Natural Products Free From Toxins = The Best First Step in Natural Cancer Prevention
Cancer is mean, and it isn’t slowing down.
In recent decades, cancer rates have continued to climb. It tears apart families and friends with tragic diagnoses and prognoses. Beautiful lives are cut short. It leaves you wondering how you can protect yourself and your loved ones from this life-stealing disease.
To honor Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we want to speak up about the importance of non-toxic products (aka natural products). Especially products you can use in your daily routine to help minimize your toxic load. The products you might consume and put on your body are largely unregulated – and often full of toxins.
To us, it’s essential to educate our community on the risks that come with toxic products. What’s one of the biggest risks? You guessed it: cancer.
But stressing over things you can’t control is also a health-suck. So let’s focus on what you CAN change today – transitioning to natural products that are free from toxins. We hope you walk away feeling encouraged, challenged, and supported.
We want our platform to give you all the resources for natural cancer prevention, so you can live a long and healthy life.
Let’s get started.
First: Let’s Define Natural Products
Not all “natural” products are truly natural or non-toxic. Seemingly natural products often use false advertising to deceive consumers. They hide chemicals under deceptive ingredients or cover-alls like “Fragrance” because there’s no regulation for this term.
At PP, we believe that you deserve to know how companies are greenwashing consumers. You deserve better.
When we say natural, we mean 100% toxin-free (even those mostly assumed to be safe). To us, natural means sourced from nature, with CLEAN ingredients.
The Logic Behind Non-toxic Products for Cancer Prevention
It’s essential to remember we only have so much control. It's a technologically-advanced, chemical-focused world + consumer market. You’re not alone in the struggle.
But the old saying still rings true: control what you can control.
We have to let the rest go (within reason, of course). The good news: there are plenty of natural ways to prevent cancer, little by little. And over a lifetime, it sure does add up!
It's fair to note that some cancers are caused by unavoidable genetic factors. But we know this much is true: our genetics haven’t drastically changed – our environment has.
We’re all exposed to a plethora of toxins daily:
→ In our cars
→ At work (unless you work at Primally Pure ;))
→ Shopping in the grocery
→ Inside your friend or family’s house
→ Walking downtown
The list goes on. We won’t lie and say you can eliminate all exposure to toxins. Even if you swapped all your toxic products for natural products free of toxins, there would still be environmental toxins in public spaces.
Here’s what you can control: Toxins in your personal products.
Natural Products = Less Toxic Load = Natural Cancer Prevention
This is your first best step in natural cancer prevention. Vow to avoid personal care products with toxic, carcinogenic ingredients. Avoid toxic (or even potentially toxic) products at all costs.
Why?
Because when you swap toxic products for natural products, your body faces fewer toxins. This allows it to fight disease more efficiently. A smaller toxic load gives your body the ability to detox and cleanse more thoroughly. With a smaller toxic load, natural cancer prevention is a byproduct of a healthier life.
Your body absorbs the things you put on/in it. It’s critical to choose non-toxic products to support a healthy, robust immune system. You can give your body a head start.
Why You Need to Choose Natural Products
Simply put: the industry isn’t regulated.
It’s pretty scary when you do some digging. You realize just how unregulated the personal care industry is. We’re going to be honest with you about our findings from years of experience. It’s essentially a free-for-all and a marketing rat race to win your money. We're all part of this big human experiment of putting untested + unregulated ingredients into products and seeing how things work out.
Newsflash: they aren't working out well because cancer and diseases are still skyrocketing.
Here’s the first issue: our banned ingredient list vs. other countries.
The US is far behind in prioritizing (and demanding!) non-toxic products and safe, natural products on the stores’ shelves. In the US, we’ve only banned 11 ingredients, while the UK has banned around 1,300.1
Not to mention, women are more vulnerable than men. Women use twice as many personal care products, putting them at even higher risk.2
Based on the research, it’s also suspected that one out of every five adults is exposed to all seven of the most carcinogenic ingredients daily.
Avoid personal care products with these seven ingredients at all costs. They have direct links to cancer:3
- Hydroquinone
- Ethylene dioxide
- 1,4-dioxane
- Formaldehyde
- Nitrosamines
- PAHs
- Acrylamide
We care about you and your family. Steer clear from these ingredients in your path towards preventing cancer.
The Personal Care Industry Is Self-Regulated
Yes, you read that right.
The Cosmetic Ingredient Review is a self-regulated group. They monitor + determine the safety of the ingredients in their own products. It’s a recipe for disaster – and lies.
This quote from EWG sums it up perfectly:3
“The Cosmetic Ingredient Review approaches each safety assessment as if consumers are exposed to just one chemical at a time and as if personal care products are the only source of exposure for each chemical considered. The panel is often wrong on both counts.”
The EWG makes an excellent argument. Isolating a chemical as a single exposure and declaring it “safe” is not accurate (or fair). We know people are facing multiple toxic exposures in just a single product. And it snowballs into a much more serious concern since the average person uses 12 products per day.
