A couple weeks ago I was bragging to my aunt about an upcoming camping trip. I told her of the site’s pristine hiking trails, its beautiful sandy beach, and its reputation for being a respite from the hustle and bustle of daily life.  My aunt listened, smiled at me, and left me with the following sentiment: “Just make sure you bring tons of bug spray. They have mosquitoes up there the size of small birds.”  Ugh.

Ok, so bugs are more or less inevitable in the summer, right? Especially while on a camping trip. But for four days in a row, should I really douse my body in DEET and other nasty chemicals?  Thankfully, our wonderful intern Isabel got right to work and found some natural alternatives & tips for pest protection.

The following bug repellents are all free of DEET, parabens, phthalates, PEG’s, sulfates, dioxanes, propylene glycols, and synthetic fragrances. Best of all, they all scored a zero in the Skindeep database!

• Bubble & Bee 100% Organic Bug Spray:  Made from all natural products like lemongrass essential oil, peppermint, and clove. The makers even tested it on themselves to see if it worked! So does it? They say, “You betcha.”
• Burt’s Bees Herbal Insect Repellent: This one works because it’s made from oils that bugs hate, but all smell wonderful to humans. It’s an all-natural spray that provides safe coverage. It’s gotten some excellent customer reviews, as well.
• Graham Gardens BugBar:  Who would have thought that the same ingredient in catnip is also about ten times more effective at repelling mosquitoes than DEET? That’s exactly the ingredient Graham Gardens harnessed for their BugBar—a bar that glides onto skin and works for hours.

Pay attention to these facts about bugs, to keep you and your fam bite-free!

1. Bugs love fragrance, especially a synthetic one. So avoid scented products at all costs.
2. Mosquitoes seem to be more attracted to floral prints. Protect your skin with lightweight clothing in solid colors. 
3. Be mindful that mosquitoes are most active during dusk and dawn, so schedule outdoor time according.
4. Stagnant water is an ideal breeding site for mosquitoes, so eliminate unnecessary opportunities for bugs to breed.

Here's wishing you a happy, healthy, and pest-free time during all of your outdoor activities!

Skin is the largest organ of the human body, which is why we should be more thoughtful when we slather, coat, and camouflage it.  People have been using cosmetics for thousands of years, yet the cosmetic industry is one of the least regulated industries in the United States.  Lack of regulation could be why a large number of cosmetic products contain lead, formaldehyde, parabens, and phthalates.  Since our bloodstream absorbs up to 60% of the products we apply to our skin, we should all be aware of what we’re putting into our bodies.

Currently, cosmetics and personal care products are not required to undergo testing in the United States, and their effects on human health are not monitored. An independent study in 2007 by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics revealed that 61% of the 33 lipsticks they tested contained lead—up to 0.65 parts per million.  The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics challenged the FDA to conduct its own test. Two year’s later the results were in, revealing lead in 100% of the lipsticks tested by the FDA. The CDC states that there is no safe level of lead exposure, and yet, because of the lack of regulation, the average lipstick wearer will ingest 6 to 10 pounds of lipstick over the course of her lifetime, through regular application and wear.

Nail polish isn’t any better than lipstick. For at least a decade we’ve known that nail polish contains phthalates, which are linked to problems with male reproductive health.  Both diethylhexyl and dibutyl, phthalates commonly found in U.S. cosmetics, have been banned in Europe due to safety concerns but are perfectly legal here.  Nail polish also contains other harmful chemicals including toluene, formaldehyde, and dibutyl phthalate, chemicals all linked to cancer and birth defects.

What can be done to keep these toxic ingredients out of our personal care products? Legislation has been introduced in some states to ensure safe cosmetic legislation, but something needs to be passed at the federal level.  Until that happens, it is essential for us consumers to be conscious of the ingredients and potential health effects in our cosmetics.  Because researching safe cosmetics can be overwhelming we’ve provided a couple of websites to help navigate your way:

To learn more about the campaign for safe cosmetics go to:  http://www.safecosmetics.org
To search for a product, ingredient, or company go to:  http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/
To see the top 10 cosmetic toxins to avoid go to: http://www.thegoodhuman.com/2008/05/14/top-10-cosmetic-toxins-to-avoid/

Aaahhh…September is right around the corner.  September signals summer slowly winding to an end, and for many adults, signals a renewed sense of purpose.  I think many of us “grown-ups” regard September as a kind of “New Year” as we are so used to associating this month with the start of a new school year.  So, in the spirit of my pseudo holiday, I have decided to take on a September New Year’s Resolution - I hereby resolve to send my sons back to school with PVC-free school supplies.

PVC, polyvinyl chloride, has been notoriously deemed the “poison plastic” for good reason.  Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) is unique among plastics because it contains dangerous chemical additives used to soften or stabilize it. These harmful chemicals include phthalates, lead, cadmium, and/or organotins. One could argue that no other plastic contributes to the release of as many reproductive health toxicants than PVC.  PVC’s lifecycle is one of the largest sources of dioxins in our environment.  Exposure to dioxin has been linked with birth defects, decreased fertility, inability to carry pregnancies to term, lowered testosterone levels, decreased sperm counts, and decreased testis size.  Furthermore, several studies have detected measureable amounts of dioxin in women's breastmilk.

Additionally, PVC is responsible for the consumption of over 90% of all phthalates worldwide.  Phthalates must be added to PVC in large quantities – and can make up to 60% of the final product by weight.  Over 5 million tons of phthalates are used in vinyl every year, and more than 80 million tons of phthalates are estimated to be contained in the stock of PVC products now in use in buildings and other applications.  Exposure to phthalates has been linked to reproductive problems including shorter pregnancy duration, premature breast development in females and sperm damage and impaired reproductive development in males.

You may be thinking to yourself, “Yes, PVC is bad, but what on earth does PVC have to do with school supplies?”  Parents across the country are getting ready to stock up on binders and lunchboxes, and while it’s easy to know the healthiest foods to pack in those lunchboxes, many parents are not aware of the toxic plastic used to make them.  In fact, the average child’s character-themed backpack is filled with supplies and materials made from toxic PVC. Lunchboxes, binders, vinyl backpacks, and even art supplies are frequently made out of PVC.  (more...)

I have been committed to slathering on suntan lotion for some time now.  In my 20s I foolishly sought a sun-kissed glow to add to my appeal, but I usually ended up looking like a giant red-lobster. Now, in my 30s, I am trying to “make-up” for all of my blistering burns, so I have been applying copious amounts of high SPF sunscreen.  My husband tells me I am the easiest person to spot on a beach – he simply looks around for the palest (we’re talking white) body and there I am.  While the ingredients in the sunscreen have been working to block out the UV rays that cause my skin to burn red, the ingredients have not necessarily been working to shield my health.

UVA and UVB rays both contribute to skin cancer, wrinkling, and skin aging.  I was always under the belief that a higher SPF meant greater protection from UV rays.  However, according to Environmental Working Group, SPF, Sun Protection Factor, “is only a measurement of the how well a sunscreen will protect skin from UVB rays, the kind of radiation that causes sunburn.”  SPF does not measure a product’s protection from UVA rays.  Look for products labeled UVA/UVB or broad spectrum for protection against both types of UV radiation.

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