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Natural and organic not necessarily green

toggle — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 21:22:00 +0100

You might be thinking this is an odd statement from someone who runs an entire website promoting the use of natural and organic body care products. I was reading an article the other day that talked about how a natural and/or organic products aren't necessarily a better choice for the environment.

Some of the common issues associated with plant based products include:

Over harvesting of plants and flowers.
Some plants need to be harvested in massive quanities to produce a small amount of an ingredient.
Rare/exotic plants being exploited and harvested at an unsustainable rate.
Eco system destruction - a good example of this is areas of rainforest being cut down to create palm oil plantations.
The amount of water needed to grow certain plants.

So how can we make sure that we aren't making a worse choice by choosing a natural and/or organic product?

Looking at how a company and it's products measure up in 5 key areas: ingredients, manufacturing, packaging, product disposal and location.

Ingredients

Does the company operate any kind of controlled gathering procedure? For example Weleda's policy for the gathering of Arnica flowers is: only open flowers are harvested, short stems without buds and there must always be at least one flower left on the bush.
Are the ingredients grown without the use of chemicals and pesticides?
Is it a water intensive crop like soybeans?

Manufacturing

Do any of the ingredients require an energy intensive process for manufacture?
Does the manufacturing plant use renewable energy?
Does the company offset carbon created during the manufacturing process?
Are the products manufactured in small batches? - fewer machines, more people, requiring less energy overall.

Packaging

Can the packaging be reused once the product has been finished?
Is the packaging recyclable? Or is it easy to separate the recyclable parts from the non-recyclable ones?
Is the packaging made from recyclable materials?
Is the packaging excessive? A couple of companies who use very simple packaging are Aubrey Organics and Pure Nuff Stuff. Both of these companies use plain white recyclable bottles with very little coloured ink.

Product disposal

Does the product biodegrade or contain any biodegradable materials?
Does the company offer a refill service?
Do any of the materials release toxins into the environment?

Location

In relation to where you live:

Where is your product manufactured?
Where are the ingredients of your product grown? - I don't think it's a case of refusing to use shea butter, coconut oil or lemons because they come from another part of the world (think of the jobs it creates), but I think it is important to make sure it is grown and shipped in a way that isn't going to negatively impact on the environment or the people that grow it.
How does the product reach you? For example, does it have to be flown to you or is it manufactured in your country?

By thinking about these questions when you make your purchases, it will help you find the true greens!

Tagged: shopping

Homemade lavender and lemon mouthwash recipe

toggle — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 17:56:00 +0100

I'm not a big fan of lurid coloured, sugary tasting mouthwashes. They are mostly far too strong and I always seem to get an outbreak of mouth ulcers after using them. I found this fantastic recipe for a very mild homemade mouthwash in my Neal's Yard Remedies: Recipes for Natural Beauty book.

This is an all natural, antiseptic and healing mouthwash that relieves sore gums and freshens your breath.

What you need

15ml/3tsp lavender tincture
15 ml/3tsp calendula tincture
50ml/10tsp vegetable glycerin
2 drops of lemon essential oil
2 drops of orange essential oil
5 drops of peppermint essential oil
Dark bottle - Ideally glass. I reuse blue a bottle from Neal's Yard
Mouthwash cap - I saved one from an old bottle of mouthwash

These ingredients will make 90ml and will keep for up to 6 months. I bought the tinctures and glycerin from the Neal's Yard website.

How to make it

Blend all of the ingredients together and pour into your bottle.

How to use it

This mixture is concentrated and should be diluted. Dilute 1 teaspoon of mouthwash mixture in a little water. I found it best to do this in the mouthwash cap to avoid lots of mess.

Do not swallow!

Tagged: recipes

Handmade Natural Body Care on Etsy, May 09

toggle — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 21:36:00 +0100

Handmade natural body care finds on Etsy for May. Includes banana flavoured tooth soap and felted soap.

Toothbrushing Soap - Banana Flavor

By livelaughlovesoap

"This toothbrushing soap will replace any tube toothpaste with confidence. Each cube starts with an oil base that's 95% olive oil to reduce allergic reactions and 5% sesame seed oil to battle toxins and plaque. Baking soda is a natural ingredient added to combat plaque and render the teeth clean and gums strong."

