By Guest Blogger on August 14, 2009
We’ve learned about the risks associated with being uneducated about personal care products from Stacy Malkan and Mia Davis. Today we’re shining a spotlight on a company we love because of the time, care, and mindfulness they put into their products. We wanted to pull back the curtain and give Mountain Spirit Botanicals the chance to share what goes into their wonderful creations, some of which are now featured in our Crazy Sexy Shop! Take it away Eli!
I created Mountain Spirit Botanicals as an alternative to products that are chemically mass-produced. Every ingredient in my product line is either a plant or the by-product of plants or trees that have been organically cultivated or ethically wild-harvested. When I’m unable to procure “organic” – which rarely happens – I use plants grown without chemicals, harvested mindfully and processed in a manner that retains their medicinal qualities.
The methods I’ve adopted cause no harm. Quite the contrary, my work supports your health and well-being as well as that of the environment. The fields and meadows where organic practices are in place encourage natural habitats. Birds, bees, and butterflies go around “kissing” flowers all day. That, in turn, ensures the pollination necessary for the continued and abundant growth of species – which, in turn, supplies us with an everlasting source of beauty and nourishment.
I firmly believe that all of this – the songs of birds, the buzz of bees, the caring intent of the farmer, the manner in which I “stir the pot” – goes into my end result: products born of integrity and love. (As noted in an old herbal text, “Cooking salves is a holy task, demanding concentration and devotion; harvest plants with gratitude and process carefully.”)
I represent a lineage, traditions I’m blessed to be a part of. Mountain Spirit Botanicals is a reflection of these traditions – the complete antithesis of what the “beauty industry” promotes: unnatural products that do harm every step of the way.
What we put on our skin is absorbed deeply and affects us in ways we’re just beginning to recognize. (One example: Consider how the “birth control patch” alters the reproductive system.) All the more reason for you to educate yourself about everything you put on your body. Be informed. Be selective. Enough said, yes?
My labels won’t confuse or manipulate you; a “Rose” is a rose. “Olive oil” is olive oil. “Bee’s wax” is bee’s wax. Straightforward and honest / no guesswork necessary. That said; let me share a few of the benefits of just a few of the ingredients I use.
Calendula: Soothes dry, reddened skin/useful for sensitive skin.
Lavender:Flowers have a mild, calming effect
Chamomile:Cleanses and soothes the skin.
Comfrey: Stimulates blood circulation & firms the skin.
Carrier Oils: I use the finest quality cold-pressed vegetable, seed & nut oils; these oils are carriers of healing substances & vitamins A, D, & E. They penetrate the deepest layers of your skin to support its ability to function, as well as soften & give it elasticity. (Contrary to “popular” belief, using fine quality oils will not block pores or leave you feeling greasy; in fact, quite the opposite is true).
Olive Oil: Clinical research supports the fact that Olive Oil has extraordinary anti-aging properties; it allows your skin to breathe while absorbing the nourishing qualities of the herbs in the formula.
Kukui Nut Oil: High penetrability and soothing properties; contains high levels of essential fatty acids; readily absorbed into the skin.
Evening Primrose Seed Oil: Contains essential fatty acids essential for the health of the organs and overall health; a rich source of Omega 6 fatty acids; anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties.
Apple Cider Vinegar: Contains 19 of the 22 minerals required by the body for maintenance, growth & repair. When plant material is steeped in vinegar, it is further enhanced with a rich supply of nutrients.
Essential Oils: The “soul of a plant” / the essence of all that a plant has to give. I use these precious oils as the “final note” when blending each formulation.
A final word: None of what I do would be possible without the medicine and beauty given so abundantly by the plant world; the elders who kept the traditions alive; the small, organic farmers who work ethically and sustainably. Without these gifts, Mountain Spirit Botanicals would not exist.
Elise Muller
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By Guest Blogger on August 11, 2009
Mia Davis, Campaign for Safe Cosmetics
People deserve to feel beautiful, inside and out. Feeling good about how you look increases confidence, thereby creating opportunities which can lead to constructive change, more energy, and even a more vibrant community. And then you feel even better, and the cycle continues.
Word!
To make yourself look/smell/feel lovely, you probably use cosmetics (creams, makeup, deodorant, etc). Most of us do- on average, American women use 10 a day, men use six a day.
But. There is an un-lovely fact that I hope that you’ll share widely: In the U.S. it is legal for the $50 billion cosmetics industry to put unlimited amounts of chemicals into personal care products, including chemicals linked to cancer and hormone disruption. In fact, cosmetics are among the least-regulated products on the market.
A woman using 10 personal care products a day exposes herself to approximately 130 unique chemicals, some of which can be potent even in super-small amounts. As the day goes on, she is probably also exposed to food pesticides, water contaminants (including hormones), air pollution, flame retardants in furniture, and BPA in plastic water containers. These exposures add up.
Some folks say, “Yeah, but so what? We’re all exposed, and we’re all fine.” I wish that were the case. We’re not all fine.
At the same time that unsafe and untested chemicals have been steadily introduced into our environment, learning and behavioral disorders, reproductive problems, and breast cancer incidence have dramatically risen. A growing body of evidence has linked the pollutants and man-made chemicals in our environment to the increasing risk of breast cancer and other diseases. The Breast Cancer Fund, a founding member of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, has a great fact sheet on some of the cosmetics ingredients of concern.
