Why I Made the Switch to Organic Beauty Products
Posted by: Maureen Toohey Posted date: December 07, 2013 In: Health & Beauty, Lifestyles http://hudsonvalleyreporter.com/lifestyles/2013/12/why-i-made-the-switch-to-organic-beauty-products/#comments
As a leader in the beauty industry for over 30 years, I have a commitment to my family, my clients and the community, to bring awareness to how beauty is viewed, help change salons for the better, and make a difference in people’s lives.
I feel compelled as a professional to tell you why I had to make the switch to use and recommend everyone to switch to organic beauty and wellness products. The bottom line is, keeping your heart, mind, and body clean and pure; eliminating thoughts and actions that have a negative impact on our lives is an easy fix. But the average person uses about six personal care items on a daily basis. In the pursuit of beauty, health and good hygiene shouldn’t put your health at risk.
Beauty doesn’t have to be hazardous to your health
I was born into the world of beauty raised in salons in the late 60s. Watching my parents at work. During a time when hair designers and their clients smoked cigarettes and used toxic products in the salon was a common practice. I remember seeing clouds of smoke, harsh smells while playing with my dolls. It is freighting to think in 2013 that many of these practices are still commonly used in the beauty, personal care and wellness industry.
After years of this exposure, I developed allergies, severe sinus infections, and headaches and chronic fatigue. Many others in the industry have developed lung, bladder, throat issues as well as skin conditions. While I would feel ill after a long day of work, many others have had to end their careers. Some have passed on and it really made me wonder.
My parents being of the Woodstock generation, I consider myself a flower child and decided to go back to my grass roots so to speak. Of course we can’t live in a bubble but we can live smarter and safer. I knew there had to be a safer alternative way to beauty. In 1989 when I opened a salon in Northern Westchester, what we thought was natural then is very different today. I banned smoking in the salon, always mindful about the ingredients in hair care and cosmetics. I also used skincare lines pure enough to eat.
Through the years my I began to research the development of products. I am here to tell you to be aware of the ingredients in traditional hair color, keratin, perms, and so-called nutrient based products. What many promote is not real healthy beauty at all. They mean well but, they are miss informed, miss lead, just stuck in their ways or greedy.
Organic, Natural or Toxic
The beauty industry isn’t properly regulated yet. It needs to be Health care cost wouldn’t be so insane. The big companies have very deep pockets and get away with having a minute amount of natural ingredients in them, yet can still tout being natural. They need to spend less on enticing us to buy products and more on non-toxic ingredients and plastics. Evidence supports the benefits of organic natural ingredient products and the hazards of toxins released in our bodies and the environment from ingredients in the products we use every day. The companies marketing organic sometimes are misleading, jumping on the organic movement. To be organic it must contains 70-95 percent organic or made with certified organic ingredients, and the other percent made with no hazardous ingredients and plastics., and recognized by eco- friendly organizations. There are many clean green companies, that are truly innovative and revolutionizing the beauty Industry, that produce amazing products and results with no harmful ingredients. Then there are many companies marked natural, organic, vegan that still contain the bad stuff in it. Most of the ingredients in beauty, personal hygiene products, foods and supplements we apply and ingest fall short of what our body considers being good. Our bodies are complex. Living a cleaner safer life goes beyond using and eating only organic and recycling or using cruelty-free, ecofriendly products. Trying to make a difference each day will lessen our chances of getting health disorders and life threatening disease. Our actions cause a reaction. We need to take responsibility of our bodies. I must admit very time consuming reading labels is annoying at times, but we even have to.
Maureen Toohey is a regional educator for Organic Salon Systems, a master colorist, stylist, makeup artist, skin care specialist, and offers beauty on location in private studios in Manhattan, Westchester, and Putnam. She provides in salon classes to professionals, and is available for special occasions, photo shoots, make overs, and charity events at your location.
Contact Maureen at 845-490-4981 for a free consultation, or email her with your comments, questions, or topic request
