I am very much into anything natural -- natural products, natural alternatives, natural make-up (sigh...if only there were more good ones out there). Being the natural fanatic that I am, it made me stay away, as much as possible, from regular, commercial products.

Until now, I am in a constant search for good natural alternatives for the things my family and I use on a daily basis. It hasn't been so easy for me, especially now that the words "natural" and "organic" are showing up on almost every product label and advertisement, most of them having no truth in their claims!

Now, what's a mother to do???

I need to be extra careful with these things. Having recently learned that both our kids are very allergic, it would really help if all ingredients are disclosed in every product. But we all know that that's impossible, right? Here's a report that only proves why.

Imagine, all those hidden chemical ingredients added in those baby products that we've trusted for years. We've been using them on our babies and on ourselves, too! I'm just so glad I've stopped purchasing them a long time ago. I consider myself lucky to have learned (many years back) that soaps and personal care products contain a lot of chemicals and synthetic ingredients. But the information then was not as detailed nor as focused on the hazards of chemical-laden products.

In fact, I was still oblivious on how chemical-heavy a lot of personal care products were that I continued using them (except for soaps, of course) up to a certain point. Good thing those few information I gained that time was enough for me to decide to make my own handmade soaps for myself and my family. It was one of the best decisions I've made and sharing it with others was another one. 

Buyers have been texting and e-mailing me directly and most of them happen to be mothers who ask about what variants to use for their child's skin condition. Having received so many of these inquiries made me realize that there really are a lot of people (both adults and kids alike) who have skin problems, and not just pimples or acne. Some may have been born with the skin conditions, but most others may have been triggered by different factors (read more about eczema triggers here*, here*, and here*).

*After reading these articles, you'll notice that soaps and detergents are also included as triggers. That is because most, if not all, soaps sold in the market through the years (cheap or expensive) contain a lot of chemicals in them. Their natural glycerin have also been removed, making them as harsh and equivalent to detergents. Using soaps without their natural glycerin strips off the skin's natural oils making it dry and unhealthy.

Here you'll see that emollients play a very big role in keeping our skin healthy. I'm pretty sure that most people encounter eczema after using products with so much chemicals, some through the years while others in a matter of only weeks or months. I pity babies and kids the most because their little bodies end up absorbing a lot more chemicals through their skin.

I did a post before about being consumer smart for our children's sake. I mentioned that it's important to read the labels before buying products for our kids. But with all the facts coming out, it seems that it's become useless to read the labels when there are still some unsafe ingredients not listed on the products' packaging. So how do we consumers know what's safe to use on our babies and ourselves? It's really hard, but as a consumer myself, this is what I usually do:

• I always check for the ingredients. If they're not listed or disclosed, I check the product's website (if any). If the ingredients are not available in either one, I don't purchase the product. I just continue to look for other alternatives instead.
• When I encounter unfamiliar or hard-to-read words in the ingredients, I automatically assume they're chemicals unless they're followed by a laymen's term of what they are. Sometimes you can also tell that they're scientific terms, but better to be sure. (Example: camellia sinensis (green tea), cera alba (beeswax), buxus chinensis (jojoba), ricinus communis (castor), etc.)
• For unknown ingredients that others say are natural or safe, I still research on them. Anything said about them being carcinogenic or toxic in any way, I steer away from them as much as possible. I usually check out ingredients from this website called Skin Deep (cosmetic safety database). Simply type in the ingredients you'd like to review and the site will display all the different results.
• I ask, ask, and ask. Some stores have sales people who are pretty knowledgeable with the products and their ingredients. I give them much respect for being honest to admit that certain products do contain synthetic ingredients or chemicals instead of insisting that they're all-natural, 100% organic, very safe, environment friendly, what have you. That makes me want to buy from their store (but only the safer products, though).
• Lastly, I avoid ingredients derived from animals. True, they're considered natural, but being the animal lover and animal-rights enthusiast that I am, I refuse to purchase products that contain any form of animal by-products and I am very careful about this. This is just my personal preference, though. I only trust botanicals for my skin.

As for personal care products available online, sellers usually give their contact details. Feel free to ask about the products they're selling. If you can get in touch with the makers or owners themselves, so much the better, so you can (and should) get straight answers. They should be more than willing to give you true and honest answers about their products. As a buyer myself, I always want to be informed about any particular ingredients I must be aware of, like if they contain certain chemicals to emulsify or preserve the products. That is why, as a maker, I indicate how much percent natural my products are in order to guide my users. It gives them a choice to avoid those that are not 100% NATURAL. If only other makers and manufacturers could do the same in all honesty and not just come up with high percentages in order to attract consumers to buy their products.  Now, that would totally defeat the purpose!

Anyway, all this is coming from the consumer in me, hoping that it will influence and guide more people to be consumer smart as well.  

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