With your participation and some determined work on Capitol Hill, it will be. Several members of Congress recently introduced the Safe Cosmetics Act, legislation that would phase out toxic ingredients in our make-up and other personal care products that have been linked to cancer, birth defects and developmental harm. The act would also create a health-based safety standard to protect not only us adults, but kids, the elderly, and people who work in salons and the cosmetics industries.

Plus, the legislation would require companies to fully disclose all the ingredients their products contain so we consumers can read the labels and decide what we want to be exposed to. Finally, the new law would boost funding for the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Cosmetics and Colors so it can effectively oversee the cosmetics industry and better protect consumers.

The Safe Cosmetics Act is long overdue. Laws governing the ingredients in cosmetics haven’t been updated since 1938 – we know a lot more about toxic chemicals and safe levels of exposure these days than we did then.

“The growing number of reports of serious health problems arising from the use of dangerous chemicals in personal care products shows a need to update our laws and protect men, women, and children from harmful exposure,” said Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D, IL), one of the bill’s co-sponsors. “Currently, manufacturers are not required to disclose all their ingredients on labels, and the FDA has no power to supervise the use of toxic chemicals in cosmetics. Americans are left in the dark about harmful mystery ingredients in personal care products; consumers deserve confidence that the products that they use will not hurt them.”

“When there are cancer-causing chemicals in popular hair-straighteners and baby shampoos and neurotoxins like lead in makeup, you know the regulatory system is broken,” said Lisa Archer, director of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. “Industry self-regulation just isn’t working. This bill recognizes that consumers have a right to safe personal care products and that companies have a responsibility to ensure their products are safe.”

Please – take a minute right now to urge your Member of Congress to support the Safe Cosmetics Act.

For more background, here’s why we need phthalate-free cosmetics, safer shampoos, and lead-free lipstick.

Don’t miss this related post, “Beauty…or the Beast? Depends on the Safe Chemicals Act.”

You can buy safer cosmetics in our online store here along with non-toxic shampoos, soap, and face and body lotion.

The post Putting on Lipstick Shouldn’t be so Risky. It Won’t Be – if You Support the Safe Cosmetics Act appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Let’s start with shampoo. Conventional shampoo contains ingredients that may cause asthma or other human health problems and wreak havoc on water systems when they wash down the drain. Plus, they usually come packaged in plastic bottles that many communities can’t recycle.

SHAMPOO BARS

Shampoo that comes as a bar rather than in a bottle treads more lightly on the planet – and reduces the amount of trash you throw away. Why?

* It uses less packaging.

* The packaging is probably paper or cardboard, thus easier to recycle than plastic.(If you do buy shampoo in a plastic bottle, rinse it out and recycle it.)

* Since it’s not liquid, it’s lighter than bottled shampoos and therefore uses less energy to be shipped from the manufacturing plant to the store where you buy it.

Most shampoos contain various chemicals to ensure they suds up a lot. In fact, you might not feel like your hair is getting clean unless it’s had a good lather. These shampoo bars don’t lather like liquid shampoo, but they do a great job cleaning your hair. None of them contain parabens, phthalates, or the antibacterial triclosan; they haven’t been tested on animals, either.

Burt’s Bees Rosemary Mint Shampoo Bar

Seed Grape seed enriched conditioning hair shampoo bar – unscented

Chagrin Valley All Natural Solid Shampoo Bars

Herbaria Herbal Soaps

For more online options, check the Skin Deep Cosmetic Data base. Aim for products that have a hazard rating of between zero and three, which means they contain the fewest questionnable ingredients.

Do you have a favorite shampoo bar? Please share!

Related Posts

Antibacterial Soap…Could Harm Fetus and Infants

Green Shampoos and Lotions for Guys

Should Soap Bubbles Make Your Baby Sick? Tell J&J No! 

Beauty or the Beast? The Safe Chemicals Act

The post Earth Day Health & Beauty Countdown: Switch Your Liquid Shampoo to a Bar appeared first on Big Green Purse.