What’s even worse is that the FDA holds no power to regulate any of these products, as stated on the FDA website:4
Aside from self-regulation, the industry is full of careless manufacturing and mass production.
→ Remember the benzene incident?
An independent lab tested 662 personal care items. They found benzene (a highly carcinogenic ingredient) in 27% of the products. To make matters worse, there were different results within each batch of brand items. Some contained benzene, and some did not. This confirms the severe “lack of oversight in the global supply chains that produce personal care products.”5
Yikes.
There's an incredible amount of careless oversight on chemicals in our everyday products. It’s a slippery slope, but if you’re ready for more, there are documentaries and articles galore. For a deeper dive, check out the Netflix film “The Human Experiment.”
Many Products Actually Tested Contain Known Cancer-Causing Toxins (AKA Carcinogens)
Many ingredients in personal care products ARE being tested. And have carcinogenic properties/risks.
Yet they’re still in your personal care products.
The FDA Plays a Part
As you may know, “fragrance” is a big ingredient to watch out for, even with natural products. A truly natural product should be free from synthetics or hidden formulas. Even in the fragrance blends. If they’ve got something to hide, it’s not good news.
With this loophole, companies can use carcinogenic toxins (along with endocrine-disrupting hormones, neurotoxins, and others) in their products without your knowledge. All under the disguise of a proprietary “fragrance.”
As the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics explains, there’s hardly any regulation for the personal care industry:6
“Of the 113 agents listed by IARC as known human carcinogens, at least 11 have been or are currently used in personal care products: formaldehyde, phenacetin, coal tar, benzene, untreated or mildly treated mineral oils, methylene glycol, ethylene oxide, chromium, cadmium and its compounds, arsenic, and crystalline silica or quartz.”
Without any enforcement on their part, the problem continues to grow. Your best option is to vet products yourself and choose natural products with transparency. It’s the best way to lessen your toxic load for natural cancer prevention.
The Top 6 Personal Care Products You Should Swap for Natural Products
Let’s make it easy for you. Since the average woman uses 12 personal care products per day, here are six natural products to replace your toxic alternatives. Use these to lessen your toxic load and practice natural cancer prevention.
1. Lipstick – a scary number of lipsticks contain heavy metals that are known carcinogens.7 Nourish your lips with natural products containing clean ingredients + naturally pigmented colors.
Natural Alternative: PP tinted lip balm
2. Deodorant – a critical swap for natural cancer prevention. Toxic deodorant puts you at higher risk, especially for breast cancer. The tissues in your armpit are directly connected to your breast tissue.
Natural Alternative: PP non-toxic deodorant
3. Serum – since serums absorb deeply into the skin, choose a serum that contains recognizable ingredients. Ingredients sourced from nature are best.
Natural Alternative: PP skin-specific serums
4. Body lotion – since our skin is our largest + most exposed organ, it absorbs what we put on it. (That's why skin patches are becoming a common way to administer meds). Opt for a clean moisturizer that’s non-toxic and luxuriously moisture-rich.
Natural Alternatives: PP body butter or body oil
5. Botox – besides the pure toxic nature of botox as an ingredient, an interesting clinical study suggests links between botox and breast cancer.8 Opt for natural products and practices like gua sha – some argue it’s better than botox.
Natural Alternative: Facial Gua Sha Stone
6. Aerosol dry shampoo – aerosol products function on a chemical-based propulsion method. If you’re using a product in an aerosol, there are chemicals. That’s why we recommend opting for a toxin-free product.
Natural Alternative: Powdered dry shampoo
Take back control and start your natural cancer prevention with these clean + natural products. With safer choices, you’re setting yourself up for a healthier and more enjoyable life.
The Importance of Avoiding Toxins for Cancer Prevention
One of the best ways to support your body’s ability to fight and prevent cancer is to be mindful of what you expose yourself to. Eliminating toxins by using natural products made with care and clean ingredients will go a long way for your health. It's not just cancer prevention.
Take back control where you can. Using natural products free from toxins opens up a world of possibilities and supports your journey to better health. And peace of mind.
What are you waiting for? XO
Sources:
- The Guardian | US Cosmetics Are Full of Chemicals Banned by Europe – Why?
- Eco Watch | Women Apply an Average of 168 Chemicals on Their Bodies Every Day
- EWG | Women Apply an Average of 168 Chemicals on Their Bodies Every Day
- FDA | FDA Authority Over Cosmetics: How Cosmetics Are Not FDA-Approved, but Are FDA-Regulated
- The Guardian | Carcinogenic Chemical Benzene Found in Hundreds of Us Personal Care Products
- Campaign for Safe Cosmetics | Carcinogens in Cosmetics
- ZRT Laboratory | Are Heavy Metals in Lipstick Making Us Sick?
- eHealthMe | Botox and Breast Cancer - A Phase Iv Clinical Study of FDA Data
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