Face Washes-Enemy of the Ocean

[Coradion]

I've been doing some work for my program looking at microplastics in the marine environment and I figured mers would appreciate this. While things like the giant Pacific garbage patch are pretty well known it's easy to overlook micro and nano plastics which are tiny pieces of broken down plastic in the ocean. In some oceans there's actually 6 times more plastic in the water than zooplankton. These tiny pieces of plastic that get into the water actually attract pollutants and chemicals that would otherwise be too dilute to cause a harmful effect on marine life. When animals at the bottom of the food web consume these pieces of plastic on accident they can succumb to poisoning from the toxins by accidentally activating the chemicals in their biological pathways. This can lead to a cascade effect that poisons all animals higher up the food web. One of the biggest sources of microplastics is face washes. A lot of face wishes have things like "cleansing micro beads" which are too small to be easily filtered out of waste water and end up in the environment by accident. It might not hurt to research your face washes and even deoderants. It can save sea life.

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Using face scrubs with beads actually makes your skin worse if you have acne. It exacerbates the problem, meaning it makes you break out more. And if you have big acne pores, they may get stuck in it which can lead to infection.

Its better to use one that ph balance and won't strip your skin of natural oils.

[Kishiko]

Whenever I use scrubs (not face scrubs), I make my own, natural based sugar scrubs. The main ingredients are cane or brown sugar and coconut oil. You can also add pure extracts for scented scrubs, liquid vitamin e for your skin, and other stuff! When you rinse it off, the sugar dissolves so nothing is left behind(:

[SeaGlass Siren]

Eeee ... Thanks for the heads up :s I have to get rid of my boys facial scrubs now

[Aziara]

Yeah, not only are sugar scrubs much better for you and the environment, it's also much cheaper than buying fancy face scrubs. Whenever I have rough, dry skin, a sugar scrub is what I use.

[Kaila Mermaid]

:jawdrop: I had no idea! No brings the problem of disposing of this stuff...

[babsannee]

OH snap.

If it helps, LUSH sells a lot of stuff with natural ingredients if you feel you need scrubbing power. I have a shampoo that has sea salt in it to give it extra oomph. Plus, if you bring your containers back to recycle I'm 90% sure you get a discount, and all of their stuff is recyclable in the first place. It's kinda expensive though.

[deepblue]

There's a thread about the microplastics (called nurdles) and three companies who've committed to not using them in their products.

http://mernetwork.com/index/showthread.php?5501-3-companies-commit-to-removing-plastic-beads-from-their-body-products

They were also recently, finally legislations in NY and California to ban their use.

http://ecowatch.com/2014/02/17/new-york-california-legislation-ban-microbeads-cosmetics/

http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2014/02/17/westside-lawmaker-eyes-ban-on-micro-plastic-beads-in-beauty-products/

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/11/nyregion/ban-sought-on-microbeads-in-beauty-items.html?_r=0

I haven't found the updates, but these bills were intro'd in Feb, and we all know how long legislation can take.

[Miyu]

I make my own scrubs as well... sometimes sugar-based, sometimes sea salt-based, sometimes just some baking soda and water... but I really love making them out of spices that also help with my acne :P

Lush sells a lot of natural-based products, but they still include a lot of synthetics and harmful dyes in a decent amount of their products (Some of them are good, and I own a few, but read those ingredients lists first!).

I'm currently working on refining a bunch of natural beauty and personal care recipes for my blog, including a few Lush dupes... And of course I'm making quite a few mermaid-themed recipes as well :P

[deepblue]

I'm currently working on refining a bunch of natural beauty and personal care recipes for my blog, including a few Lush dupes... And of course I'm making quite a few mermaid-themed recipes as well :P

I will be checking your blog for those posts!

oh- I just looked at your blog- quick ot, I LOVE what you did with your hair.

[Miyu]

Haha, don't have them up just yet - I had to procure a few ingredients I didn't have, and I finally collected enough containers to put them all in :P

Soon, though - Spring is here and that means recipe-trying time!

(Also, it's on my natural beauty blog, not my costuming one:http://historicbeauty.wordpress.com/)

[Mermaid Jaffa]

I used to love the simple oatmeal soaps from the chemist.

Now when I look for it, its oatmeal with some very strong smelling perfumes or creams, which I don't like. Some of the strong smelling stuff always makes me gag and vomit!

[Blondie]

OH snap.

If it helps, LUSH sells a lot of stuff with natural ingredients if you feel you need scrubbing power. I have a shampoo that has sea salt in it to give it extra oomph. Plus, if you bring your containers back to recycle I'm 90% sure you get a discount, and all of their stuff is recyclable in the first place. It's kinda expensive though.
I second this. LUSH is AMAZING. I've had serious skin issues for almost a decade now. LUSH are the only products I swear by that actually help your skin. They are all natural too. If you bring back five washed containers for the fresh face masks they give you one for free!

[Mermaid Jaffa]

I might try Lush. Do they have natural oatmeal soap?

