The latest technology development in the field of identifying healthy cosmetic choices offers to help the increasing number of consumers who have become pioneers in the pursuit of a more natural and healthy lifestyle, that includes avoiding environmental toxins. The new tool, “Skin Deep” is a progressive mobile app, developed by the Environmental Working Group.
The revolutionary app will help people learn what ingredients are actually in the products they are using, and hopefully lead to more informed and safer consumer choices. According to the Skin Deep app, a free product, users will be able to access an extensive database, describing 9,000 ingredients found in approximately 72,000 personal care products in 2,500 brands and then determine their safety simply by scanning the barcode on the product in question.
Knowing what products contain is vital to keeping skin,the largest and fastest growing organ of the body, healthy and functioning optimally, as a protective covering, preventing the entry of pathogens and maintaining body temperature and moisture. When cosmetic products containing toxins are applied to the skin, the toxins can soak into the blood stream and affect the whole body system in dangerous ways. New research has linked toxins in a large variety of personal body products, prompting a new awareness that the “growing body of hazard-based evidence suggests connections to long-term health concerns like cancer and reproductive problems”, explains SafeCosmetics.org. Toxic chemicals, including 1-4 dioxane, benzophenone, and BHA, among others, are used in many common cosmetic products.
Most products sold in stores can be located in the app database, and products listed are rated based on the researched and documented hazard-level of each ingredient they contain. The ability to access this vast amount of information quickly will also allow consumers to compare and contrast items to other similar products within the database, to identify the ingredients with the most harmful toxicity risks and make pro-active educated purchases.