Natural Beauty Products Review: Best Shampoos and Conditioners

Miley needs more, Kim needs less and everyone wants Jennifer’s. Hair simply tops the list of what women obsess about the most. A great hair day can give us confidence and a little bounce in our step. Yet what price does our health pay for such gorgeous hair? Does great hair have to be a byproduct of rubbing dangerous chemicals into our scalp that seep through the skin and blood, to circulate to every corner of our bodies?  Not any more. Nature is on the way to save you and your hairdo.

To start, look for natural hair products that don’t use sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) or other chemical surfactants. SLS is a man-made substance manufactured from a toxic petroleum derivative, ethylene oxide gas, that is neither ecological nor sustainable. To bring nature back to my hair, I started experimenting by using 10 different organic and all natural hair products trying a different brand of shampoos/conditioners/hair gels every 5 days. So when I developed a very itchy dry scalp and clogged hair follicles (eek, nasty scalp pimples) for the first time in my life, I knew which products I had reacted adversely to. I learned which brands to avoid, which ones really worked to make my hair shiny, healthy and clean. 

While experimenting in my shower laboratory, I discovered hair products that are 100% natural and 100% gorgeous. Since I still like a good lather, I found products that enable soapy hair soup without sodium lauryl sulfate or other chemicals. I’ll confess that I am blessed with naturally good hair – dark brown, shiny, slight wave, overall easy to manage. My biggest hair challenge is being sensitive to change as my hair can lose its shape rather quickly in a hat, a strong wind, after a good nap or a few hours in an airplane. So I added these factors to my experiments and exposed my hair to the elements and as many naps as possible. All for the good of science of course. 

Recommended non-toxic hair products:

Oribe: This wonderful, luxury gentle hair care line is now sulfate-free and formulated without parabens or sodium chloride plus it is color and keratin treatment safe. It does have a light perfume scent (which I love). 

Dr. Hauschka: Sustainable, eco-friendly business practices from recyclable and biodegradable packaging to organic and naturally derived ingredients, all free of synthetic fragrances

• Revitalizing Hair & Scalp Tonic
• Strengthening Hair Treatment

Burt’s Bees: An earth friendly, natural personal care company making a wide range of natural products formulated to help you maximize your well-being and protect your environment – and to make our busy lives easier, these winners are widely available in health food and drug stores.

• More Moisture Baobab Shampoo and Conditioner: Baobab Oil’s antioxidants combined with nourishing Avocado Oil. Gives you super smooth and irresistibly soft hair. 
• Avocado Butter Pre-Shampoo Hair Treatment: Take the time to do this once a week for at least 5 minutes before shampooing, this treatment of avocado and olive oils soothes your scalp while rosemary, almond oil and nettle provide a glossy shine.

While I was conducting these experiments, my friend supermodel Carol Alt told me that she has washed her long, gorgeous hair with a flower. Just flower petals and water. I’m sure that there are other natural ways to clean your hair and look fabulous. Please share your own solutions, my chemical-free ears are open.  

Shampooing with Antifreeze?

Shampooing with Antifreeze?

When I started on my journey to be healthier and eliminate toxins from my life, I began to read labels. Food labels, cleaning supply labels and personal care labels. I had no idea that shampoo, toothpaste, skin cleansers, hair conditioner, hand lotions, perfumes, deodorant, lip balm, baby oil…the personal care items I used everyday were full of harsh and potentially dangerous chemicals. 

My eyes glazed over when I read their ingredients: sodium laureth sulfate, sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium citrate, imidazolidinyl urea and DMDM hydantoin, titanium dioxide, cocamidopropyl betaine, isopropyl alcohol, polyethylene glycol and propylene glycol. Yours will too. Did you know...