All Natural Deodorant

By urbaneden

"True story: Jake was coming home from Portland, Maine when the bus broke down. All the passengers had to stay on the bus. And the windows didn't open. And it was hot. Really hot. And this deodorant worked."

Lavender Rosemary Vegan Handmade Soap

By DeShawnMarie

"All of my soaps are made from nourishing Coconut milk, herbs, fruits and vegetable bases... each soap is individually handmade, packaged and designed, making each one a unique and very personal treat."

All Natural Mens Shaving Set w/ Brush in mojito

By SweetSydneyBean

"Deliciously scented with fresh lime and just a hint of peppermint to give it that refreshing 'mojito' scent. Crisp and clean with slightly sweet after-notes."

Ladybug Whimsical Woolies Felted Soap

By persnicketypelican

"A felted soap is like a washcloth built into the soap. Little pieces of soft wool are pushed into the soap with a felting needle to make the design. The wool shrinks with the soap as it is used in the bath or shower. Once the soap is gone, a nice smelling little ball of wool is left to freshen up a drawer!"

Tagged: etsy

The ongoing debate of a link between deodorants and breast cancer

toggle — Tue, 26 May 2009 20:14:00 +0100

The ongoing debate about possible links between deodorants and breast cancer has gained alot of publicity and no definitive answer has been reached. Some say there is link and others say there isn't. With this in mind, how are you suppose to know whether aluminum based deodorants are safe to use or not?

Image by: Zara on Flickr

Organisations like Breakthrough Breast Cancer and Cancer Research have written articles providing useful information on this subject.

Breakthrough Breast Cancer: Deodorant, Antiperspirants and Breast Cancer Risk: The Facts
Cancer Research: Deodorants, antiperspirants and breast cancer

Tom Nolan has written a great article for the Guardian's Health and Wellbeing section. It examines how and why our armpits work the way they do, natural alternatives to aluminium based deodorants and their effectiveness.

Article source: The Guardian (Health and Wellbeing) - Roll on Summer

Roll on summer

When the sun heats up, so do armpits ... But are antiperspirants safe? And what of the natural alternatives? Tom Nolan has the answers to all your sweatiest questions.

How come only my armpits smell?

Each square centimetre of skin contains around 100 sweat glands. The sweat that cools you down is released from eccrine sweat glands, which are found all over the body but especially in the palms, feet and armpits. They secrete the salty wet sweat that causes sweat patches. A second type of sweat gland, the apocrine gland, is responsible for body odour. These secrete a type of mucous that is broken down by bacteria on the skin to produce the characteristic smell. No one's sure what the purpose of these glands are - if they're supposed to be the body's natural perfume then maybe it's our sense of smell that is to blame. Fortunately for us, if not for deodorant manufacturers, apocrine glands are found mainly in the armpits and genital regions.

How do deodorants work?

There is a big difference between deodorants and antiperspirants, as Dr Mark Goodfield, president of the British Association of Dermatologists, explains. "An antiperspirant is an agent which acts to diminish sweating and doesn't necessarily include a perfume. Antiperspirants tend to contain aluminium salts which thinly cover the sweat glands and diminish the amount of sweat leaving the area to which it is applied. A deodorant serves to counter the bacteria that react with the sweat to create a smell." They also contain perfume to hide the smell of body odour.

Are antiperspirants harmful because they block your pores?

Although the armpits have a high concentration of sweat glands, there are plenty elsewhere so blocking these doesn't affect your body's heat regulation. Ten years ago a rumour spread on the internet that blocking sweat glands prevents toxins from escaping the body, which can accumulate in the lymph glands and cause cancer. The rumour turned out to be a hoax: lymph glands are completely separate from sweat glands and only a tiny proportion of the body's toxins are excreted in sweat.

Is it true that antiperspirants can cause breast cancer?

There have been concerns that the aluminium contained within most antiperspirants may cause breast cancer. A study in 2007 found high levels of aluminium in breast tissue taken from 17 women with breast cancer. However, a lack of comparative data from other body parts or healthy breast tissue makes it hard to draw any conclusions from this study.

