Skin being our armor is a misconception. It does protect everything inside of us to an extent as we are wrapped in it but our skin is also very absorbent and a great avenue for toxins to enter our bodies. Surprisingly enough, our skin absorbs approximately 60% of what is put on it. Baby’s skin is even more delicate and thin, making increased susceptibility and absorbency than adult’s skin. It doesn’t stop there. Another astounding fact is that what is absorbed in to the skin may end up in the blood stream. Similar to how the stop smoking patch works. Once in the bloodstream, toxic chemicals can damage vital organs and may increase cancer risks. Our scalp is the most absorbent part of our bodies. This is critical to know as our scalp is the protective layering of our heads and brains; very precious commodities. For this reason alone, it is important to use 100% natural skin care products, especially for babies and young children. Their body parts and organs are growing and developing so easily affected, disrupted or harmed. Truly natural baby skin care products with as many certified organic ingredients as possible if not totally organic is best for baby’s fragile skin.
Every baby is born with a beautiful creamy white coating called vernix caseosa and more commonly known as vernix. It is meant to protect the baby in the womb during the entire pregnancy which is an accumulation of mucus and dead cells. This vernix is a miracle human body lotion and should be rubbed into the baby’s skin right away after birth instead of being washed of by nurses with harsh antibacterial soap which disturbs the baby’s skin natural acidity level and the delicate balance of beneficial bacteria.
If you thought that just keeping your little loved ones smeared in the lotions, creams and other baby skin care products will give him/her the right care, then you are sadly mistaken. These products can do your baby more harm than any good.
Less is better. The less that goes on your baby’s skin; the better.
There are so, so many other toxins in the world and around our babies and children that you do not want to add more chemicals in their bodies with skin care products as well. I am happy to tell you that there are safer, healthier choices today in the baby skin care product sector.
Baby skin care needs to be paid special attention to. The skin of infants and children is especially porous, allowing many more toxins to wreak their wrath. Your skin is the largest organ of your body. Children's tissues, organs and biological systems are still developing with several stages of rapid growth and development that occur from ages of infancy to adolescence and it's this rapid development that can combined with the immaturity of the body organs and systems that predisposes children to potentially more severe consequences. Chemicals found in skin care products are not something that we want our babies to absorb into their skin.
Do you want to know what is actually packed in those attractive bottles of so called baby skin care products? You will be very scared to know! These fancy packaged products contain nothing more than artificially flavoured and artificially coloured petroleum gel or mineral gel or mineral oil, mild detergents added with some antiseptic or antibiotic or disinfectant agents like boric acid which again, are pure chemicals. Those who have been in a chemistry lab know very well that prolonged contact of these chemicals even with adult skin may harm the skin, let alone the impacts on baby skin. These synthetic baby skin car products do not make you baby softer, feel better or heal anything. On the contrary, they can block the pores in skin, choke the skin and baby when breathed, form an unwanted greasy layer on the skin to stick a lot of dust and microbes to, get absorbed deep inside the skin and may cause irritations and may also dry up the skin. Worse, if they are ingested by the baby while licking skin. In such cases, they may cause stomach-ache, vomiting etc. These chemicals themselves are harsh enough for a baby’s skin to damage their so called protective layering.
Most of what is available in big box stores, grocery stores, pharmacies and drug stores are not at all natural or use organic ingredients in them, making them not safe for use on your precious baby. Even health food stores carry many unsafe skin care products with toxic ingredients in them. You will see a lot of tricky over used marketing words on products such as green, organics, natural, pure, safe, or gentle. These are nothing more than advertising words to catch your eye and pull at your heart strings more times than not. Most of the time it is simply the name of the product, a name brand or bold product line; meaning nothing. They are not any safe or gentler on your baby. For a product to be quality, gentle and safe; it must be tested by a certified agency and labeled with their association seal accordingly.
Natural means that a product exists in or formed by nature having undergone little or no processing and containing no chemical additives.
Organic means the ingredient is grown and produced and manufactured without the use of drugs, hormones, dyes, additives or synthetic chemicals.
The organic ingredients need to be first in the list of ingredients to be most beneficial and the safest. Ingredients are always listed in order of quantity of each ingredient in the product; most to least or smallest amount at the end of the list. If there is not an ingredient list on neither the product or the packaging of the product , stay clear from it as they are most likely not wanting you to know what is in it.
We will now go through a few skin care products; the chemicals in them and why to choose natural baby skin care products.
Soap/Body Wash: Water is enough to wash babies with and once in awhile for a good cleaning you can use an organic or all natural baby soap or body wash. Use natural baby skin care products that contain coconut, palm oil, olive oil or Calendula. Please avoid antibacterial soaps for babies as they are harsh and strip the skin. Tea tree oil is a great natural ingredient but is simply too strong for a baby’skin, so is best to avoid for the first couple of years.
