Tag: all natural myths

2021 edit: i no longer subscribe to or support the “all-natural” label. more here.

now that i’ve officially had AE for a year and a half, i feel like i should address some of the off-the-wall comments and questions i’ve heard since i decided to go all-natural.

some have made me laugh, some have really offended me,  but NONE have deterred me from becoming the healthiest person i can be and a more educated consumer. 🙂

i hope this posts helps someone feel the same!

• GOING ALL-NATURAL DOESN’T MAKE A DIFFERENCE
  …or it won’t be as good as the conventional stuff.
  going all-natural DOES make a difference. you’re very literally NOT putting toxins into your body anymore, like those found in lotions, shampoos, body wash, deodorants, makeup, etc. your skin and scalp will be in better condition. heck, you might even find out that problems you’ve been trying to fix were Caused by an ingredient or two in your previous products. and wanna know something disgusting? SLS (as found in bubbly products) has been found in brain, eye and liver tissues of cadavers of people who quit using sulfates as many as fifteen years prior to death. nooooo thanks.
  and what’s all this business about how crunchy products aren’t as good as conventional ones? there are countless amounts of people all around the world that will vouch for the effectiveness of homemade products over conventionally sold ones. for me personally, my acne has died down and my hair no longer has split ends. and you know what i use? water! *gasp!* 😉

• YOU “NEED” CONVENTIONAL PRODUCTS
  recently, i had a “licensed cosmetologist” tell me my hair literally needed expensive shampoos like john frieda because it’s like medicine for hair. she told me “i’m sure you take medicine when you’re sick, so why wouldn’t you do the same for your hair?”
  honestly, my first reaction was to laugh.
  so let’s clear this up… you do NOT “need” conventional beauty products. you don’t… as in do NOT. i would love for someone to explain why my hair needs to be coated in silicones or why my scalp needs SLS bubbles or why my armpits need dove deodorant. haha. your body knows how to take care of itself (given everyone is different and various health conditions exist). barring lifestyle and health conditions, your hair doesn’t need to washed with john frieda at all, let alone every day. i’ve been washing my hair with ONLY water for months now (and threw away all my hair products almost 2 years ago) and my hair is in the best condition it’s ever been in. oh, AND forgot to mention- the water-only washes only happen every week or so 😉 myth debunked.

• YOU WON’T BE CLEAN/YOU’LL STINK/ETC.
  are we talking for the initial transition period? cuz oh heck yea, baby! anyone who’s familiar with my journey to the ROM knows i let my grease flag fly! but that’s completely temporary. if you’re talking about the crunchy lifestyle in general, you couldn’t be farther from the truth! my armpits actually stink LESS! 🙂 it’s freakin magical. and i’m not even kidding. i was quite the stinky gal when i accidentally forgot to put deo on before my transition. and now when i forget, it’s kind of like “oh well. hopefully i’ll remember tomorrow” because i don’t stink (at least no one’s said otherwise…haha!). and yes, us crunchy people are clean. probably more clean actually. i think we have a great understanding of what exactly works for our bodies and what doesn’t, and we have a great understanding of how to tailor everything to fit our needs.
  i’m aware there are those few souls that…hmm… forgo hygiene? how do i word that?? but there are people i know that use conventional products and have way worse hygiene than me. your hygiene level doesn’t correlate with what type of product you’re using (well, unless you’re trying to wash your body with “mud” (read: clay). oh, just kidding, because that’s actually great for it!)

• YOU “CAN’T” WEAR MAKE-UP/DO YOUR HAIR/ETC.
  i’ve had various people over time assert that i can’t be crunchy AND style my hair or put make-up on because what i’d be using would be full of the ingredients i regularly avoid in other beauty products.
  ahem… *gasp!* lipstick! whaaat?
  
  but really though, all make-up isn’t “bad.” there are lots of natural make-up companies out there that display their ingredients lists proudly! check out these products as a place to start! they take some getting used to (your lipstick won’t be on your lips for 36 hours and your mascara won’t stay on while you swim), but it’s worth it for your health!
  nail polish is still my weakness (shh, don’t tell!). but if you wanna paint your nails, you can opt for “safer” options, like these.

• ALL “ALL-NATURAL” PRODUCTS ARE OKAY
  sadly, this just isn’t true. in many, many cases, products that are marked or marketed as all-natural really AREN’T. lush isn’t. organix isn’t. wen isn’t. bare minerals isn’t. you have to do your research on the specific products (which is another reason i’m a huge fan of DIY’ing!).
  but the good news is there are TONS of companies out there (lots of them are family owned or a smaller organization) that firmly believe in safe, non-toxic products.
  it just comes down to whether or not we as consumers can cut through the marketing fog to see what’s really in the products we’re using!

what are some things people have told you that you corrected or wanted to correct?