There is currently no evidence from any cancer trials to suggest that antiperspirants cause cancer. The biggest study to date was published in 2002 and compared around 1,600 women, half of whom had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Researchers interviewed each woman to establish their armpit hygiene habits and found that neither deodorant nor antiperspirant use led to an increased risk of developing breast cancer. They also looked at shaving before applying deodorant, since breaking the skin while shaving could, in theory, make it easier for aluminium to enter the body. They found no increased risk of breast cancer.

What about natural alternatives?

Fears about the safety of aluminium-based antiperspirants have led to some people switching to natural products offered by brands such as Crystal and Green People. These contain ammonium alum, a mineral salt found in the earth's crust. They claim to prevent odour not by blocking the sweat glands (which is what makes antiperspirants so effective) but by forming a barrier on the skin that prevents bacteria forming. If you fancy making your own natural deodorant, you can try bicarbonate of soda, either on its own or mixed with talcum powder.

Tagged: deodorant

The Oil Cleansing Method

toggle — Mon, 18 May 2009 19:22:00 +0100

I recently bought an oil based cleanser from Spiezia Organics. I did a bit of reading and found out this is called the 'oil cleansing method'. I was intrigued by this because about 99% of all the cleansers you see in the shops are creamy lotions for normal to dry skins or cleansing gel for oily skin.

What is the oil cleansing method?

Using oils instead of creamy lotions to remove dirt and oil from your skin

Image by: Dogtooth77 on Flickr

Castor oil (from the castor bean) removes grease and other dirt from your skin and the olive oil (or another carrier oil like almond, avacado or jojoba) moisturises your skin. Castor oil can dry your skin out if you use too much or use it too frequently - if this happens, try reducing the amount of castor oil and increasing the amount of olive oil.

How it works

All you need to do is mix the right quantities of castor oil and olive oil, massage gently onto your face, leave on for a couple of minutes and then remove with a warm wash cloth.

The ratio of castor oil to olive oil can be altered depending on your skin type:

Dry skin: 10-15% castor oil: 90% olive oil
Normal/combination skin: 20% castor oil: 80% olive oil
Oily skin: 30% castor oil: 70% part olive oil
You can add more than one carrier oil to the blend. For example avocado and jojoba oils with castor oil
If you add essential oils to your blend remember to dilute them correctly and always do a patch test before applying them to your skin.

The benefits

You are using the minimum amount of ingredients to cleanse your skin
Very natural - using pure cold pressed oils
Reduces waste because you use a wash cloth rather than cotton wool
The same ingredients can be adapted for several skin types
Reduces the amount of products you need to use because a small amount of oil remains on your skin afterwards - in most cases removing the need to use a moisturiser

Tagged: skincare, waste

Book Review: Grow Your Own Drugs

toggle — Wed, 06 May 2009 19:27:00 +0100

Grow Your Own Drugs is a TV series recently shown on the BBC, where James Wong (an ethnobotanist at Kew Gardens) shows you how to grow and use plants for natural remedies. I bought the book so I didn't have to scribble down the recipes during each show!

"Over the years we have lost the knowledge of how to make the most of plants' health benefits in our daily lives. The fact that many remedies are cheap to make and can be prepared in five minutes at home, makes them all the more appealing and convenient."

The Book

Grow Your Own Drugs contains information about many aspects of growing and using plants for natural remedies and is divided up into 4 main sections:

Getting started

This chapter gives you a basic understanding of the tools and ingredients to use for the job. It tells you which utensils you will need, base ingredients (beeswax, olive oil, honey etc), information about growing, planting and foraging and basic uses for plants.

"If your kitchen facilities and cooking ability can stretch to making beans on toast, you can make herbal remedies."

Remedies

The remedies section is the main reason I bought this book and I wasn't disappointed. Some books of this type only really contain recipes for beauty, but I like Grow Your Own Drugs because it focuses on beauty as well as common ailments. The recipes are broken down according to the type of complaint: digestive disorders, skin complaints, kids, aches and pains, women's stuff, under the weather, mind, face and body.

