Let’s chat about that toxic chapstick you’ve got in your purse. You know… the one you apply on your lips and your kids lips all year-long. Sadly, its riddled with toxic ingredients many of which are carcinogenic, endocrine disrupters, and immunotoxins. You may or may not be aware of what is in your chapstick but as cancer is a constant awareness and more and more people are trying to find ways to be healthy and provide a healthy environment for their family, chapstick falls into just one of those issues.
Now I know what you are thinking, how can just a small thing hurt me? Well take a look at the toxic ingredients and maybe a few times a year you may use this to help “heal” your lips, however the damage and the exposure is contributing to all the other many factors we expose ourselves to.
I know, dry lips are common any time of the year and I have seen several people actually addicted to chapstick. In fact, you see it in the checkout lane at the grocery store, drug store, and even the gas station and it is so enticing to grab one on the go and stick in your purse. I have been guilty of using it for stocking stuffers!
Common toxic ingredients include petroleum or its by products, aluminum or its by products, parabens, toxic dyes and soy. Many brands give the appearance that they are safe, but in fact just are NOT.
For instance, let’s look at Chapstick Lip Balm in Cherry flavor:
Camphor: Camphor is a waxy substance derived from the camphor tree. It’s classified by the Environmental Working Group as potentially toxic. According to Medscape, “Ingestion of even small doses of camphor can cause fatal poisoning in small children. It produces gastrointestinal and central nervous system irritation after toxic ingestion. Nausea and vomiting followed by agitation and seizures are common.” Why would Pfizer include a potentially dangerous ingredient in a product that kids use all the time?
Fragrance
When “fragrance” is listed in the ingredients, you can assume it’s synthetic—and not a blend of natural flower extracts. The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) reports that “95% of the ingredients used to create fragrances today are synthetic compounds derived from petroleum, including benzene derivatives, aldehydes, and many other known toxins and sensitizers.” According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), there are potentially hundreds of chemicals in a single product’s secret fragrance mixture.
Isopropyl Myristate
Though it’s used to moisturizer, isopropyl myristate actually dries the skin and hair, causing cracks and fissures. It also encourages bacterial growth. It’s classified as a human skin irritant, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Light Mineral Oil
Mineral oil is a semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons sourced from petroleum. According to EWG, it may be an organ and immune system toxicant as well as a carcinogen. Light mineral oil can also be potentially contaminated with cancer-causing chemical polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Additionally, the environmental impact of using products sourced from crude oil, a non-renewable resource, is also of concern.
Methylparaben and Propylparaben
These are both parabens, preservatives used to discourage the growth of microbes in personal care products. They’re known endocrine disruptors, which means they disrupt hormone function and are linked to an increased risk of breast cancer. Endocrine disruptors mimic estrogen in the body by binding to estrogen receptors on cells and wreaking havoc on the body’s organ systems, especially the reproductive system.
Paraffin
Paraffin is a petrochemical (a byproduct of petroleum) and by-product of kerosene. According to David Pollack, founder of Just Ask David, it traps toxins and excess oil on the body so that your skin can’t breathe properly. It has been shown to have trace amounts of 1,4 Dioxane, a known carcinogen.
Would you rub petroleum on your lips and even lick your lips knowing that is what is on there? This is one of the most common toxic ingredients in lip care products.
Saccharin
Saccharin, an artificial sweetener, is used in this case as a flavoring agent (it makes the lip balm taste sweet). Although it is no longer considered to be a human carcinogen (early studies in rats showed a link to urinary bladder cancer), I prefer to avoid all man-made chemically derived artificial sweeteners.
Ingredients for most common chapstick:
Arachidyl propionate, camphor, carnauba wax, cetyl alcohol, D&C red no. 6 barium lake, fragrance, isopropyl lanolate, isopropyl myristate, lanolin, light mineral oil, menthol, methylparaben, octyldodecanol, paraffin, phenyl trimethicone, propylparaben, saccharin, white wax.
NOW… GO LOOK AT YOUR CHAPSTICK: Ingredients to avoid:
– Parabens (of any kind)
– Petrolatum or Petroleum
– Chemical Fragrance or Flavor (commonly listed as Fragrance or Parfume)
– Chemical Dyes (commonly listed with a # next to them)
– Mineral Oil
Ingredients to avoid in an SPF lip balm: Octinoxate , Oxybenzone, Avobenzone
It’s time to toss that junk and get yourself one of Young Living’s AMAZING lip balms. Seriously feels amazing on your lips and contains the best of the best ingredients! Great stocking stuffers too!
RETAIL PRICES:
Lavender Lip Balm #5203 $5.26
Grapefruit Lip Balm #5178 $5.50
Cinnamint Lip Balm #5150 $5.59
Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Bees Wax, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Lycium Barbarum (Wolfberry) Seed Oil, Rosa Rubiginosa (Rosehip) Seed Oil, Lavandula Angustifolia† (Lavender) Oil, Tocopherol (Vitamin E), and Tocopheryl Acetate.
†100% pure therapeutic-grade™ essential oil
Leave a comment below for more information or click here to place an order.
Country Girl 