Here’s how to truly detox your beauty regime...
Kicked off January with a detox? If you’re using this month to kick-start a healthy eating regime with a little detoxifying juice fast, or you decided to cut out alcohol after last month’s booze-athon, then you’re probably in the majority. Lots of us use the start of the new year to try and cleanse our livers and detoxify our bodies – whether it’s to shed a few pounds, to ditch the booze or to reboot our system. But how many of you have ever considered detoxifying your make-up bag? Or cleaning up your shower and bath products (no pun intended)? How often do you actually consider exactly what you’re putting into your skin? Ok, as beauty obsessives, we know that the products you use ON your skin are often at the forefront of your mind, but how often do you think about what you are feeding IN to your skin?
The products we use daily, weekly and monthly are full of ingredients – natural, chemical, organic or otherwise – and these ingredients are being absorbed by our bodies, so it’s wise to take a moment to reflect on what these ingredients are and the effect they’re having. We’re certainly not saying you should stop using any of your favorite products or that you should start cutting out your must-have cosmetics, but if you’ve been looking to have a little detox of your beauty cupboard then this month is a good time to kick it off (new year, new you and all of that...)
Want to start using less toxic, more chemical-free products, but don’t know where to begin or which ingredients to shun? Parabens are a good place to start. They can act like estrogen in the body, and higher estrogen exposures are linked to breast cancer. Many products contain parabens. Petroleum is another one that is good to go and it comes in many guises: petrochemicals are incredibly pervasive in beauty products, so many common ingredients are derived from them. Some of the common ingredients in beauty products that are petrochemical-derived include Parafin wax and (the very ‘natural’ sounding) Mineral oil. A huge health concern with petroleum products is that they can generate a substance known to potentially contribute to some cancers.
We’re not here to scare you, to stop you using the products you love, and of course you need to always interpret research in your own way. But if you’re looking to detoxify your beauty cupboard, then start by looking at the ingredients list in the products you use on your skin, body and hair every day.
We’ve taken out some of the legwork (and believe us, there’s a lot) that goes in to stripping away some of the nasties. Here’s our curated edit of cleaner beauty products that we love:
Weleda Sea Buckthorn Body Wash, £7.95
You shower daily (we assume), your skin is more absorbent when wet AND you inhale the steam during a shower, so it makes sense to use a toxin-free shower gel. This mild cleansing body wash is free from synthetic fragrance, color, preservatives and raw materials from mineral oils. Its fragrance can only really be described as ‘sunny’: if you could fill your bathroom with sunshine it would smell and feel like this. Just what we need on a cold January morning.
The Organic Pharmacy Detox Body Oil, £36
Scrumptious and invigorating, this body oil – chock full of juniper and grapefruit essential oils - will improve microcirculation (hello less cellulite) and reduce inflammation, while deeply nourishing and conditioning your skin. Use on damp skin post-shower. Use post-body brushing if you want to up the anti-cellulite factor (which, of course, you do.)
Akar Skin Ruby Tint Lip Butter $32*
Ladies, put down the Vaseline. With soothing, nutrient-rich ingredients, this scrumptious petroleum-free balm will transform winter-worn lips and get them glowing again. See that subtle red hue? Yes, it’s your lips, only better.
* Included in your January Roccabox!