[deepblue]

Haha, don't have them up just yet - I had to procure a few ingredients I didn't have, and I finally collected enough containers to put them all in :P

Soon, though - Spring is here and that means recipe-trying time!

(Also, it's on my natural beauty blog, not my costuming one:http://historicbeauty.wordpress.com/)

Thanks!

I like Lush, but they're way too expensive. And you can find all natural, plastics-free skin care so easily now. Esp at any whole foods type of place, including Whole Foods, but they're also pricey. Still, I love the idea of home made... reduces waste to make it yourself, and store in reusable containers.

[SeaGlass Siren]

i use the arbonne sea salt scrub.

[ILovePrettyFish]

That looks like a wonderful recipe, thanks for sharing!!

[ILovePrettyFish]

Thank you this is so priceless I am doing research for articles to spread awareness in this topic

[ILovePrettyFish]

Thank you for sharing! This is such an important topic. Last year a friend just went out and collected some seawater for his son's school project and they found microplastics in it...and they weren't even THAT micro.

[Coradion]

Whenever we do plankton tows and collections we find a lot of plastic pieces. Micro and nano plastics are characterized by a micrometer size. Usually microplastics are small enough where tiny marine organisms can eat them without chewing :(

[deepblue]

Toothpaste, also- if anyone of you use Crest, you might want to read this.

http://www.dentalbuzz.com/2014/03/04/crest-imbeds-plastic-in-our-gums/


In other words, according to Crest:

Polyethylene plastic is in your toothpaste for decorative purposes only.

[Aziara]

:doh: Plastic in toothpaste for decorative purposes??? Why on earth is that important? This makes me glad I use an all-natural brand. I switched initially because fluoride is poison, and obviously not necessary as I didn't immediately explode with cavities after the switch. I've been fluoride free for well over 5-6 years now, still no cavities. I still can't believe that nursery water (made especially for toddlers and babies to mix with their formula!) has added fluoride. Anyway, I think I'm hijacking this thread,so I'll shut up now.:surrender:

[Mermaid Sirena]

Lush products are magical I swear if I could use their stuff everyday I would.

Thanks for posting this I had no idea! I was already planning on changing my skin regime once my current products were gone this is just even more incentive!

[Vixy]

I stopped using face washes with those beads in ages ago, they caused my face to have rashes and terrible blemishes. I'm committed to being more environmentally friendly this year and looking up recipes for scrubs, washes and hopefully shampoos and conditioners.

But now learning about it, I will not be using any of those things ever.

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Some of those natural products can also make your skin worse, especially if you suffer from skin conditions like acne, eczema etc.

I read an article recently, that said some ingredients like witch hazel, zinc, lemon may have worse effects than chemical based skin cleansers.

But I think that would depend on how sensitive your skin is, and if you have any allergies to certain natural compounds.

Find ones that are ph balanced, as they won't irritate the skin.

[MermaidClara]

it really is trial and error for most people ~ i'd highly suggest people coming into lush if they don't know where to start (if you dont like a product you can just return it for a full refund if you have your receipt or if you've lost it you can gain instore credit and get other things to try out doesn't matter if you've used half or if its from 3 years ago) not only are they really nice and gentle on your skin they're also super environmentally and animal friendly! I've campaigned with them alot and im so excited to join them again in fighting animal testing in cosmetics!

As for the pot returns and discount its for every 5 black pots (this includes perfume containers and shower gel bottles with the lid intact) you get to take home a fresh face mask (made every tuesday where i am) for free yayyyyy!!

also lush dont use any nasties just to clarify ~ if they're are any chemicals that you honest to god have no idea what it is (there is stuff but don't fret pet it'd not going to harm you or anyone else) on the packet they are all totally backed by 100+ years of research that prove that the ingredient is safe for human use and consumption (the last part i wouldn't reccommend anyway except for the lippies, balms and lip scrubs)

ALSO PLEASE USE CRUELTY FREE PRODUCTS PROTECT OUR FURRY AND NOT SO FURRY CREATURES thankyou :)

[Mermaid Galene]

I have sensitive skin, am gluten intolerant, and try to be environmentally responsible and cruelty free with personal care products. I really like the 100% Pure line. They meet all my criteria and make very skin-friendly products.

http://www.100percentpure.com/

[Mermaid Jaffa]

I can't walk past a Lush shop without getting a headache, let alone go inside the shop and spend time in it!!

I don't know about non Australian Lush shops, but the local ones here, the perfume or smells are very very strong.

You would know if there is a Lush in the shopping centre just by sniffing the air!

[MermaidClara]

yaah i get a head ache from on of their hair balms and it is quite a strong smell! theres also the yes to carrots/blueberries/cucumbers/tomatoes range that are really good and formula 10.0.6 at priceline if you're interested- their smells aren't intensive like the lush ones

[Mermaid Jaffa]

10.0.6 seem decent in price, I used to use it when I was in my teens and they worked well. I didn't know they were still around.

[MermaidClara]

yeah they've been around for ages i'm pretty sure priceline are having 20% off formula.10.0.6 at the moment as well