Isopropyl Alcohol: Isopropyl alcohol is found in hair color rinses, body rubs, hand lotions, after-shave lotions, fragrances and many other cosmetics. This petroleum-derived substance is also used in antifreeze and as a solvent in shellac. According to  Consumers Dictionary of Cosmetic Ingredients, inhalation or ingestion of the vapor may cause headaches, flushing, dizziness, mental depression, nausea, vomiting and coma. 

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) & Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES): Used as detergents and surfactants, these closely related compounds are found in car wash soaps, garage floor cleaners and engine degreasers. Yet both SLS and SLES are used more widely as one of the major ingredients in cosmetics, toothpastes, hair conditioner and about 90% of all shampoos and products that foam. Mark Fearer, in an article Dangerous Beauty remarks "...in tests, animals that were exposed to SLS experienced eye damage, along with depression, labored breathing, diarrhea, severe skin irritation and corrosion and death." According to the American College of Toxicology: "...both SLS and SLES can cause malformation in children's eyes. It is possibly the most dangerous of all ingredients in personal care products. Research has shown that SLS when combined with other chemicals can be transformed into nitrosamines, a potent class of carcinogens, which causes the body to absorb nitrates at higher levels than eating nitrate-contaminated food." According to the American College of Toxicology report, "SLS stays in the body for up to five days...Other studies have indicated that SLS easily penetrates through the skin and enters and maintains residual levels in the heart, the liver, the lungs and the brain. This poses serious questions regarding its potential health threat through its use in shampoos, cleansers and toothpaste." 

Imidazolidinyl Urea and DMDM Hydantoin: These are two of the many preservatives that release formaldehyde (formaldehyde-donors). According to the Mayo Clinic, formaldehyde can irritate the respiratory system, cause skin reactions and trigger heart palpitations. Exposure to formaldehyde may cause joint pain, allergies, depression, headaches, chest pains, ear infections, chronic fatigue, dizziness and loss of sleep. It can irritate coughs and colds and trigger asthma. Serious side effects include weakening of the immune system and cancer. Nearly all brands of skin, body and hair care, antiperspirants and nail polish found in stores contain formaldehyde-releasing ingredients. 

PEG: This is an abbreviation for polyethylene glycol that is used in making cleansers to dissolve oil and grease as well as thicken products. Because of their effectiveness, PEG's are often used in caustic spray-on oven cleaners and yet are found in many personal care products. PEG's contribute to stripping the Natural Moisture Factor, leaving the immune system vulnerable. They are also potentially carcinogenic. 

Propylene Glycol (PG): As a 'surfactant' or wetting agent and solvent, this ingredient is the active component in antifreeze. There is no difference between the PG used in industry and the PG used in personal care products. It is used in industry to break down protein and cellular structure (what the skin is made of) yet is found in most forms of make-up, hair products, lotions, after-shaves, deodorants, mouthwashes and toothpastes. It is also used in food processing. Because of its ability to quickly penetrate the skin, the EPA requires workers to wear protective gloves, clothing and goggles when working with this toxic substance. The Material Safety Data Sheets warn against skin contact, as PG has systemic consequences such as brain, liver and kidney abnormalities. Consumers are not protected nor is there a warning label on products such as stick deodorants, where the concentration is greater than that in most industrial applications. 

Why do we need to put antifreeze in our shampoos? 

Why does toothpaste have a warning label about it being harmful if swallowed?

Do I need to risk my personal health to practice good hygiene?

When did getting clean and beautiful get so chemical? 

For expert information on how I could protect myself, I turned to Harvard’s School of Public Health: Harmful, untested chemicals rife in personal care products. While the direct connection between putting these harsh chemicals on our bodies and causing disease isn’t conclusive, I decided that I won’t use them if there are safer products that work just as well.  Now I just needed to find these safe personal care products. 

I turned our extra bathroom into a laboratory and started my research. After exploring Skin Deep, a respected resource database from Environmental Working Group, I learned which brands had the least harmful scores and brought them into my little lab. Then I tested and tested and eventually discovered new brands which were effective and healthier for my body. 

