Archive for the ‘Skincare’ Category

What’s in Your Antiperspirant? The Risks of Aluminum Compounds during Pregnancy

aluminum free deodorant natural deodorant

What are aluminum compounds?

Aluminum is the third most abundant element on earth and the primary component of the earth’s crust. In other words, it’s everywhere, including in various cosmetics, medicines, foods and packaging materials. Aluminum is pretty much always found as a compound in personal care products - in particular in antiperspirants. The most commonly used antiperspirant compounds are aluminum chlorohydrates and aluminum zirconium variations.

What are they doing in antiperspirants?

Aluminum compounds are the active components in antiperspirant that prevent sweating and all the FDA approved antiperspirants contain aluminum in one form or another. Note that deodorants and antiperspirants are not the same. While deodorant deals with body odor, antiperspirants specifically target sweating. This means you can prevent body odor without being exposed to aluminum by choosing a pure deodorant with no added antiperspirant – like the new Nine Naturals pregnancy safe deodorant.

What’s the risk associated with aluminum?

It’s especially important to be cautious of high aluminum exposures during pregnancy. A number of studies have been published showing potential developmental defects in animals. These include overall development as well as behavioral and neurological issues.

There have also been a number of studies potentially tying aluminum exposure to neurodegenerative diseases and breast cancer. In particular, antiperspirant has been implicated on the basis that aluminum can be absorbed from through the skin with daily use leading to significantly higher levels of exposure.

At high levels aluminum is certainly a toxin[i]. Fortunately though, when we eat it very little is absorbed through the digestive system so our exposure from consumed aluminum is quite low even though the average adult ingests 7-9 mg of aluminum per day[ii]. In the case of absorption through the skin, any aluminum taken up would have a more direct route to the bloodstream hence the greater concern about this method of exposure. Generally speaking, the main risk from aluminum is for pregnant women and for adults with pre-existing renal conditions and in those cases limiting exposure is advised.

What can you do to limit aluminum exposure?

Choosing aluminum-free products is the best place to start! Note that natural does not mean aluminum-free, but at Nine Naturals it does: our natural deodorant is aluminum-free. We use non-nano zinc oxide, which is pregnancy-safe and effective.

[i] For reviews of scientific literature see Lima et al. 2011 or Becaria et al. 2002

[ii] According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, a subgroup of the Center for Disease Control

Our 9 Favorite Uses for Nine Naturals Simply Natural Lip Balm + Repairing Body Balm

Nine Naturals Lip Balm Body Balm

We’ve been keeping a secret from you that we can finally share! The Nine Naturals team has been using our NEW Simply Natural Lip Balm & Repairing Body Balm for months and we are absolutely in love with these versatile products. We use them for everything.

Here are our 9 favorite uses for the Simply Natural Lip Balm & Repairing Body Balm:

1) Soothe Sunburn: Sometimes even careful sun protection practices can sometimes fail to completely prevent sunburns, especially if you have fair or sensitive skin. The Nine Naturals Repairing Body Balm, made with moisturizing butters and soothing calendula extract, can help heal and protect sun damaged skin.

2) Make Natural Make-Up: Mix a little bit of Simply Natural Lip Balm with your all-natural powder blush or eye shadows to make long lasting cream-versions of your favorite makeup products. Bonus: Depending on the color, these new creams can also double as tinted lip balm!

3) Cure Dry Cuticles: Dry cuticles are a season-less issue for us. We love the stick feature of the Repairing Body Balm to use on our cuticles without making our fingers a greasy mess!

4) Soothe Your Achy Nose During Allergy Season: Are allergies causing you to constantly blow your nose and irritate your skin? Soothe the chapped, irritated skin around your nose by dabbing some Repairing Body Balm to relieve the pain of red, tender skin.

5) Heal Dry, Cracked Heels: You don’t hear many women talking about it even though dry, cracked heels are a common symptom of pregnancy! Mongongo oil, the main ingredient in the Repairing Body Balm, has been used for centuries to help heal and moisturize skin. Apply the balm to your feet morning and night to help protect the skin and restore moisture.

6) Control Flyaways: We love using Nine Naturals Mandarin + Ginger Restorative Conditioner to tame flyaways in the morning. However, if you are battling frizz and static hair when out and about, just rub a little bit of Simply Natural Lip Balm on your palms or finger tips and comb through your hair. It’ll smooth out your tresses immediately!

7) Smooth Brows: Use the Simply Naturals Lip Balm to shape your brows in the morning. No need for a special brow gel with this trick - it saves both money and precious space in your make-up bag.

8) Comfort Skin After Shaving Nicks: Next time you cut yourself shaving, ditch the piece of toilet paper for a clear coat of Repairing Body Balm instead.

