Non toxic baby products and practices: Skin Care Products

July 11, 2018

If you choose an organic formula, such as the ones we offer at Organicbabyfood.shop, you might also be what social media now calls a “Eco- Mom” or put simply, a mother that is conscious about the environment and wants to expose her baby to the least possible toxins and chemicals. We strongly believe in living an organic lifestyle, which includes only using the best natural products, both on ourselves as also on our babies.

If you are like us, and want to limit your baby´s exposure to toxins as much as possible, you know that there is a long list of items we use on our baby, diapers, skin care, teething products and non-toxic toys. Yes, that is a lot of stuff indeed. Rather than promoting the products we use, we have prepared a little guide for you that will hopefully help you choose the right products and avoid harmful toxins.

At Organic Baby Food Shop we created a little mini series where we will share our findings with you and how to avoid exposing your child to toxins with a weekly article. Today we want to start and by having a look into harmful ingredients that can be found in Skin Care products for babies, and offer you some alternatives.

There is a huge variety of organic skin care products available for your baby. These products are sometimes, however, expensive. That is why some moms go as far as making their own skin care formulas for their babies, usually based on ingredients such as: essential oils, calendula and coconut oil. Either if you choose to make your own products or buy them, always read the labels and avoid ingredients such as:

Fragrance:

Anything that includes artificial fragrances is simply not a good choice, as they usually include ingredients such as coal and petroleum, which are derived synthetic chemicals. But there are also great natural scents, when you read the label make sure that the aromas in the product are explained and not just labeled “fragrance”.

Talc:

Has been around what seems forever! This powdered mineral is a very common ingredient found in many cosmetic products such as baby wipes. Though still used often as a drying agent, it is also known as a lung irritant and has been even linked to cancers, explains Gillian Deacon in her book “There's Lead in your lipstick”. The good news? You might already have the alternative to talc in your kitchen and that is organic corn starch.

Mineral Oil:

Though Mineral Oil might sounds organic, it is anything but. Mineral oil, which is a cheap by-product of processed petroleum is very harsh on your babies skin. There are so many organic and all natural oils available, such as organic olive oil and organic coconut oil, so there is no need to use products that include Mineral Oil.

Parabens:

This nasty ingredient is found almost everywhere, soaps, body washes etc. and can cause hormone disruption and skin irritation. Don't use any products that include Paraben, Benzoic acid or Propyl-ester.

Triclosan:

If you see a product labeled as “Antibacterial” chances are big it includes triclosan, which is not only linked to cancer but also extremely harsh on the environment. Of course we want to keep our children away from unnecessary bacteria, but using products that include triclosan is not the right way to go. There are natural alternatives to antibacterial artificial soap, one of them being vinegar.

Propylene glycol:

Used to open the pores, and yet again linked to cancer. It is very frequently found in baby wipes. Why not simply use a reusable washcloth? It is cheaper, healthier, good for the environment and so much better for your baby.

Dioxane and Ethoxylated surfactants:

These chemicals are found in more than half of the baby soaps sold within the US. Stay away from any product that includes the letters ETH, as also from: Laureth sulfate, Oleth, polyethylene, polyethylene glycol Xylol and PEG. Why? You guessed it, these chemicals are linked to cancer. Some mommies swear on not using soap at all on their babies, and simply use a bath cloth and essential oils to clean their babies.

Another harmful element we expose ourselves and our babies to almost daily, is plastic. We have written an entire article about how to avoid or minimize the exposure to plastic. You can read the article here.

Thankfully, as awareness growth, so does the amount of products that are organic and non-toxic and don't include any of the above mentioned chemicals. We know that organic products are a bit more expensive than the regular ones, that's why it is great that we can make some all natural products on our own with an extra element that cannot be bought: Love!