Green Options

We all know of Bono’s work on issues of the environment, poverty and AIDS.  With a hand in creating campaigns like ONE Campaign, DATA, (RED) and EDUN it is safe to say that the U2 frontman spends his fair share of time and effort on the greater good.

But does the rocker know about the importance of safety in cosmetics?  He has been spotted of late wearing a healthy dose of the black stuff on the covers of Rolling Stone, SPIN, Q Magazine and at the Grammys and the Brits. 

Well, Bono, if you have yet to discover the health benefits of using nontoxic makeup and skin care, let me point you in the right direction.

I often wonder why our beauty products do not come with warning labels; most of them are filled with toxins harmful to our bodies and our environment. Ingredients such as parabens, sodium lauryl sulfate, germall, coal tar derivatives, urea, phthalates, toluene, formaldehyde, mineral oil, propylene glycol, triclosan, DEA, TEA, MEA, synthetic fragrances, PEG, BHA, and petroleum. Many of these ingredients have been confirmed to cause a wide range of cancers, reproductive concerns, allergies, and a sizeable list of health problems. Furthermore the ingredients which pollute our bodies also pollute the environment.To see the health effects of your current cosmetics check out the Environment Working Group’s Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database. In the search field of the website, type your brand of cosmetics, or simply type one of its ingredients. Information will appear using a 1–10 ratio scale; 10 being the most harmful brand or ingredient.Your skin is your largest organ. It is porous; everything you apply on your body seeps into your pores. Therefore, what you put on your body is as important as what you put in it. Why not use beauty products kind to animals, kind to the planet, and kind to you?

What’s the solution?After much research concerning cosmetics which are safe, yet provide the desired results, I’ve found a great website to share: Holistic Beauty.