Are Your Makeup, Skincare, & Household Products Causing Hormone Imbalance?

The skin is the largest organ of the body. Everything we put on our skin is absorbed directly into our blood stream. We can’t control the chemicals and toxins we are exposed to from the environment but we certainly CAN control what we put on our bodies, in our bodies and what we choose to surround ourselves with in our homes.

On average, woman use 12 products with more than 168 chemicals in them every morning. These chemicals are hormone disruptors, that is they have the ability to throw our hormones out of balance triggering a multitude of side effects, such as weight gain, mood swings, anxiety, loss of sleep, infertility, skin issues, hypothyroidism, adrenal imbalances, estrogen dominance (see previous post), lowered sperm counts, diabetes, and cancer.

Endocrine-disrupting chemicals include substances in our environment, water, food, personal care products and household products that interfere with the production and elimination of hormones. Exposure to these chemicals throws the body out of wack, homeostasis is interrupted and our bodies are no longer in balance.

Who knew everyday products could have such an impact on our health?

Some of the biggest offenders: cleaning products, cookware, hairspray, lipstick, powders, foundations, deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste, plastics, candles, metal food cans, detergents, perfumes, and nail polish… just to name a few.

I’ve been there. I used to think these products were safe. Truth is, there are no regulations in the United States to assure the safety of products.

Even small exposures to these products can have a huge impact on your health and hormones. A poor diet is only adding on to the toxin burden if we are consuming packaged, processed foods and conventional meats and produce covered in pesticides. Add in lack of exercise which is needed to eliminate excess toxins from the body and we have ourselves a straight up health disaster.

Let’s be real. We can’t be perfect and eliminate every toxin we are exposed to but we certainly can lower the toxic burden. All these products add up!

Where do you start? Start by replacing the products you use daily. I have gone through quite the trial and error of trying to find good safe products so here is a list of my favorite brands/ swaps that are not only safe but effective:

Deodorant: Primally Pure & Native

Cleaning Products (dish detergent, dishwasher detergent, laundry detergent, multi-purpose spray) : Seventh Generation Free & Clear

Toothpaste & Dental Care: Uncle Harrys

Shampoo & Conditioner: Acure

Makeup & Skincare: Beautycounter, Juice Beauty, Primal Life Organics

Perfume: Skylar

Soap: Dr. Bonners (multi-purpose)

Cookware: Green Pan, Cast Iron Skillet, wood and silicone utensils & Le Creuset

Plastic Replacements: Beeswax wraps & Stasher Bags

Tinfoil: Unbleached Parchment Paper

Sunscreen: Beautycounter

Hair Spray: Another tough one! The worse offenders are going to be products you inhale so hairspray is super important but there are not too many options out there. Here is one I found: Intelligent Nutrients

Hair Dye: This is a tough one since it is near impossible to find a safe hair dye. Don’t fall for the over-the-counter “natural” dyes, they just use replacements such as Toluene that are just as toxic as Ammonium. I did tons of research and happened to find a professional line that is legit. Its called Organic Colour Systems. Google a salon in your area. It may be hard to find as Portland only had two salons offering this product.

Some other easy changes you can make at home to lower your toxic burden include:

• Avoid using the microwave and never heat up plastic Tupperware
• Switch all plastic containers for glass
• Get a good water filter that eliminates impurities, chemicals, chlorine and fluoride
• Only buy pasture-raised, organic, 100% grass-fed meats
• Decorate your home with real plants to purify the air
• Avoid buying metal canned food and opt for glass jars
• Replace your Keurig and coffee makers with a French Press or stainless steel appliance and as always buy organic coffee
• Buy non-bleached tea bags and coffee filters

A free resource to take advantage of is the Think Dirty App. Just put in the name of a product and see where it rates on the toxic scale.

If you are experiencing hormonal imbalance symptoms and feel like you have tried everything. Try eliminating some toxic products in your life. This may be the key to bringing your body back in balance.

Create a safe environment for your health, your family’s health and your hormones.

Feel free to shoot me an email if you need any recommendations on makeup, skincare, or household product swaps!

If you want to make the transition to safe makeup and skincare easier, send me an email to discuss Beautycounter and I can help walk you through choosing the right products for your skin type. (shameless plug).