Shampoo: Babies having thin hair should not be shampooed very often. Use 100% natural baby shampoo when you wash their hair. The do not need to be shampooed all that often during their first year. Don’t use shampoos containing: synthetic fragrances, artificial colours, or highly allergenic and irritating preservatives including quaternium 15, imidazolidinyl urea, and parabens. Also, avoid products containing diethanolamine (DEA) or triethanolamine (TEA), both of these interact with nitrites -- which may be inadvertently added as preservatives and not shown on ingredient lists -- forming carcinogenic nitrosamines that rapidly penetrate the skin. You will often see these ingredients abbreviated and listed as compounds with other ingredients such as TEA-sodium lauryl sulfate or cocamide-DEA. The gentlest preservatives include citrus seed extract, phenoxyethanol, and vitamins A, C, and E (also known respectively as retinyl palmitate, ascorbic acid, and alpha tocopherol)
Bubble Bath: is not safe for the new born babies. The products of bubble bath are made up of detergents that destroy the useful bacteria. If you wish to scent your baby's bath, add a bit of lavender oil (5-10 drops only) to the water. (Lavender oil is not to be taken internally. Bubble bath also causes infections of the urinary tract and vaginitis in infants. This problem made the Food and Drug Administration to rule out the bubble baths for babies and small children.
Oil, Cream and Lotion: Skin care products can cause much more harm than cure. About 75% of new babies suffer rashes. This can be due to the use of artificial baby skin care products applied to your babies. Everything you use on them should be free of petrochemicals, especially mineral oil which is an irritant. Also, look for healing herbs in your baby's lotion or oil. Aloe and Chamomile are best used for soothing and moisturizing in all natural baby skin care products.
Powder: Most of the baby powders containing talc cause irritation and in certain cases it can cause cancer. Talc is a fine powder and is chemically similar to asbestos. So, these baby powders should be avoided. The powders without talc are to be used only in places like underarms, neck and genital area. Scent-free powders like bentonite clay or cornstarch are the best ones to be used. Powders are used to cure diaper rashes. The rashes can be cured best by fresh air that is allowed to the bottom of the baby. Let baby be naked to air out and heal. Pediatrician advice parents not to use the products with petroleum jelly as they trap moisture and cause common allergen.
Toothpaste: Children under the ages of two should use fluoride-free toothpaste and two to six year olds should use toothpaste free of fluoride or with low amounts of fluoride. If fluoride in large doses is swallowed and over time can discolour teeth and can even be poisonous. Triclosan, PEG compounds, sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), FD&C dyes blue 1, and yellow 5 and 6 are also best to stay clear of. It is tricky to actually know what is in toothpaste as the only ingredient listed is fluoride; scary.
Sunscreen: Many sunscreens have ingredients that have been linked to cancer-causing chemicals. Steer clear of sunscreens that contain oxybezone, octylmethoxycinnamate, benzophenone-3 or any fragrance. Babies under the age of 6 months should not use sunscreen. It is best just to keep them hydrated, fully covered, in shade or stay indoors. Use sunscreen that is at least 30 SPF protection, blocks both UVA and UVB, as well as contains a minimum of 7% zinc oxide or titanium oxide.
Boo-Boo/Healing Cream: This is something that soaks right into your bloodstream as it goes into an open cut and therefore is extremely important to use a natural product to avoid absorbing harmful chemicals. Most store bought creams or ointments are packed full of chemicals and not something that you want to heal your precious little ones. Ingredients to Avoid in Skin Care Products: (Check ingredient lists and make sure they are free of any of the following)
More chemicals being continually tested and added to this list all of the time
Toxic ingredients in synthetic skin care products can affect our health and cause such things as:
Clog pores
Allergic reactions
Eye irritations
Skin rashes
Skin sensitivity
Hair and skin dryness
Eczema
Cell damage
Effect respiratory system
Lung irritation
Does not allow skin to breathe
Disrupt thyroid system
Alter skin chemistry
Damage hair follicles
Hormone disrupting effects
Hinder fertility/Reproductive function
May alter genital development
Can cause attention deficit disorder
Concentration problems
Organ system toxicity
Goes in the bloodstream
Immune system damage
Hampers immune system function
Increase cancer risks/ Cancer causing
Disrupt endocrine activity – produces and secretes hormones that
regulate the body’s growth, metabolism, and sexual development
These chemicals can cause immediate and long term
damage that is accumulative. Immediate
effects are such things as skin irritations, rashes, eczema, dry skin and
irritability. Other prolonged use of
these chemicals can cause attention deficit, concentration issues, hormone
disruptions and cancer.
It is also important to look for natural baby skin
care products that are packaged in glass or safe and toxic-free plastics #2,
#4, #5 and never have been tested on animals.
Organic and natural baby skin care products are pure
and gentle on your baby’s skin and body.
A much better choice for baby skin care products as they do not harm or
irritate baby and rarely cause any allergic reactions. You need not worry about any chemicals being
absorbed, inhaled or even ingested when using these safer all natural baby skin
care products. There are no chemicals
in them at all, let alone anything harsh, toxic and harmful to your baby or
child. Quality organic and all natural
baby skin car products cost a great deal more but should be considered an
investment in your baby’s health care and longevity. What a life long relief to know that you are
making the best decision to care for the long term good health of your baby.
There is not a lot of choice in 100% certified
organic baby skin care products to date.More are being developed and created all of the time but still a very
low percentage compared to synthetic/toxic baby product which can produced quickly and cheaply (at our baby’s
expense). If we keep purchasing and
demanding organic and all natural baby skin care products, they will become
more common. By supporting this small
but important sector the demand will go up and the price will come down; a
double positive.
Trees and
Tots carry a wide array of
superior organic and natural baby skin care products that are safe, gentle,
non-irritating, and effective as well as naturally smell wonderful.Feel free to check out and try our organic
and/or all natural baby skin care products for your baby/toddler. Prevention is better than treatment. Live simple, using fewer skin care products and
that contain natural ingredients for an extra health measure.