All of the recipes have clear, to the point, easy to follow instructions and a full page colour photo of the finished product. They're also very inexpensive to make because the ingredients are those you probably already have at home (kiwi, lemon, honey, herbs, essential oils, oils).

Top 100 plants

An index of the top 100 medicinal plants and their benefits broken down into fruit, vegetables, trees/shrubs, roots, herbs, flowers and leaves.

I think this is a very useful addition to the book because it gives you the knowledge to adapt the recipes for other ailments. This section also ties in nicely with the Getting Started chapter which tells you how to make infusions, macerated oils and tinctures.

Resources

A small but perfectly formed section that lists stockists (all UK based) of more specialist items. It also introduces some of the organisations undertaking medicinal plant research around the world.

Conclusion

This book is a must for anyone interested in using plants to make natural remedies. As well as presenting you with recipes, it also gives you a fantastic grounding in the basic principles of herbal remedies which you can use to experiment and create your own recipes. Highly recommended!

Image sources

James Wong: The Guardian BBC2 to air homegrown health show
Photographs of book: © Copyright anderra. If you use our images, please link back to us

Tagged: books, recipes

No preservatives in organic milk...it's organic

toggle — Mon, 04 May 2009 18:07:00 +0100

I went to a friends house for dinner this weekend and we somehow got onto the subject of organic milk. His wife said, "There aren't any preservatives in organic milk...it's organic". This got me thinking about how the words natural and organic are used and what they actually mean.

Image by: meantux on Flickr

I've been to the shops countless times and picked up something labelled as organic, only to find that the organic ingredient they are referring to makes up less than 1% of the product and the rest is full of nasties. So it is important to remember that natural and organic do not mean the same thing.

Natural

If an ingredient is natural:

It has not been significantly altered
Nothing has been added
Nothing has been removed (the exception is water)

Natural does not mean organic - products/ingredients can still be of GMO origin and grown with chemical pesticides. For example, the tomato - a natural product, GM origin and sprayed with pesticides. A soup made from this tomato could have "all natural ingredients" on the label, but could not be labeled organic.

Organic

If an ingredient is organic, it must be:

GMO free
Grown without the use of synthetic chemicals and chemical pesticides
Free from antibiotics and growth hormones
Free from animal cruelty

An organic product does not mean a natural product. For example, it might contain organic lavender, but the rest of the ingredients might be synthetic.

Products and ingredients are certified organic by third party organisations to ensure guidelines are strictly adhered to. When shopping for organic products, it's best to look for those that carry an organic certifications (EcoCert, Soil Assocation etc) as this ensures you are buying products with a genuinely high content of organic ingredients.

If you'd like to know more about natural and organic certifications, please visit our understanding labels section.

Tagged: organic, natural

Handmade Natural Body Care on Etsy, April 09

toggle — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 21:44:00 +0100

Handmade natural body care finds on Etsy for April. Includes chunky mint soap, sweet lemon and blueberry seed exfoliant and lemon grass soap.

TEMPT ylang ylang and pink grapefruit bath-not-bomb

By Katevw

"No fake scents here: just the good stuff. Mango butter: cold pressed and rendered from the seed kernel of the mango tree, this highly prized butter is nicely moisturizing and soothing without being greasy."

Jasmine Soap

By Adorationsoap

"Sultry and inviting, jasmine is a wonderful aroma that may remind one of those warm summer nights when the flowers open to reveal their intoxicating scent."

Monster Chunk Mint Soap

By Bodygoodies

"This 100% natural bar of goodness is my latest creation. This bar, like all of my soaps, has been created with a purpose.... this one: to be an uber moisturizing, super lathering , extra slippery shaving bar... but its not JUST a shaving bar!"

Sweet Lemon and Blueberry Seed Exfoliant

By Pokeypeppers

"At pokeypeppers, our mantra is to live simply. This includes the products we put on our skin. As such we never use mineral oils, Sodium Lauryl Sulfates, synthetic fragrances or anything else that could potentially harm our bodies."

