Everyone wants to put their best face forward. A common way to do so amongst those with a thorough skin care regimen is to exfoliate regularly. But did you know that many of the exfoliating products which most people use on a daily basis – sometimes more than once per day – might contain something that is poisoning the environment?
They’re called “plastic microbeads”, and they can potentially be more dangerous than they sound. Once these beads get into the environment, they can pollute everything from the water, to the local wildlife, and eventually the food supply. But you can help slow down this environmental damage by avoiding beauty and cleansing products which contain these harmful beads. For more information on exactly how bad these beads are for the environment, as well as alternative exfoliating products, just keep reading.
Are Plastic Microbeads Really That Bad?
The short answer: yes. There is a reason that environmentalists have been pushing to recycle more plastics (or get away from them entirely) in recent years. Plastics are manufactured from complex, toxic chemicals. If they are not recycled, or disposed of properly, those toxic components eventually leak into our environment. They contaminate the soil, and get absorbed by the plants we eat for food. Or those plants get consumed by the animals we eat, passing that toxicity back to us.
Plastic microbeads are even more dangerous – mostly because of their incredibly small size. There are no filters in place to fish these beads out of our rivers, lakes, oceans, and other local water supplies. So once they’re in the environment, they are there to stay. Most of the time, these beads don’t break down and instead absorb toxic pollutants, such as DDT and PCBs. Those beads then get consumed by fish and other marine animals. When we eat these fish, or consume animals which have eaten poisoned fish, those chemicals come back to us.
When these beads do break down, they release dangerous substances into the water supply. This means that, in an area with a significant microbead problem, every shower you take or glass of water you drink is putting these chemicals back into your body.
Alternatives to Beauty Products which Contain Microbeads
Thankfully, many beauty product manufacturers are recognizing the problem that these microbeads have created, and are working hard to fix it. A recent law to ban microbeads in California would require manufacturers to phase these toxic beads out of their beauty products by 2020, or face thousands of dollars in fines.
In the meantime, you can help progress the issue by making sure you don’t purchase beauty products which contain plastic microbeads. There are websites all over the internet which list safe (as well as unsafe) companies and products. There’s even an app you can download to your phone which scans the bar code on your face wash or polishing cream and tells you if it is safe to use. In general, though, look for creams and washes which contain any of these environmentally safe alternatives:
- Pumice – pumice stones are commonly used to exfoliate the hands and feet at nail salons. However, pumice stones can also be ground up into micro-fine particles for effective exfoliation.
- Amber Powder – amber is the fossilized sap of ancient trees. When it is ground up and used in an exfoliating cream or wash, you get the added benefit of the natural minerals which exist in the petrified sap.
- Passion Fruit Seed Powder – like the amber powder mentioned above, pulverized passion fruit seeds have the added benefits of natural plant extracts inside them
- Baking soda – baking soda is a natural compound which doesn’t pollute the local water supply once you flush it down the drain
The Best (and Most Environmentally Friendly) Exfoliating Cream
Your best bet for keeping your face and the environment healthy is, by far, the Complexion MD Microdermabrasion cream. You can safely use it 2-3 times per week in order to exfoliate away dead, dull-looking skin to reveal the freshest face possible. It provides the added benefit of moisturizers, like Sunflower Oil, and skin-nourishing Vitamin E to keep your dermis supple and youthful.
Best of all, Complexion MD Microdermabrasion doesn’t contain any dangerous microbeads. It contains natural, pulverized pumice (mentioned above) and powdered amber (also, see above). These natural exfoliants provide a safe, gentle rejuvenation of your skin without hurting your face, or your local water supply.
If you’re curious to learn more about Complexion MD Microdermabrasion, or to try it for yourself, click here!
