buying?

Remember, just as it is on the shelves of a shop doesn’t mean it is safe.  Words like natural, organic, pure, safe, beneficial, SLS-free are fine but without reading the ingredients you can not guarantee that they are free of harmful toxins.

Read your labels!

What to trust?

A third party certification. Such as the USDA organic standard or the Australian Certified Organic standard, EcoCert and there are others.  That is a method of assessing the farming, the processing, the ingredients as well as being sure that the ingredients are genuinely grown in a way that one would think, without pesticides.

So what are you going to do when you shop?

The top five ingredients to avoid:

• Triclosan- in antibacterial soaps & some deodorants and toothpaste
• Parabens- in many products!
• Sodium Lauryl Sulphate- often in body washes & shampoo
• Dimethicone- often in conditioners
• Phenoxyethanol- in many products

Do you have products with these in?  If so it might be time to rethink and refresh your beauty buys.

For products that I have already vetted see the Editors Choice page, where there are a few skin care ranges and products I am really happy with.  I am adding new lines all the time, so be sure to check back.