Natural Lemon Grass Soap

By Naiad

"It arrives labeled with all ingredients in a natural muslin bag that I encourage you to re-use! Fill it with potpourri for a wonderful drawer sachet!"

Tagged: etsy

Cosmetic Ingredients to Avoid on a Purse Card

toggle — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 13:54:00 +0100

I was shopping with my boyfriend's Mum the other day and she asked me to check the ingredients of some body care products because she didn't know what she was looking for. With half of the ingredients almost unpronounceable, it got me thinking it would be very handy to have something to take shopping that shows you which ingredients to avoid.

So I've made a handy purse card which lists ugly ingredients found in many body care products. All you need to do is print it out and pop it in your purse!

Get the purse card »

Tagged: tips

Reducing Waste in Your Personal Care Routine

toggle — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 09:21:00 +0100

Walk through any store like Boots and you'll find a huge array of products: neck creams, roller ball eye creams, toothpastes, hair dye, waxing strips, press on eye shadow strips, pore strips, shampoos, conditioner, toothbrushes, sanitary towels, disposable razors, deodorant...it's little wonder we generate so much waste each year from our personal care routines alone.

Biodegradability

Having a low/zero waste personal care routine extends beyond packaging waste and includes the biodegradability of products washed down the plug hole. There are so many ingredients that are extremely difficult (or impossible) to filter out of water and therefore end up as waste products. Companies like Weleda create biodegradable products by substituting chemical cleansers with those made from plant sugars.

Scrubbies and flannels instead of cotton wool

Using face scrubbies and flannels can cut alot of cotton wool waste. Coloured scrubbies are ideal for removing makeup as they don't stain.

They are easy to wash and hygienic to use as long as you hang them up to dry rather after each use.

Bar soap instead of pump soap

Bar soaps have much less packaging that pump soaps. Some people feel these aren't as hygienic as pump soaps but this can be tackled in a couple of ways: put soap in a tray that allows it to dry between uses (usually a ridged bottom), use a soap dish with a lid and look for soaps that contain naturally antiseptic ingredients like lavender, tea tree, eucalyptus and lemon.

My favorite bar soaps are Pangea Organics (plantable packaging made from egg crate carton), Dr. Bronners (wrapped in paper) and Copa Soaps (just a brown paper belly band).

Neal's Yard Remedies

Neal's Yard Remedies take back used jars for reuse and recycling and give you 10p for each bottle or jar you return.

Make your own

Making your own products is a great way to save on waste (check out our recipes for some ideas!). You probably already have most of the ingredients you need already in your kitchen.

Instead of buying new jars you can use empty jars and products pots you have at home. Trilogy products come in plain brown jars and once the label has been removed, you have a completely plain jar to reuse.

Monte-Bianco clip toothbrushes

Monte-Bianco Clip toothbrushes have a removable head, so rather than throwing away the whole toothbrush you keep the handle and just dispose of the head each time.

These toothbrushes are available with natural (boar hair) or nylon bristles in sensitive, medium or hard. You can buy brushes for children as well as adults. On average, an adult toothbrush costs £2.60 and 3 refills are £3.50 - which makes it cheaper than buying a new toothbrush each time.

Reuseable sanitary protection

There are lots of options here. You can use cotton sanitary pads from companies like Drapers, Lunapads, Wemoon and there are also a huge range of handmade cotton pads on etsy.com.

Mooncup make soft non-allergic medical grade silicon menstrual cups. Silicone is derived from silica which is one of the most abundant minerals on earth.

The Mooncup is worn internally like a tampon but collects menstrual fluid rather than absorbing it.

Natracare sanitary products are chemical and additive free, and biodegradable and contain only organic and natural ingredients sourced from sound ecologically managed producers. They make towels, tampons, liners, incontinence pads, maternity products and wipes.

Their products are: 100% organic cotton, non-chlorine bleached, rayon-free, certified organic by The Soil Association, perfume free, natural materials, plastic free and biodegradable.

Sources

Monte-Bianco toothbrush image: ethicalsuperstore.com
Mooncup image: Mooncup.co.uk
Scrubbies image: Leahstreasures on etsy.com

Tagged: waste