Helpful advice for all your health and beauty questions.

We have so many popular beauty and health stories, we thought we’d do a re-cap for those you may have missed.

1. Parabens, phthalates and Phenylenediamine, oh my! When it comes to making ourselves beautiful, there are lots of ugly ingredients to deal with. Our story on 11 Toxic Cosmetic Ingredients To Avoid is chock full of information that will make you think twice about painting your nails the next trendy color.

2. Can’t Sleep? 20 Natural Tips To Stop Turning And Tossing will put you to sleep (we hope), but not before you learn what might be at the core of your restlessness.

3. Have you ever tried meditation? How about popping a melatonin before plopping your head down? Our story on 7 Natural Sleep Aids will help you train your brain to do something else beside be preoccupied with your daily to-do list.

4. When you think of the Best Organic, Natural, and Eco-Friendly Shampoos For All Hair Types, you might think they will be too drying or not work as well as your more powerful salon-bought brands, but organic and natural products have come a long way. Editor Katherine Butler unveils some new lines that will make you look like you just walked out of a salon.

5. Women Over 40. Long Hair. Welcome To The New Beauty Controversy was a talk-fueling topic amongst readers. After all, why would it be considered “acting out” to have long hair as an over-40 woman? See what everyone has to say about the topic.

6. Remember what it was like to be a little girl with a healthy glow? How about the last  time you went camping and were able to commune with nature instead of your favorite makeup mirror? A Would You Go A Week Without Makeup? study revealed that “8 out of 10 women prefer their female colleagues to wear makeup and the same number of women said they would rather employ a woman who wore makeup than one who didn’t.” So when the world seems to look at makeup like a necessary mask, how does that make us feel about wearing it?

7. I got my nails painted last week in my favorite, non-toxic shade but had no idea that We Are Now A Nail Polish Economy (Say What?). From Cleopatra to a new Volvo campaign promoting the Soa, we women love to interpret mood via our nails.

8. As a society, we spend billions on our hair annually. It’s no wonder Oprah guru Dr. Oz says you should treat your hair like a silk blouse. What Does Our Hair Say About Our Health? will help you consider what your lifestyle is doing to your mop on top.

9. Does your breath feel less than fresh? Is your face oily? Do your lips look dry and flat? Our beauty team tackles these three challenges plus five more in an article on Simple Solutions To 8 Common Beauty Dilemmas.

10. The beauty term hypoallergenic has “been taken to task for false labeling by health officials, consumer advocates, and environmentalists alike. And that’s just the tip of the hypoallergenic iceberg,” says editor Katherine Butler. In Hypoallergenic Beauty Is a Lie: So Why Are We Still Animal Testing? Butler looks at how the term means virtually nothing to companies using it in their marketing.

This article is proudly sponsored by Saffron Rouge for March 2011.

Image: Vincent Boiteau

The post At a Glance: Top 10 Beauty and Health Stories at EcoSalon appeared first on EcoSalon.

If you have sensitive skin – in other words, you turn pink or red after using anything stronger than water – hypoallergenic products seem to have been sent from the Heavens to tame our angry outer layers. Right? Turns out, not so much. The beauty term has been taken to task for false labeling by health officials, consumer advocates, and environmentalists alike. And that’s just the tip of the hypoallergenic iceberg.

What exactly does it mean to be hypoallergenic? It is supposed to infer that a product is less likely to cause an allergic reaction and that it is gentler on skin. In reality, it means virtually nothing. The decision to call a product hypoallergenic lies solely with its manufacturer. What’s more, the producer is not required to prove any evidence that product causes fewer allergic reactions.

Consumer Reports gets right to the point. There are no standards for a product to be labeled hypoallergenic. According to the consumer advocates, the label has no meaning. It is not verified or even labeled consistently throughout the industry. In fact, medical officials assert that it is nearly impossible to guarantee any beauty product won’t cause an adverse reaction. Hypoallergenic is merely a marketing tool, and the only way to really police your product is to read ingredient labels. Fortunately, the FDA does require ingredient labeling of the beauty industry.

