Kicking the Chemicals to the Curb

Almost two years ago, I started on my quest to get rid of chemicals in my daily routine.  Think about it......Your skin is the largest organ of your body.  Everything you put on it is absorbed into your body. So many chemicals are endocrine disruptors!  Taking care of your skin and not assaulting it with chemicals is very important for your ultimate health. Since my quest started quite a while ago, here is an update!  Below is a list of what I used to use and what I use now, effectively deleting most of the chemicals!  

My morning routine included:

• Shower using soap
• Shampoo
• Conditioner
• Brushing Teeth
• Using Deodorant
• Daily lotion

I used to use Zest bath soap......Just look at all those ingredients.  I switched to Kiss My Face soap with only three ingredients ......Water, Salt and Olive Oil.  What I found interesting about this soap is that it just lasts and lasts.  I'll go through only one bar of this soap while my hubby goes through about three of his.  And my skin feels great and is clean.  That was my first win.

The second items I tackled were my shampoo and conditioner.  Even though they were from a company that called themselves Modern Organic Products, I called them Mostly Organic Products.  The shampoo still had the dreaded SLS and both had wheat!! For someone who deletes wheat from their diet, this just needed to go!  I love the way my hair feels and have saved a ton of money with the new way.  You can read all about my new hair routine in this blog post about my No-Poo Shampoo!

The next item on the list was toothpaste.  I had been with Young Living about 6 months before I decided to try their Aromabright toothpaste.  Wow, oh wow!!  I was happy!  When my teeth were brushed they felt like they had just come from the hygienist, so smooth and clean feeling!  AND if you want to add a little whitening to it, you add one drop of Orange Essential Oil!  It is a gentle whitening for a natural looking tooth color.  You can see my one month trial picture HERE.  I had only been using it a couple of months when I went for my cleaning and she said that there was very little tarter.  Score!  But, what is in it?  NO chemicals AND NO SLS!!!!  (Water, Calcium carbonate, Cocos nucifera (Coconut) oil, Sodium bicarbonate, Glycerin, Xylitol, Xanthum gum, Mentha piperita† (Peppermint) oil, Mentha spicata† (Spearmint) leaf oil, Stevia rebaudiana leaf extract, Lecithin, Eugenia caryophyllus (Clove) bud oil, Ocotea quixos† (Ocotea) leaf oil, Cinnamomum verum† (Cinnamon) Bark oil, Citrus limon† (Lemon) peel oil, Eucalyptus Radiata† leaf oil, Rosmarinus officinalis† (Rosemary) leaf oil)   Another win!!

The next thing on my morning list was deodorant.  This was the hardest item to tackle on my original list because you just DON'T want to stink!!  So, I picked a long weekend when we weren't going anywhere.  I could wash up if I felt I was too stinky and tried the Young Living Mountain Mist Deodorant.  There were several things I noticed over the weekend and into the first week.  Did I get a little stinky......yup.  But the stinky seems to change at the end of the week.  Instead of being super awful, it wasn't bad at all.  I guess it took me a while to get the old deodorant out of my system.  Now, about a month later I don't notice hardly any smell at all.  What really threw me at first was that I actually sweat, which is good for you!  After using antiperspirant for decades having my pits wet was a new experience for sure!  My shirts do need to be laundered a little more.  Sometimes I can't wear the shirt the second day.  That's okay with me though.  Getting rid of the aluminium and the other chemicals is a big win!   I will definitely be continuing the new deodorant.  Here are the ingredients of the Mountain Mist Deodorant (Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil Extract, White Beeswax, Pure Ester 34, Zinc Oxide, Pure Ester 40, Syzygium Aromaticum† (Clove) Flower Bud Oil, Citrus Limon† (Lemon)Peel Oil, Mentha Piperita† (Peppermint) Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis†(Rosemary) Leaf Oil), Eucalyptus Radiata† Leaf Oil, Abies Concolor† (White Fir) Oil, and Tocopherol (Vitamin E).  