More to come on my laboratory results and these fabulous natural brands in future posts. Meanwhile, I encourage you to share the natural brands you love and please tell me if my natural deodorant isn’t as effective as I think it is. 

Healthy Inside and Out

I learned the importance of what we put into and on our bodies the hard way. How different beauty products, personal care products, and foods have the power to heal or harm. Ultimately how making healthier choices enabled me to feel better and age well. 

The most common reasons women seek a healthier lifestyle are when diagnosed with a serious illness or pregnancy. These life altering occasions force us to look at our choices and reexamine how we will conduct ourselves differently in the future. 

In my case, I had serious medical problems starting in high school. Fainting spells, severe migraines and blackouts led me to specialists seeking a solution. As I headed off to college, I still didn’t have an official diagnosis but the suggested treatment was to take preventive action. My prescribed diet: no aged cheese, no chocolate, no food with preservatives and no red wine. It wasn't easy to live this way especially when I ate in my college cafeteria and lived in the dorms. I was sick more often than not and knew that I could black out at any minute. In my late 20s, my medical episodes happened less frequently and doctors concluded I had a hormonal imbalance despite inclusive testing.

It wasn't until I met my husband, Dr. Nicholas Gonzalez MD, at age 34 and went on his nutritional program that I saw all of my symptoms go away. My husband created a customized protocol for me, like the ones he has created for thousands of others to treat their cancer and other degenerative diseases, often successfully. My new diet: organic produce and meat, and a variety of supplements designed to provide the essential nutrients that were deficient, plus a detox program including the adoption of nontoxic, organic beauty, personal care and home cleaning products. 

Living this healthy lifestyle has cured my migraines and blackouts AND made my hair shine and my skin glow. The program has a powerful anti-aging effect. On my path to lead a green lifestyle, I studied and experimented with many different ways of eliminating toxins from my food, personal care products and home. I made plenty of mistakes along the way and hope to share those learnings while inviting you to add your own solutions to leading a healthier, more beautiful life. 

The Power of Raw Milk

There is something very Laura Ingalls Wilder about being able to meet the local farmer who feeds you and your family. My husband and I belong to a local buyers club, and the Amish farmers I’ve met over the years are earnest, hard-working, simple family folk. In fact, they often bring their children with them on their dairy run to NYC and have them help package the orders. If the delicious taste of their fresh, locally grown organic food isn’t enough, seeing the beaming, round face of a 7 year old Amish boy proudly hand over your order makes the entire experience profoundly satisfying. Through our membership, we basically own a share in a cow in Pennsylvania Amish country. Twice a month our farmer deliveries his raw milk orders to NYC. His dairy farm produces delicious and nutritious raw milk, raw cream, raw cheese, kefir, yogurt, organic eggs. Often the farmer also has local organic meats such as beef, sausage, bacon, chicken and pork. 

Now when I talk about Going Green, my friends and colleagues nod along with me on why we should drive hybrids, eat organic foods and unplug our cell phone chargers when not in use but when it comes to consuming Raw Milk, they just shake their heads and wonder what I’m up to this time. I’d like to explain the secret power of Raw Milk as it can have an enormous impact on the health of you and your children.

Raw Milk is safe and good for you and your family if the farmer takes proper care of his cows, the milking and delivery process.  Raw Milk contains multiple bioactive components that can reduce pathogenic bacteria. Simply said, though many of us fear raw milk, it can actually protect your body from dangerous bacteria. One of the reasons why doctors recommend that women breast feed their children is because of the natural Lactoperoxidase found in human breast milk. Lactoperoxidase seeks out and destroys bad bacteria. Animal milk like goat’s milk has 10 times the level of Lactoperoxidase than in breast milk. 

