Trying to navigate the beauty industry while looking for hair care products that are safe for you and the environment? I’ve rounded up my top 3 ingredients you should look to avoid in your beauty products!
My clean beauty journey had a not-so-cliche start. I was dealing with a back injury and wanted to heal it naturally, which turned my focus to food: learning the importance of reading labels, what was actually in food products, and how those ingredients could be inhibiting my injury from healing. Beauty products quickly followed when I realized that harmful chemicals were also hiding in those - if I didn’t want to ingest harmful chemicals, I also didn’t want to apply them topically! This ultimately kickstarted my passion for clean beauty, learning how to navigate the beauty industry to find better options for my health and for the health of the planet! Now I help to educate my online community on the clean beauty movement and what products I think are great clean & conscious swaps.
What is clean beauty?
Clean beauty products are products made without potentially harmful ingredients. Unfortunately, many beauty products on shelves today include ingredients that can be harmful to humans and/or the environment or have never been tested for long-term use.
Why choose clean beauty?
It’s especially important to choose clean hair care products because your scalp is one of the most absorbent parts of your body (how crazy is that?!) Plus, your rinsed shampoo and conditioner have to go somewhere, right? It’s drained into water management systems and then released into local waterways with the potential of contaminating ecosystems or drinking water.
What ingredients should I avoid in my hair care?
These are my top 3 ingredients to avoid to get you started on a cleaner beauty journey:
Parabens: Parabens are artificial preservatives used to increase the shelf life of beauty products. Unfortunately, studies suggest that parabens can disrupt hormones, cause reproductive issues, and increase the risk of cancer.
Phthalates: Phthalates are chemicals used in beauty products to help bind or lubricate ingredients. They are also commonly found in hundreds of other products like plastics, toys, detergents, and food packaging. Some phthalates have been phased out of the beauty industry, but a common phthalate that’s still found in beauty products is DEP, which is often found in fragrances. The research on phthalates from different organizations isn’t conclusive, but the EU and Canada have strict regulations in place, as some experts suggest that can disrupt hormones and be easily absorbed into the skin.
Sulfates: Sulfates are commonly found in hair care products, specifically shampoos, because they work as cleaning agents to create a lather and remove dirt and oil. However, they can cause scalp irritation and strip your hair of its natural, healthy oils, leaving hair dry, brittle, and frizzy.
When switching to clean hair care products, it’s also important to look at the packaging! Look for brands focusing on reducing plastic waste, like utilizing aluminum bottles (the most recycled material in the US)! Here’s where you can learn all about Eva NYC’s new aluminum packaging (link to recycle page).
Eva NYC hits all these and more! My favorites from Eva NYC, like the Satin Dream Smoothing collection, are certified cruelty-free, vegan, and non-GMO! Plus, they are free from parabens, phthalates, and sulfates and their new aluminum packaging is 100% recyclable, forever.
