Category Archives: Cosmetics

Carcinogens in Josie Maran Cosmetics??

March 16, 2009

Finding carcinogens in my new favorite Josie Maran eco makeup is not something I’m thrilled about.

I picked up the premier issue of Organic Beauty magazine and found an article interviewing Josie Maran. Josie Maran is a former Maybelline model turned eco makeup guru.

I liked what she had to say and so decided to try some of her cosmetics.

I LOVE the Josie Maran cosmetics I bought. I got a cream blush that looks very natural and stays on like a dream. I also got a gorgeous lipstick, lipgloss and mascara that doesn’t clump at all and has no parabens to boot!

I thought I had found my dream cosmetics. Then I read the fine print. Likely carcinogens in the blush, lipstick and lipgloss.

I should have read the Organic Beauty article a little more carefully. In it, Maran admits she’s had to “compromise with red dyes in order to acheive certain strong pigments.”

The blush I purchased lists D&C Red #6, 7, 21, 27, 30, 40, FD&C Yellow #5,6 Aluminum Lake, D&C Orange #4 Aluminum Lake, FD&C Blue #1 Aluminum Lake under “may contain”. The lipgloss and lipstick contain lake dyes as well.

Elsewhere, Organic Beauty magazine notes that the International Agency for Research on Cancer lists these lake dyes as possibly carcinogenic.

The Environmental Working Group’s cosmetics safety database lists Red 7 Lake as a human neurotoxin.

What really irks me though is that the Josie Maran website lists their blush, lipgloss and lipstick as “toxin free” when Josie Maran herself admits that they’ve made compromises.

From the Organic Beauty article it really seems as though Josie Maran is concerned about these issues in her cosmetics and is actively looking for replacements.

I will be sending an email to the Josie Maran website regarding these toxins in her cosmetics and will keep you posted!

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Benzophenone 3 in Kiss My Face conditioner??

February 8, 2009

I had intended to continue my previous post about organic clothing but I’m forgoing that…for a rant about false advertising!!!

So, I have annoying hair. It’s very dry and very fine, which is a difficult combination because it needs a lot of conditioner but it can’t be weighed down by said conditioner either. When you have a whole aisle of conventional conditioners to choose from it’s no problem finding one to suit my needs. The organic shampoo aisle, however, is much smaller. So, I tried them all (which still takes a while!) and I finally found one from Kiss My Face Organics that works, yay!

Actually, not so yay. I read the fine print on my “obsessively organic” conditioner today and found benzophenone 3 and stearalkonium chloride. After poring over various scientific studies, I haven’t found much to cheer about for either of these chemicals.

There are warnings against using benzophenone 3 in products that will be used by children under six after finding that the chemical is absorbed through the skin and not excreted from the body for three days. I don’t really want to know what benzophenone 3 is doing floating around in my body for those three days!!

Stearalkonium chloride didn’t seem to have a much rosier picture. There have been few studies on the substance but from those that have been done the conclusion seems to be that it is toxic.

The Kiss My Face web site states, “this product contains no animal ingredients, artificial colors, or unnecessary chemicals and was not tested on animals.” So, how exactly are benzophenone 3 and stearalkonium chloride necessary for an “obsessively organic” product?

So, is my conditioner really “obsessively organic” or are they just saying that to make a buck off of my organic obsession? Oh well, I guess I’m off to the drugstore with frizzy hair…and this time I’m reading the labels!!

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