Finally, the last of my morning routine to change was my facial lotion.  I've loved Mary Key TimeWise Age-defying Moisturizer but just look at all these ingredients!!  (Water, glycerin, C12-15 alkyl benzoate, cettearyl alcohol, isostearyl alcohol, triethanolamine hydrogenated lecithin, behenyl alcohol, propylene glycol, dimethicone, bis-diglyceryl polyacladipate-2, ceteareth-20, linoleamidopropyl PG-dimonium chloridephosphate, silica, carbomer, diazolidinyl urea, lauramine oxide, disodium EDTA, betaine, glyceryl polyacrylate, methylparaben, sodium PCA, C9-15 alkyl phosphate, tocopheryl acetate, sorbitol, propylparaben, serine, threonine, proline, arginine, glycine, alanine, lysine, glutamic acid, thermus themophillus ferment.)  Yikes!!    So what do I use now.  Jojoba oil and Frankincense Essential Oil.  I put a little Jojoba oil in my hand, add one drop of Frankincense and rub all over my face.  I am literally in LOVE with this.  The Frankincense is super good for your skin and the Jojoba doesn't clog your pores either.  My skin tone has been fabulous!  

So, I hope that this inspires you to delete chemicals out of your routine.  It isn't too hard and your body will thank you.  Later this week, I'll tell you how I have expanded my quest and deleted chemicals from my cleaning products.  

Yup, they work

This morning I got in the shower and did my normal regimen for my No-Poo Shampoo method.  I've done this for almost two years and just love it.  Instead of shampoo I now use a couple tablespoons of baking soda with Lavender, Cedarwood & Rosemary essential oils in it.  Add about a cup of water, swirl to dissolve and apply to hair.  I add hot water which puts some of the oils aromatically into the air.  I love smelling it, especially the Rosemary.  Then I follow up with a couple tablespoons of Apple Cider Vinegar in a cup of water for my 'rinse'.

This morning after smelling the lovely aroma and treating my hair I was so tired.  All I wanted to do is take a soaking bath and go back to bed.  Hmmmmm.....look at those oils I used.  Lavender and Cedarwood both said to help with sleep.  Yup.....I believe that is the truth!  Have you ever tried them?  Want a sample?  Let me know and I'll give you some to try.  Just leave a comment with contact info in the comment area.

Cedarwood

Since Ann's No Poo recipe used Young Living Cedarwood Essential Oil, we thought that you would like to see more about the oil!

Is No Poo for you?

Last May, Ann was taking her shower.........  we know...TMI.....but hang with us and you'll see why we are starting there.

While waiting for the conditioner to sit and do it's thing, she was reading the labels of her shampoo and conditioner because she had just learned about an ingredient that wasn't so hot. OH MY! There it was......both products had that ingredient and it got her to thinking about what she could use to shampoo her hair without that particular chemical. She was slowly trying to eliminate as many chemicals from her morning routine as possible. What would she try? Then she remembered one of her rubber stamping friends who had tried a No Poo way to keep her hair clean.  Sounds icky but it isn't.....really!!

With a little bit of trepidation she decided to give it a go. After all, if it didn't work, it wasn't the end of the world.

The No Poo way was a follows:

• Two tablespoons of Baking soda in a plastic container large enough to hold about 2 cups of water. (Ann adds 2 drops of Young Living Cedarwood Essential Oil , 2 drops of Rosemary and 2 drops of Lavender)
• One tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar in a small plastic container. She used Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar.
• Take shower like normal. When you are ready to shampoo, add about 1 cup of water to the container with the baking soda mix and swirl around to dissolve the soda.   
• Pour over your hair concentrating on the roots. Rub into the scalp and pull out to end of the hair. There won't be any suds but it will feel soft in your hands. Leaving it in for about a minute is good.  Rinse out.
• Rinse your plastic container out and pour in the vinegar.  Add about a cup of water.  Pour over your hair and let sit a little before rinsing.

You may go through a period of oiliness as the scalp re-calibrates its oil production.  You see ......shampoos strip the scalp of natural oil making it produce WAY more than is necessary.  BUT, don't despair. This doesn't take too long. You'll find that you can go about a week before needing to 'shampoo' and between 'treatments' Ann just wets her hair down massaging the scale without any soda/vinegar just so she can style. Those of you who use hair product would want to rinse out all the product frequently.

Some say that this makes their hair too dry but Ann hasn't found that to be the case for her!  If you do, adjust the amount of soda so you are using less or treat your hair less often.  

Leah said that she was going to be giving this a try. So......one post in the future will give you her feedback.

If you decide to try No Poo, let us know how it went.