For those of you who seek more detail, raw animal milk contains dozens of bacteria fighting components such as Lactoferrin, Polysaccharides, Medium-Chain Fatty Acids, Enzymes, Anitbocides, White blood cells, B-lymphocytes, Macrophages, Neutophils, T-lymphocyes, Lysosyme, Mucins, Oligosaccharides, B12 Binding Protein, Bifidus and Fibronectin. All of these components are actively fighting bacteria when consumed raw but are made inactive when milk is pasteurized. In fact, pasteurization provides virtually no bacteria fighting protection. 

So why should you care? You have the power to use the power of raw milk to protect you and your family from dangerous bacteria such as E.Coli and Salmonella. If you want to read more about this subject from scientific sources follow these links: http://www.realmilk.com/, http://www.westonaprice.org/ and http://www.westonaprice.org/children/rawmilk.html.

Unfortunately access to Raw Milk is limited due to legal restrictions. If you want to know where to find Raw Milk in your area check out this link. While access to Raw Milk isn’t easy for everyone, we find that it is truly worth the extra effort. 

Time to Make the Water

Remember that Dunkin Donuts commercial where the guy would stumble into the bakery in the wee hours to start making the donuts so they would be fresh for the morning rush? It was time to make the donuts…Now picture me in my bathrobe, hair askew, teeth unbrushed, moving zombie like on weekend mornings because it was time to make the water…

I know folks claim that NYC’s water is the “best tasting” water in the nation. Maybe by some standards it is but that does not mean that it is healthy for you. I’m not a water expert, but 10 years ago we had our NYC water tested in a lab and found it that our water sample, collected directly from our kitchen tap, contained fecal contamination. Yes, we were drinking, cooking and brushing our teeth with poop. Plus, our NYC city water contains chlorine which, sorry, has been shown to be carcinogenic, and fluoride which still generates serious controversy over its safety. 

So, we set up a powerful water filter in our back kitchen and every weekend we would hook up the filter hose to an empty glass gallon jug and make water. Making water this way is a slow process that reminds me of old movies about Chinese Water Torture. The filtered water drips drop by drop into the gallon jug. On a good day, we could make a gallon in 2-3 hours. On a day with low water pressure and when the water needs more filtering, it could take 6 hours to make a gallon. Since we would use this water for all our personal and cooking needs, we needed 12 gallons of water to get through the week so our weekends revolved around watching the water and being ready to switch in the next gallon jug just before the first one overflows. 

Sure, we could have just purchased gallons of spring water every week but even when you recycle, all that packaging is still wasteful and plastic bottles leech chemicals into the water. I tried ordering glass gallon bottled water from Mountain Valley Water service who would deliver weekly, but then I couldn’t handle the carbon offset guilt of personally trucking in my water. So making my own water was the greenest and best solution. 

When you work that hard at something day in and day out, you can grow attached to it and so there was born my little water obsession. By Sunday night, I would have 6 gallons ready to drink above the refrigerator, 2 gallons in glass water pitchers keeping cold in the fridge, 6 gallons stored in a special portable kitchen cabinet I bought at Bed, Bath and Beyond just for this purpose, and in case of an emergency, I had 12 half gallons in 2 crates in the hall closet left over from our Mountain Valley Water days.

Is this all worth it? I asked that question a lot as my water adventures started to flood my brain. The no-brainer was that I only wanted to cook and drink with clean water in the greenest way possible. But surely there was a better way. So we invested in a reverse osmosis water filter that is built into the kitchen sink and has its own separate faucet. It lives under the sink, constantly makes water and can theoretically produce up to 35 gallons in a single day. Voila! Somebody took my weekend job! 

Now months later, I still marvel at how I can simply walk up to the kitchen sink with a glass in hand and pour myself a fresh glass of water. It takes me back in time to the days of yesteryear before we knew that virtually everything around us is toxic and damaging the environment. It brings me hope for the future that we can find more ways to live green without having to change our lifestyle radically. Yet old habits die hard…this weekend, I was cleaning out the guest room closet and found another 24 gallons of crated water that I must have been saving, just in case…

My Eco-Staycation

Ah July…the perfect time to get away and escape the stress of the eleven other months of the year. Typically, my husband and I take a week to ten days off this time of year and travel locally to Shelter Island, Nantucket or the Catskills. This year a variety of reasons kept us in NYC watching our pennies.

