Chemical Ingredients to Avoid in Skincare Products

Many women today use a wide range of skincare products. These products might include cleansers, moisturizers, toners, and shampoos and they might be used several times a day throughout most of their adult life. Women have come to rely on these products and spending on them has reached unbelievable levels. But do most women ever take the time to read the ingredients listings on these beauty products? Do they know what they are using and if they might be putting potentially dangerous ingredients on their bodies? Most women probably do not. It may never occurs to them that ingredients considered unsafe might even be used in the products offered to consumers.

Unfortunately, there are many skincare products on the market that have questionable and dangerous ingredients. Some of these ingredients include synthetic fragrances, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate or SLS, Phthalates, and Parabens.

But what are they and why should they be avoided?

Parabens are preservatives put into beauty products to extend their shelf life. They have no benefit to us…only the manufacturing company. They do in fact have adverse effects for us though, including estrogenic qualities. They have produced abnormal hormonal effects following application on laboratory animals, particularly males, that resulted in decreased testosterone levels and other varied abnormalities. They have also been found to accumulate in the breast tissue of women with breast cancer.

Phthalates are a group of chemical compounds that are basically used as plasticizer(substances added to plastics to increase their flexibility). It is hard to imagine that we need plasticizers in our skincare products but you can find them in cosmetics, soaps, and various lotions. High Phthalates doses have shown hormonal activity in animal studies and have resulted in damage to the liver, the kidneys, the lungs, and the developing testes.

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate or SLS for short is an ingredient that gives a product like a shampoo or facial cleanser its foaming ability. Most people equate cleaning ability with the amount of suds or bubbles created, so companies use SLS to give us the impression that it is an effective cleanser. SLS is a known skin irritant and when companies test new healing ointments or crèmes, SLS is the irritant they first rub on the skin to irritate it so they can then see how well their new product works to heal the inflammation. SLS can infiltrate the eyes, brain, heart, and liver with potentially harmful effects according to the journal of the American College of Toxicology. SLS can cause rashes, eczema and other skin irritations. Even more shocking is the fact that some products containing this ingredient are labeled as “natural” or organic because SLS is a detergent derived from coconut oil.

Synthetic perfumes or fragrances can contain hundreds of chemicals. Some, such as methylene chloride are carcinogenic and others might cause headaches, dizziness, coughing, vomiting and skin irritation.


These ingredients hardly sound beneficial or even appropriate for our skin care needs. So what can you do to avoid these dangerous ingredients? First, read the ingredients labels carefully and search for them online to do some research into negative effects. Find out exactly what they are and what they do before you put them on your skin. Second, find reputable companies that offer organic and 100% natural products. This may be a tall order since there is no regulation for organic bath and body products in most countries. Ask around and you will be able to isolate ethical companies using safe ingredients.

Third, try making some of your own skincare products. When you make your own you know exactly what is in them and you can feel comfortable that they are safe.

EclipseSpa products do not contain parabens, sulfates, phthalates, or harsh synthetic perfumes in their products

Apple and Thyme Martini

makes 4 servings

Ice
10 ounces of Vodka
6 oz apple juice
1/4 Thyme simple syrup (recipe follows)
1 large apple, peeled
4 fresh thyme sprigs

Chill 4 martini glasses in the freezer.

Fill cocktail shaker with ice. Add the vodka, apple juice, and the thyme syrup and shake for about 10 seconds. Divide among the 4 chilled martini glasses.

Using a melon baller, scoop out small balls of apple. Place 3 balls of apple and 1 sprig of thyme in each glass for garnish. Drink immediately!

Thyme Simple Syrup
1 cup sugar
5 large fresh thyme sprigs

In a saucepan, combine the sugar, thyme, 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil over medium heat, reduce the heat, and simmer until the sugar has dissolved, about 5 minutes. Take the pan off the heat and cool the syrup. Any extra cooled syrup can be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 1 week



*From Giada's Kitchen. A recipe book I recieved for Christmas

Win a Romance Package

In honor of Valentine's Day EclipseSpa is going to give away a Romance Package that contains 4 lavender vanilla soy candle votives, spa music, our lavender vanilla grapeseed massage oil.. All created for a romantic evening.

