how toxic are your cosmetics?

Remember a while back when I posted that great educational animation about cosmetics and how potentially harmful and toxic they can be?  Well, I recently got to discussing hair products with two of my female colleagues (specifically about how often we wash our hair – some of us daily and some of us once or twice a week) and was reminded of this wonderful little cosmetics database I found that can help clue us all in on how chemical-laden our cosmetics are.  I’ve been meaning to share it with you so you can be enlightened.

It’s called Skin Deep, Environmental Working Group’s cosmetics safety database with listings for pretty much every product out there, each with a grade (from 0-10) based on how toxic they are.  It also has a nice ingredients glossary so you can see why that particular product is harmful (it causes cancer, allergies, etc.)

A little experiment

To show you how simple it is to use, let’s check out the toxicity of my favorite tinted moisturizer by Laura Mercier.  Ever since I found this lovely product over a year ago, I have completely depended on it.  I’m not big on foundation, but this is a wonderful lightweight formula that achieves that nice balance between providing even coverage and being non-orangey or cakey.  Needless to say, it’s a staple, and something I use often.  Often enough that I would be thoroughly bummed if it’s full of nasty chemicals seeping through my pores.

So, I typed “Laura Mercier” into the database and found they have 21 product listings for that particular brand, ranging in toxicity from 2-8.  That’s a pretty wide range, now I’m intrigued.  And scared.

Opening up the brand page, I found a list of conditions that could potentially form from use of the ingredients found in Laura Mercier cosmetics – everything from developmental/reproductive issues, cancer, neurotoxicity, organ toxicity, and loads of more fun things.  I also saw a nice little summary showing that the brand uses 266 different ingredients, has not signed the Compact for Safe Cosmetics, and is unknown for using animal testing.  That last one is a big one for me, so I’m already turned off.  But it’s better than being a blatant “yes” – right?

Moving on, I found the specific product I was looking for:  Tinted Moisturizer with SPF 20 (non-illuminated, which for some reason, has a lesser score on the toxicity scale).   I was relieved to find the score was a 5, not an 8 like I imagined.  But still – a 5?  On a scale of 1-5, that’s not too great – according to the site, it poses a “moderate hazard.”  That means I’m spending $42 a bottle to put only a “moderate” amount of chemicals on my face most days.  And that’s just one product!

As you can see, it also tells me that 50% of foundations on the market have less toxic chemicals in them, and 56% of moisturizers have lower concerns (it also gives me a link to buy them.  Hah.)  Along with this disheartening information, the product page lists every ingredient, instructions for use, and package warnings, has user reviews (though no one seems to be using this – what a shame, it could be a great place to share safe cosmetics reviews), and more.

Though I’m not sure what my next move is re: Laura Mercier and her moderately hazardous tinted moisturizer, I suggest you all go take a minute to look up the products you use on a daily basis – not just makeup, but cleansers, moisturizers, shampoos, the whole lot.  I’m curious, though – what do you think your toxicity score threshold will be? Anything above a 5?  Above a 3?  I’m curious to know how much the average lady would be willing to potentially feed her body in the name of beauty.

That link again:  www.cosmeticsdatabase.com