So to make the best of it, I planned my five day “staycation” to escape my day-to-day routine and pretend I was visiting a fabulous eco-spa.

Day One:
To get myself in the mood, I visited Priti Organic Spa in the lower east side of NYC. Since I rarely journey to this part of town, just wandering around this neighborhood felt like an adventure. It was a quick trip on the L train and then a short walk, on a gloriously beautiful day, to this special spa. Priti is an environmentally friendly spa that uses only organic products such as Pangea Organics, Stella McCartney’s all organic skin care line CARE and Dr. Alkaitis holistic skin food. Their facialist, Elina, took great care with my skin and made me look and feel radiant.

Next Marie treated me to an organic manicure and pedicure in a bamboo basin with floating flowers and no chemical, non- toxic nail polish. Priti’s eco-friendly, organic Priti nail polish comes in tons of standard and hip colors. How relaxing to go to a nail salon and not have to ingest toxic chemicals!

Day Two:
The food at an eco-spa is supposed to be fabulous, right? So off to Whole Foods I walk for some ready made organic treats and produce – who wants to cook on their vacation? Luxuriating in my open schedule, I explore Whole Body for an hour picking out organic bath soaks and mud wraps.

Day Three:
Time to try my in home spa treatments…I started with a good soak in Masada dead sea mineral salts - a combination of Calcium, Magnesium, and Potassium that does eases both mind and body. Then my Ahava dead sea mineral mud wrap proved to be the messiest and most fun treatment. First you get the mud warm and then you slather it all over your body and let it dry for 15 minutes. You are literally wearing dark gray mud and as it cakes, your skin tightens. After a thorough rinse in the shower, I was ready for a deep nap as the toxics were sucked out of my now smooth and relaxed body.

Later I wrapped my hair in a warm organic olive oil drenched towel and let it penetrate into my roots. Another shower…

Day Four:
Feeling balanced again, I turned off my cell phone, settled into my favorite club chair in the sunniest room in our apartment and curled up with a good book. I didn’t move all day to do anything besides make more Numi organic green tea.

Day Five:
I woke up late to the sound of heavy rain and thought hmmm…what does one do on vacation when it rains? Send postcards? So I saved myself some paper and stamps and emailed individual notes to 10 of my good friends.

Then it was back to my book, my bed and my last day of bliss.

While I don’t have any vacation photos worth framing and even fewer mosquito bites, I did achieve my goal of escaping my routine and rejuvenating my body and soul in the most eco-friendly ways possible.

Is it Easy Going Green?

We know Kermit thinks it isn’t easy being Green but today, with the increased focus on the environment and the proliferation of organic, non-toxic natural products, is it really difficult to be Green? It is all relative. When I started on this path about 8 years ago, it wasn’t nearly as easy as it is now. I recall making most of my Green purchases over the phone from small companies who did not have websites yet and were not close to our NYC apartment. I would order whatever limited Green products I could over the phone: non-toxic paint and cleaning supplies, organic mattresses/sheets/towels, some organic food and personal care products.

We’ve come a long way in a few years. Today, Green and organic labeled products are everywhere. Our earnest, niche movement has gone mainstream. I’m pleased that more people realize the importance of being eco-friendly – for their own personal health, their family and the health of our planet. This increase in Green demand makes it much easier to find Green products. Yet I’m concerned that some “Green” companies are labeling their products as organic or natural when they indeed are not. How is a lay person supposed to know the difference?

Here, I seek to shed some truth on the products that are indeed organic and not harmful to you or the environment. I’ll embark on this mission thru a combination of my own personal experience and research, and I’ll share the discoveries of trusted medical and environmental experts.

