By Josef Bichler
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Do we know, or should we know everything about the shampoo we use daily or the innocent looking bottle of liquid hand soap sitting next to the sink in the kitchen or laundry? Yes, we should know everything that can concern our health, so we can make our own decision and chose for ourselves. We have a right to know what many studies have found over time about products we use every day and it doesn't matter if it's only a simple shower gel and common liquid hand soap.
Most people wouldn't give it any thought when picking up that bottle of gel or shampoo and even less with the liquid hand soap. Contaminants in personal care products can cause many side effects including serious illnesses which can build up over time. It doesn't affect every one immediately but toxins in these products, if not controlled, will build up in your body. All personal care products have some ingredients of contaminants unless you source totally organic which are available but we are not always given that choice. Most of the products contain strong fragrances with a pleasant refreshing smell. However, this is not only for your pleasure; the main purpose of this is to cover up chemical smells of other toxic ingredients.
What are such ingredients that can affect our health?
For the moment let's just concentrate on the shower gel and hand soap because the field of all other personal care products is almost endless. The explanation could be as easy as saying 'just read the label on the product', but many ingredients are not shown on cosmetics for the manufacturers benefit. Nevertheless, still read the label and you will find names or similar, such as sodium chloride, propylene glycol, polyoxyethylene, ethoxylation, laureth, myreth which can cause skin and eye irritation, nausea, vomiting may cause respiratory track irritation, and can affect liver and kidney. Sodium Lauryl Sulphate is most common in thousands of personal care products like shampoos, body washes, toothpaste, liquid hand soaps, laundry powder, detergents and also used as industrial cleaners. Liquid hand soap and shower gel contains synthetic fragrances known to cause irritation and drying of skin. Another problem arises when a product called triclosan mixes with tap water. It forms into chloroform which becomes a human carcinogen. When chemicals being mixed with tap water or any other treated water it can have a similar effect as urinating in a swimming pool, as urine mixes with chlorine and other organic matter it becomes uric acid which will become a poison. As some of the products are known to contain heavy metals which are found in make-up is also a health risk, because metals are not easily removed after they have accumulated in your body.
Feeling unhealthy and not knowing why?
Using chemicals on your skin can be worse than eating them. When you eat something your saliva and stomach acid helps to break it down and it is flushed out of your system. When putting these chemicals on your skin they absorb like a sponge straight into your bloodstream which can affect any of your organs. On some days not feeling the best and just brushing it off as having an off day, it could just be an off day. However, if repeats of this nature become more frequent this could be just the effect of some chemical overload and metal accumulation in your body and is often diagnosed as just run down. It is not uncommon to hear people say of not feeling well lately and not knowing what it could be, and according to the doctor there is nothing wrong with me. Don't stop here, have more tests done until they find it, the cause of it is there somewhere. Becoming aware of the chemical cocktails is a good start, so you can recognize by knowing what to look out for to avoid hazardous substances in your personal care products and make better choices. When changing to chemical and toxin free products stay vigilant. Look for the name of the company that actually makes that product; it is important to know with whom you are dealing with. Many products being sourced from nameless companies where there is no control of what the products made from or what the ingredients are, regardless whether they call it organic. If you are really looking after your health, any personal care products you use make sure it is of organic standards: Totally nontoxic, free from artificial colours, chemicals and preservatives.
Josef Bichler has a passion for wellness and showing others how to live healthy lives. He has helped countless others achieve their health objectives by searching for products that are free from toxin and chemicals, the finest and safest skin care and personal care products. For more ongoing health information subscribe to his free weekly newsletters, this also gives you the opportunity for comments, suggestions and questions you may have, as well download his free e-book to help making better choices: http://josefbichler.com/free