To Enter (Official Rules):

1. Comment here on what was your most memorable Valentine's Day

2. Get an additional entry by signing up for our monthly
newsletter (if you are already signed up - just leave a comment here).

Contest begins today 1/27/09 and ends on 2/4/09 at midnight (EST).

Note: We will contact the winner via email to get a shipping address

What's Your Fun Bath Tub Story?

I have a fun bathtub story I thought I'd share, in hopes that you might share yours as well. The subject came up recently when I was buying a Christmas gift from Anne Keefe. We laughed, and thought it would be fun to share the story with you, so here it is:

I was once hired from the bathtub. Yes, you read that correctly, I was offered a really great job, while my new 'boss' was taking a soak. I knew this was the beginning of great things! I called her to discuss the job, and she said she was in the tub and did I mind? I didn't and we have a great conversation, and she ended up offering me the job. Last Christmas, I wanted to buy her a gift, and immediately thought of Eclipse Spa, as I'd liked the products I bought for Christmas the previous year. As I was filling out the gift card information to give to Anne, I realized it needed some explanation. I told her the story and we both had a good laugh.

So, do you have fun bathtub story? We'd love to hear about it. Send in your comments or email them.

Press Release: Let Inspiration Fuel Your Burning Desires

Skin Care for Men

It is not just women who are concerned about the appearance and health of their skin. Men also want to have good looking skin, free of rashes and dry areas. Good looking, healthy skin can help give a man’s face an attractive appearance. There are tips and products that can help men keep their skin looking good or in some cases to significantly improve the health and look of their skin.


The skin of males contains about fifteen percent more oil than does the skin of women and men also typically have larger pores than women, thus men have a tendency to get dirtier skin. For skin care for men, some experts recommend that men perform a deep cleansing on their skin on a daily basis in order to keep the pores clean and give the skin a pleasant appearance. Avoid using cleansing products filled with chemicals and deodorants. These products might cause skin irritation and they will end up clogging your pores.


Scrubbing and Moisturizers

Recommendations for skin care for men include providing your facial skin with a beneficial scrubbing which will eliminate dead skin cells and give your face a smooth appearance. Avoid scrubbing products that contain rough substances such as seed extracts or small grounded pieces of nuts. These products will actually cause harm to your skin. Skin care for men includes using a quality moisturizer and choosing products that do not contain chemicals or only very small amounts.


Skin care for men also includes applying a moisturizer to the face after shaving as well as after cleansing the skin. Moisturizers applied after shaving should not contain alcohol or a heavy amount of fragrances since they can aggravate the skin. As men get older they might want to use astringents as well as toners that contain glycolic or alpha hydroxy acids in order to maintain their skins’ elasticity. You should purchase products that are not sensitive to light.


Sunscreen Protection

Using sunscreen as part of a skin care for men program is essential. It is recommended that you use a sunscreen product with a SPF of fifteen or higher. The sun can cause brown spots to form and can make your thin wrinkles and lines look worse. Also, exercising can help you maintain good looking healthy skin since exercise stimulates the capillaries. Make sure you get the recommended amounts of vitamins E and C and avoid smoking cigarettes. These are some of the skin care tips for men that can keep your skin healthy and looking good.

About the Author:
David Yu writes about Weight Loss and Skin Care . He has personally reviewed many of weight loss products and consider these products to be effective, then bring them to you at ==> www.tip4lady.com

Charitible Giving Campaign

For those that know me, they'll tell you how much I love animals. There are some days I would prefer to talk to the animals than to people, but then that would be just plain rude.

I decided for January we would donate $1 for every shower gel sold this month to ARF. ARF is where we adopted our dog Macauly who has transformed our lives.

ARF is a Animal Rescue Foundation in the Bay Area (California)that saves dogs and cats who have run out of time at public shelters and brings people and animals together to enrich each others lives. ARF strives to create a world where every loving dog and cat has a home, where every lonely person has a companion animal, and where children learn to care.

I am passionate about saving animals and have plans to foster some kittens this year. Animal Fosters are desperately needed at ARF. I think we are seeing animals in need of rescue due to economic difficulties in some households.

Please help us to help the animals by making a shower gel purchase this month.

Our shower gels are organic, and enriched with plant based ingredients known to soften your skin, leaving it more youthful looking rather than stripping and drying out your skin like other soaps and bath gels do.