Let’s start with an analysis of natural beauty products. With help from Skin Deep at , we all have access to the truth about how safe cosmetics and personal care products are for you and the environment. The lower the Skin Deep score on a 1 to 10 scale, the safer the product.

Who doesn’t have a friend who swore off makeup because it “clogged her pores”, “caused wrinkles” or “took too much time to put on in the morning or to remove at night”? Like many women, I was taught that wearing makeup harmed my skin and that a natural, no-makeup look was the best thing I could do to keep my skin young, healthy and clear. Then I learned about natural mineral make-up. Did you know that you can wear simple, natural mineral makeup and not only look good but also do good for your skin? I thought it was too good to be true so I put my face to the test and tried 3 natural mineral based makeup lines over the course of 3 months. I used each product for a month so I could see the effects through a complete monthly cycle and also gauge the reactions of others.

It seems that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. My best critics noticed that something was different, but they kept asking me if I had done something to my hair. I even tried wearing one makeup to bed one night because it was advertised to be so good for my skin that I could wear it overnight. I got more makeup on the sheets then I got compliments from my husband. But it didn’t matter because I was already hooked, line and sinker. I didn’t need to look in the mirror. I knew that I looked healthier, more natural and more glowing…if only from the inside out. Just knowing that my new makeup brands were natural, free of chemicals and preservatives (as well as not tested on animals) brought a rose to my cheeks. And while I wasn’t completely blemish free for 3 months, I did notice a decrease in periodic eruptions and overall redness.

My favorite natural makeup brands:
- Bare Escentuals: The most natural “bare” look imaginable with mineral makeup that actually heals and protects your skin. I sprung for the Introductory Kit because it was a great value with foundations, blushes and brushes as well as an easy to follow DVD showing how to get that gorgeous bare, natural look both day and night. Not only do you look like you don’t have makeup on (in a good way) but you don’t get that “I’m wearing makeup” goopy feeling. I also like their bareMinerals Lip Kit in Perfect Bronze that provides a 100% natural lip trio: lipliner, lipcolor and lipgloss with easy instructions. Skin Deep scores: 3-6

- Jane Iredale: Literally referred to as “The Skin Care Makeup”, this mineral makeup produces an effortless, flawless finish that dermatologists and plastic surgeons highly recommend. I’ve grown quite attached to her Amazing Base, 24-Karat Gold Rose blush/bronzer, Zap&Hide Blemish concealer, PurePressed Silver Lining Eye Shadow and PurePressed Cotton Candy Blush, UnderEye brightener and her luxurious brushes. For summer, I’m wearing DreamTint – a moisture tint with SPF15. Skin Deep scores: 1-6

- Dr. Hauschka: Combining mineral makeup with natural botanicals makes this makeup nourishing as well as beautiful. I found their lipstick with shea butter and carrot extract to be moisturizing and yummy too (important since the average woman ingests 4.4 pounds of lipstick a year) and I like their Translucent Makeup with carrot and witch hazel extracts that soothes and calms my skin while avocado and jojoba oils keep it moist and glowing. Skin Deep scores: 0-6
If you want to try the adventure for yourself and explore the world of natural makeup, I recommend that you seek out products that are paraben-free, preservative-free, fragrance-free and not tested on animals. I also suggest that you select one brand and then use their products exclusively as they work best together to enhance, balance and nourish your skin. Plus, then you just have one place to travel to get all your makeup (cutting down on carbon emissions). My favorite products above are also all available through their online stores where they often provide a retailer locator.

Now I’ll never wander aimlessly through a department store makeup floor again because I’ve found true natural beauty in a recyclable bottle. As Green continues to mainstream, I look forward to the day when I can find these superior natural makeup products as easily as I can now find organic milk at my local deli. However, for this to happen, we each need to do our part and raise the demand for more truly green products. We need to vote for Green with our dollars and support these companies as only then will going Green continue to get easier every day.