Now listen up, because this is just whack: While the rates of breast cancer rise (beyond what genetics and increased detection can account for), products marketed to women and girls contain carcinogens – including products that we slather on our faces and bodies, paint on our lips and eyelids, and wash with in the shower while our pores are wide open, on a daily basis.
Women with cancer are no different- they want to feel as well and as sexy (crazy-sexy-well, actually) as possible. Knowing this, the American Cancer Society and Personal Care Products Council (the cosmetics industry trade group) joined forces to create Look Good, Feel Better (LGFB), workshops which provide beauty tips and cosmetics for cancer patients. Sounds like a great service, right?
Well, it would be, if the products in the LGFB kits were free of carcinogens, neurotoxins and hormone disruptors, or chemicals even suspected of having these Über-serious effects. Some of the corporate donors for LGFB are companies that not only use dangerous or suspect ingredients, but actively lobby against legislation that would make cosmetics safer for those of us who do not have cancer and would like to avoid getting it, or those of us living with it and trying to look and feel better. (See my colleague Stacy Malkan’s book Not Just A Pretty Face for the scoop on the trade group’s and big companies’ opposition to safer cosmetics legislation.)
The system is clearly broken when we allow carcinogens in products given to cancer patients. And it is simply egregious that some large companies that could make safer products are not doing so, and are instead launching projects like Look Good, Feel Better, and profiting off of pink ribbons.
This really fires me up, and gets me out of bed in the morning to go work for change via the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.
The Campaign is a grassroots coalition- and we need you. Got 2 minutes for cancer prevention and corporate accountability? Please join the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics– and help to make cosmetics safe for everyone. Have more time? Great! Contact us and tell us how you’d like to use your voice, your blog, your skills, your company to tell the public, cosmetics companies and elected officials that cancer is not inevitable, hundreds of thousands of cases can be prevented, and we will no longer allow dangerous ingredients in common consumer products like cosmetics.
Mia Davis is the National Grassroots Coordinator of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, and an all around Toxics Avenger who has worked on getting bisphenol A (BPA) off of store shelves throughout the country. Mia speaks and writes often for the Campaign, and works in collaboration with a diverse network of activists, citizens, health affected communities and scientists. When she’s not organizing to make the world less toxic she enjoys reading, cooking and eating, and the company of her amazing friends, family and creatures. www.safecosmetics.org, and follow Mia on Twitter @nontoxicissexy
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By Stacy Malkan on July 9, 2009
Penis deformation? I don’t like those two words together. It’s not easy to make fun of deformed genitalia, but Stephen Colbert gave it a valiant try when he interviewed NYT columnist Nick Kristof about the bizarre plight of fish in the Potomac River (and the humans that drink it).
As Kristof explained, hormone-disrupting chemicals are causing strange genital malformations in the wild kingdom — frogs, fish and salamanders with mixed-up sex organs. In the Potomac, 100% of male small-mouth bass are growing eggs. You read that right: their testicles are growing eggs instead of sperm.
All is not well with male genitalia in the human kingdom either. An increasing number of boys are being born with undescended testicles and deformed penises. A quarter of American women are already contaminated with high enough levels of phthalates – a plastic-softening chemical — to cause malformations in their male offspring.
Years ago, when the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics broke the story that phthalates are also found in most beauty products , I was asked a funny question. More than a few people asked me: If phthalates are harmful to boys, why should we worry if they’re in products used by women?
I thought, seriously? But when the question kept coming, I learned that you actually have to answer it: Um, because boys come from the bodies of women.
So yes, we need to worry about beauty products laced with gender-bending chemicals. If we want to protect boys and girls and fish and frogs, we need to keep these chemicals away from females who are, might be, or might someday want to become pregnant. We need to keep these chemicals off our bodies and out of products that run down our drains. In other words, we need to keep these chemicals out of commerce.
That’s why the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics is working to pass laws to ban hazardous chemicals, and to pressure the $50-billion beauty industry to clean up its act. Please help give the beauty industry a safety makeover by joining our action list.
In the meantime, here’s what you can do to protect yourself, your loved ones and the salamanders from exposure to hormone-disrupting chemicals:
-Avoid products with synthetic fragrance: Phthalates are used to make fragrances last longer. Our study found phthalates in more than 70% of fragrance-containing products, including shampoos, hair gels, lotions and deodorants. None of the products listed phthalates on the label. Until we get better laws, it’s best to avoid ALL synthetic fragrance-containing products.
-Just say no to cologne and perfumes: There are better ways to say “I love you” than spraying gender-bending chemicals on your body!
-Check labels carefully: Even “fragrance-free” products may contain masking fragrances, which are chemicals used to cover up the odor of other chemicals. -Choose products with no added fragrance, or with natural fragrance.
-Also avoid parabens: These chemicals, which act like estrogen in the body, are used as preservatives in a wide array of lotions, shaving cream, make-up and shower products. Avoid products that list the word “parabens” on the label.
-Use EWG’s Skin Deep: The free database is a great way to find safer products with no parabens and no added fragrance; try the advanced search function.
-Remember that less is better than more: Avoiding fragrance and parabens is not easy – the chemicals are in everything from cleaning products, to laundry detergent, candles and even toothpaste. So just remember the “less is better” rule. Avoid and reduce exposures wherever you can and there will be fewer hazardous chemicals in your home, your body and the fish. Future generations will thank you!
Stacy Malkan is a co-founder of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and author of the award-winning book, “Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry.” Join Stacy on August 25 for the first Safe Cosmetics Book Club Webinar.
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