Can Makeup be dangerous during pregnancy?

A recent article posted by DANIELLE ROSE in northjersey.com points out the difficulties that pregnant women face in trying to avoid toxins, eat healthy and take care of their developing baby.

A firm follower of using natural products, Danielle often makes up her own blends and potions to ensure that she stays well and healthy. What’s wonderful is that the type of things that she blends herself, are mostly made of products you would use to cook with. That is the true beauty of using natural products. However creating safe makeup is not something that can easily be created from home.

Danielle points out that although most women will switch to organic foods, quit drinking and leave toxic jobs such as painting the nursery to their husband, they often don’t realise that what they put on their skin can be just as important to baby's health. So natural skincare products should be picked carefully. Daily moisturizers, makeup, foundation all sit on the skin for hours.
Danielle points out that the skin is a porous organ and it absorbs lotions and makeup into the body, along with the chemicals they are comprised of, which is the whole basis of nicorette patches and contraception patches.

According to Dr. Alan Greene, author of "Raising Baby Green," many cosmetics and sunscreens contain what are called nanoparticles, particles so tiny that they permeate the skin and body tissues quickly and deeply.

A regular issue of concern that Danielle raises is the difficulty of really knowing what is in the product you are buying, coupled with the fact that the list of ingredients that are safe during pregnancy varies from source to source. In addition, manufacturers are not required to list all the ingredients on the product label and chemicals can get hidden under generic terms such as ‘fragrance’. I recently had a customer who was buying organic shampoo and I pointed out to her that it contained Rosemary (Which is not considered by general aromatherapy circles to be suitable for pregnant women in the first two trimesters) I suggested that she switch to another shampoo which contained gentler ingredients such as lavender, the smell of which is also less likely to turn a pregnant woman’s stomach. Lavender naturally helps ease nausea. Some other natural herbs and essential oils - basil, birch, cinnamon bark, sage and tarragon should not be used during pregnancy.

Also a beauty product listed as "organic," may not always be organic. Many high street brands and less scrupulous brands may only add a few organic ingredients to a concoction of other less favorable ingredients. One of Danielle’s favorite sites and mine too for determining the safety of skin care products is cosmeticsdatabase.com. It rates thousands of cosmetics on a scale of zero to 10 with 10 being a high hazard and zero being low.

Another good resource Danielle uses is Greene's book. In his chapter "The Bathroom," he lists and explains the types of ingredients to be wary of and many safer alternatives to the common cosmetic.

Danielle recommends making your own moisturizer , body scrubs, and facial masks using simple ingredients such as olive, grapeseed, safflower and walnut oils. For instance you can add oil to Epsom salts to create a safe and effective scrub. Blending with Essential oils should be done more carefully, however. Essential oils are concentrated plant matter and should always be purchased pure (not blended with other ingredients) and used diluted in the proper proportion with a base oil (never used directly on the skin).

For many of these reasons sighted by Danielle and other beauty experts in the field I’m really particular that buyOrganics check ingredients, only take on reputable brands and help customers one to one as much as possible make the right choice. We have special herb blended teas by Earth Mama to sooth many pregnancy ailments such as morning sickness, postpartum blues and even a blend to help your milk increase naturally when breastfeeding baby. Coupled with pure natural skincare and makeup products that do not contain nanoparticles, parabens or phthlates, and that we have vetted ourselves for purity, you no longer need to blend away yourself!! And can just purchase and apply with confidence.