Holistic Health December 2007
The Evolution of Organic Cosmetics
by Ana Yoerg
Dove Evolution is the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty’s short film on the countless hours it takes a typical model to prepare before a photo shoot. The end result is an impossibly perfect woman, with flawless skin and immaculately styled hair—a far cry from the woman they started with. A decade ago, American audiences would have shunned a film such as this one. No one would have dared to question the legitimacy of the typical image of American beauty. Today, a new generation is beginning to recognize the dangers inherent in the creation of impossible ideals.
It would be easy to blame a $50 billion cosmetics industry for fueling the fire of cosmetics consumption. However, the first use of cosmetics happened in Egypt around 3000 BC. Dangerous chemicals in cosmetics are also nothing new. Mercury, white lead, and even poisonous belladonna were all present in some of the beauty concoctions made in the Middle Ages and Renaissance Europe. It was 1920s America, however, that gave rise to what we now know as the cosmetics industry. Suddenly, American women were wearing shades of red on their lips as signs of their independence.
Ironically, lipstick is now the number one offender in the Skin Deep database of cosmetic products, with 61 percent of brand-name red lipsticks found to contain detectable lead levels of 0.02 to .65 parts per million. Small amounts of lead accumulate in the body over time, making individuals more prone to long-term illnesses. Not surprisingly, cosmetics industry trade groups declare that lead and other toxic substances are present in such small amounts and in such a limited number of cosmetics that they pose no threat to human health. They compare them to salt in food.
“A little salt on your peas or tomatoes can be good,” says Dr. John Bailey, executive vice president of science for the Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association. “But a lot of salt can have adverse health effects on your blood pressure—and too much can be fatal.”
Lead is not salt, and unfortunately for environmental and health advocates, cosmetic products are neither a food nor a drug. Therefore, they are not a priority of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which does not define cosmetics by their composition but rather by their intended use. What they do not take into account is the way our bodies absorb chemicals through the skin, as is demonstrated by the efficacy of items like the nicotine patch. Toothpaste, hair conditioner, deodorant, body lotion, and make-up are all applied to various porous surfaces on our bodies. Because these products are not intended to be ingested, the FDA does not impose strict regulatory guidelines on them. According to EWG, a research group that maintains a database of 25,000 cosmetic products, only eleven percent of the more than 10,500 ingredients in personal care products have been assessed for safety. One-third of these products contain at least one chemical linked to cancer.
In October of this year, over 700 representatives of cosmetic brands convened in Paris for Beyond Beauty, the biggest trade event of the year. At the conference, everybody asked the same question—“What is the next big thing and how do I profit from it?” It became obvious in Paris that “what’s next” is beauty care products that focus on sustaining health rather than repairing it.
Organic and natural cosmetics are much more popular in Europe than in America. So far, Europe has banned over 1,100 ingredients from personal care products. The US, in contrast, has banned ten. While the American FDA has failed to set and enforce standard definitions for product marketing terms, the EU has put in place several independent organizations that keep marketing language under control. In today’s world, the act of buying organic cosmetics is an act in direct support of higher quality, bioactive ingredients. Organic and naturals will take the leading role in the future of the cosmetics industry, not because they are non-synthetic, but because they are real.
For more information, visit www.safecosmetics.org and www.cosmeticdatabase.com. Ana Yoerg is a freelance writer based in San Francisco who until recently knew very little about organic goods or the cosmetics industry. She may be reached at aryoerg@gmail.com.