So hypoallergenic apparently means nothing for consumers. However, cruelty-free does. This means that a company does not directly use animal testing in the making of their products. Opinions on animal testing run deep and varied – some would argue that any animal testing is completely unacceptable, while others allow that some testing is necessary to protect human interests.

PETA demands the immediate halt to all animal testing, as well as the consumption of animals. You can read more about their reforms here. The organization also maintains a strict list of products and companies that oppose animal testing. Click here for that specific resource.

Other groups maintain a different approach to ending animal testing. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has proposed minimizing animal testing and cruelty with reforms that, while not entirely eliminating the practice, prevent an abuse of the system. According to EWG, “the real problem is the chemical industry, which conducts repeated animal studies that sacrifice hundreds of thousands of animals as a part of a deliberate strategy to delay government action against specific chemicals.” Further, animals are bred, sold and tested each year with the same chemicals – even though we know what the reactions are. Human safety is not guaranteed by veritable animal-testing mills.

Among other reforms, the EWG proposes making public all the chemical toxicity data generated by the beauty industry. Further, they propose that the industry use animal-based tests judiciously and substitute non-animal tests whenever possible.

Ultimately, while the EWG supports the end to animal testing, it maintains “it is a long way off and we need health and welfare protections for people and animals right now.” You can read more about the EWG’s reforms here.

Image: fl00f

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Tired of that thong song when your sexiest undies collapse from too many wash machine beatings?

One way to lessen the damage is my mom’s method of washing her lingerie in a mesh bag on the delicate cycle of the wash machine, keeping the fabrics separated from towels and other heavier cottons. Bags also help protect fragile fabrics from too much machine agitation. Sadly, Mom still uses Tide detergent on everything. I wheeze from the chemical odor and wince at the notion of wearing tender garments marinated in Tide!

Mesh bags with green detergents are a good way to clean sturdier cotton undies and camisoles  in the machine, and for those who like using bags, Good Housekeeping has some great tips.

But when it comes to silks, I prefer to hand wash and hang undergarments, hose, bathing suits and work-out gear, finding it goes further to sustain these daily necessities while also rushing them through the wash and wear cycle faster.

Here are some safe and gentle products for soaking our most fragile garments:

1. Baby Shampoo

Even before having babies, I began soaking my delicates in the sink with a thimble-full of baby shampoo. My late Aunt Lorraine, one of the best knitters in the Midwest, taught me this trick for handwashing knitwear. For my hose, good thongs and bras, I use organic products, like California Baby , $20, finding a very small amount goes a long way in making suds. I add about a tablespoon to a sink full of water (lukewarm for anything that doesn’t need stain removal and warmer for garments that are spotted). I rinse in clean water and drape the wet garments over a towel to air dry. Experts say not to hang hose or they stretch out, so I usually fold mine over the bathtub rim on a dry towel.

Another reason I love gentle baby shampoo is that I’m highly allergic to most scented shampoos and lingerie washes, and I have no reaction to this gentle alternative. When out of the shampoo, I have also used gentle baby soaps, simply lathering the bar a bit with my hands under the tap to make suds for soaking.

2. Forever New Fabric Care Wash

A product that has been on the market for 25 years, Forever New , $15 – $17, has several organic formulas that address various garments from lights and darks to swimwear, work-out wear and items in need of stain removal. It works great for hand-washing bras. I have a friend who is quite well endowed and she washes a dozen bras at a time and then strings them to dry inside her shower. The site is something to behold. It’s important to remember to reshape the cups when hanging to dry. The washing is easy: you just fill the sink with lukewarm water, add the liquid and swish with your hand to mix the soap. Rinse twice and dry. Your bras will have a longer life if you avoid the tumbling of the machine.

3. Hanky Panky

The maker of organic thongs and undies, Hanky Panky has introduced a biodegradable lingerie wash powder that is hypoallergenic, fragrance free and made in the USA. It’s sold at site like A Brief Affair for $8.50 for an 8 oz. jar. Be sure to follow the directions for mixing so you don’t make the wash too potent.

Main image: Daniele Butera

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