The Cost of Beauty I Never Agreed To

You love your beautiful hair.

Your makeup.

Your sunscreen.

Your shampoo.

You trust that the products you use every day are safe.

What most people don’t realize is that many of these products release toxic chemicals, chemicals that can quietly make you sick.

This is what happened to me.

A Simple Breakfast Turned Dangerous

Last month I met a friend for breakfast. I was running late and rushed out the door. As soon as I sat down at the table, I felt dizzy. I started coughing and wheezing even though I was wearing my respirator mask.

I ignored it. I was happy to be with my friend.

By that night, my lungs were tight and wheezy. I coughed constantly. Something was very wrong.

The Mistake That Contaminated Our Home

The next morning, I woke up coughing and nervous. Feeling nervous is part of a reaction. Then I realized what had happened.

Because I was rushing, I forgot to change out of my safe indoor-only clothes in the garage. Worse, when I got home, I walked straight into our house without showering or changing clothes. I sat on our furniture. I slept in our bed.

I had unknowingly contaminated our home.

Panic set in.

We washed the clothes, we washed our sheets and blankets. Then I realized my bathrobe had been washed with them. That it was now contaminated too. One mistake turned into a cascade.

When I have reactions I begin to lose words and make mistakes. But thankfully the words come back when the reaction ends.

Despite air purifiers running nonstop, I stayed dizzy and sick.

Proof in the Air

We use VOCs (volatile organic compounds) meters to see how our home is doing, and to test new products because of my severe multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) . This has improved my health so much.

The numbers told the story.

Clothes washed three times continued to release toxins. VOCs steadily rose, proof that the contamination wasn’t washing out. When VOCs steadily climb, we remove items immediately to prevent the high VOCs spreading to the rest of our home.

For my safety, those clothes were removed and discarded.

Even our closet, just a small linen space where we tested my clothes became a danger zone. Despite running an air purifier inside it constantly, VOC levels spiked repeatedly.

In spite of our precautions the VOCs in our home went to unhealthy levels and caused me severe illness.

My asthma worsened. I had violent asthma attacks. At one point, I coughed up dark pink mucus. That was terrifying.

Finally, five days later the VOC level in our home went to safe (below 250) at I05, and in our closet it went to 90.

I was so happy, what a relief! I and our home were safe!

The Cost of Beauty Revealed

I called my friend and explained what had happened, how meeting with her had made me severely ill for days, how the clothes I wore still had high VOCs after we washed them three times.

She told me something shocking.

She had been dizzy and suffering from headaches for two years and couldn’t figure out why.

I asked her what products she uses. I researched every one of them using these two questions on Google. Is there any petroleum in _______________________. Is there anything harmful in ______________________ .

I checked Environmental Working Group (EWG) safety databases. Skin Deep is the research tool for personal products and EWG cleaning products is the search tool for cleaning products such as laundry soap or dish soap. Be sure to scroll down on the right so you can see the results for every ingredient.

That’s when the truth became clear.

Many of her everyday products for skincare, shampoo, deodorant, dishwasher soap and detergent contained very toxic products. Almost every product contained fragrance or essential oil both of which I have severe reactions to.

• Fragrance (Usually rated as an F on EWG)

• Preservatives linked to allergic and neurological reactions

• Petroleum-derived surfactants

• Essential oils that emit VOCs

• Ingredients flagged red or orange by EWG for toxicity

• One entire product flagged red by EWG

  
  

Individually, these products are considered “safe.” Together, they can be devastating.

A Note on EWG

I am thankful for EWG, but I do not rely on it alone.

Our lives were nearly destroyed by a product that was rated with EWG’s best safety score which is an A for the product and each individual ingredient was rated with an A. What is labeled “safe” for most people can still be dangerous for others.

EWG has

The Bigger Truth

This isn’t about vanity.

It’s about health.

Beauty products don’t stay on your skin. They off-gas into the air. They cling to clothing. They transfer to furniture, cars, homes, and other people.

For someone like me, exposure doesn’t cause a mild reaction, it can cause asthma attacks, neurological symptoms, sinus and ear congestion, and days or weeks of severe illness.

And I’m not alone.

Final Thoughts

It feels like fate that I wore those clothes into our home because otherwise, I never would have understood how toxic they truly were. I wouldn’t have known that washing wouldn’t remove the chemicals, that they could accumulate in our truck, or transfer to my other clothing. I might never have understood why my health was getting worse.

Now I know when I go out, I will wash my clothes and then test them with our VOC meter to be sure they are safe for me.

Beauty should never cost you your health.

And if you’re dizzy, coughing, exhausted, or sick and can’t figure out why, look at what you’re putting on your body. Look at every product such as sunscreen, laundry soap, makeup, skin care products, shampoo, and lotion.

Sometimes, the danger is invisible.

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Stay Connected

If my story resonated with you, I'd be grateful if you could give it a heart at the end of my blog. Your support means the world to me. I also always love to hear from you; please leave me a comment below.

I have had miracles happen, so many miracles and I am so thankful. I am working to share with you what I have learned with my blogs, social media posts and Youtube so that you can also heal.

Yet now, I find myself faced with increasing toxins in America that is making it so difficult for me to stay healthy and this is true for each of us and our Earth. 

We need to work together to solve this issue. Our lives and our planet depend on this.

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