November 14, 2012

My Philosophy


My philosophy regarding natural products drives my choices, my research and my writing. And therefore it is important to share with you.

My philosophy is simple. Products must work. And they should be as clean as possible. In that order.

Let me explain. I believe it is far more important for a product to do its job than to be clean. But if I can find a product that works exceptionally, and is also outrageously clean, then you can be sure I'm off somewhere doing a celebratory jig. (Side note: I am known to obsessively research until I find a product that satisfies both of these requirements, rather than settling. I am persistent and stubborn. Oh, you already knew that? Hrm.)

When I can't find a product that meets both these criteria, I will use the one that works. I'm not saying I'll be happy about it, but I can be reasonable. Sometimes.

I am also an avid supporter of the precautionary principle. I believe an ingredient must be proven safe before it can be used, instead of proving the hazards before it must be removed. This puts the burden of proof on companies to show that their products are safe, rather than shouldering the watchdogs with the burden of eliminating unsafe ingredients already widely in use. As a result, you may notice me avoiding ingredients that have not been proven beyond a doubt to cause any disease or reaction. But as long as there is suspicion about an ingredient, I will make an effort to avoid it.

How do you decide what is safe and where to compromise?



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Image courtesy of:
1. Wikipedia: The Thinker, Auguste Rodin

7 comments:

  1. I think that natural companies have come a long way and most of the time I don't have to choose between ingredients and performance. In fact, I can't think of any of the products I use now that I've had to compromise performance for ingredients. I've even found a natural mascara that I like just as well as the drugstore versions.

    I think the thing is that if you choose to go natural, you will not have the option to use a lot of the things you will see other beauty writers talking about, or products in drugstores, Sephora, department stores, etc.

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    1. My current struggle is trying to find a clean contact solution. Any ideas?

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  2. Replies
    1. I'm so glad I can help you decide what is safe to use!!

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  3. I came across two natural "tips" recently and I thought of you -- honey as a spot treatment for acne and apple cider vinegar as face toner... what i like about these is they are natural and SIMPLE! and you probably already have them in your kitchen!

    i also recently bought a "natural" shave cream (i use quotes because I admit to doing no research, but i was at berkeley bowl and it smelled delicious) and really don't like it (too thick and almost sticky??) so i can totally get behind the "it must work" part!!

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    1. I've heard of honey as a blemish treatment. It's amazing as an antibacterial. I haven't tried it yet, but I've been thinking about it! Have you seen all the salves that contain honey, propolis and bee pollen? I've read that they're great for wound healing!

      What shave cream did you buy? I've read good things about Dr. Bronner's Shaving Cream, but I haven't tried it yet.

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