9) Ease In To New Shoes: Wearing a fabulous new pair of shoes is fun, but breaking in those new heels can be downright painful. Protect the back of your feet and help prevent blisters by using the Repairing Body Balm to reduce the friction from new shoes when not wearing hose or socks.

Kickstart Conception with New Products from Nine Naturals!

Nine Naturals + PregPrep

Preparing For Pregnancy

As you prepare yourself for pregnancy, you are thinking about everything that you put in and on your body. In fact, 1 of every 4 women who use Nine Naturals is not yet pregnant but preparing for her pregnancy.

Nine Naturals wants to be with you from the beginning, as you prepare your body for fertility and pregnancy.

We want to help you feel beautiful and pampered with the best natural products that are safe for your body and the baby to come.Nine Naturals is thrilled to launch our partnership with PregPrep, a doctor and mom-led company that helps women promote ideal conditions for achieving conception. Their Make-that-Baby Kit offers physician-formulated natural supplements that provide key nutritional support to bolster fertility and promote ideal reproductive health.

Nine Naturals + PregPrep are offering 3 exclusive packages to prepare for pregnancy through body and beauty:

Body Odor Causes and Natural Remedies

It happens to all of us at some point: the unfortunate realization that in this moment we kind of stink. As we dug into the root causes behind body odor, we realized that it’s quite a misunderstood process. Below is some information to demystify body odor and suggestions about how to safely and effectively prevent it.

What causes body odor?

Contrary to popular belief sweat itself isn’t smelly. Body odor is actually driven by bacteria on your skin. These bacteria break down your natural oils causing odors – particularly around the armpits where most of the oils are produced. So while wetness caused by sweating might help bacteria grow, it’s not responsible for the odor. This means the solution isn’t to stop sweating, but rather to find a hygiene routine that works for your body.

Body odor is to some extent genetic – in fact, identical twins will have similar smells even when living apart – but it by no means remains constant throughout a person’s life. Diet can also be a major factor in determining smell. Ingredients like garlic, curry and caffeine, as well as the balance of meat and vegetables a person consumes, have all been linked to changes in body odor.

Body odor and pregnancy

Many pregnant women report an increase in body odor, a heightened sense of smell (which can give the impression of increased body odor), or often both. Science hasn’t come up with an explanation for this, but it‘s quite common and nothing to be ashamed of! There are some theories as to why this occurs, including changes in hormone levels, diet or body temperature, all of which are perfectly natural parts of pregnancy. If you need to change your beauty routine to accommodate new smells though, it’s important to remember to do so safely. Not all odor care products are created equal!

Antiperspirant vs Deodorant

One of the biggest sources of confusion for consumers is whether to buy antiperspirant or deodorant. Put simply, antiperspirant prevents sweating while deodorant addresses smell.

It’s often advised that pregnant women avoid antiperspirant if possible. Antiperspirants contain aluminum compounds, which haven’t been proven safe for developing babies. The cautious route is to opt for a pregnancy safe, all-natural deodorant.

Sweat is our natural method for controlling body temperature. It’s a completely normal process; by choosing the right deodorant, you can embrace sweat as well as odor protection.

A Safe and Natural Solution

A great first step to safely addressing body odor is finding a deodorant that is safe for pregnancy. This means choosing a product that is aluminum-free, phthalate-free, and paraben-free, among other things. Nine Naturals’ pregnancy safe deodorant meets these requirements; it is made with natural, organic ingredients and uses a non-nano zinc oxide formulation to prevent odor.

We specifically selected zinc oxide for its natural qualities and effectiveness in controlling the bacteria that cause odor. It’s also a great ingredient for odor protection because it’s an astringent that tightens the skin and reduces oil secretion. Non-nano zinc oxide sits on the surface of the skin and does not get absorbed into the bloodstream, which makes it both a safe and long lasting choice.

9 Important Sun (and Sunscreen!) Safety Tips From Nine Naturals

Sun Protection

Spring is finally here and summer is just around the corner. It’s time for bright sunshine and the fun outdoors. This means it’s also time to find a good sunscreen to protect ourselves so we can enjoy that sun.

Safe sun protection is especially important for pregnant women. Due to hormonal changes that occur during pregnancy, a woman’s skin becomes extremely sensitive to the sun. Further - many ingredients in sunscreen may be harmful to pregnant women or babies; choosing the right kind of sun protection is critical.

We’ve put together nine tips to help you understand your sunscreen and choose the best one for you and your family:

  1. Select a sunscreen with at least SPF 30. SPF stands for Sun Protection Factor and measures how much of the sun’s UVB radiation - the kind that causes sunburns – is blocked by your sunscreen. The higher the SPF the longer you can stay in the sun.
  2. Prioritize broad-spectrum protection. Though a high SPF value indicates that burn-causing UVB rays are being blocked, it says nothing about your protection from UVA radiation, which is the kind associated with skin cancer and aging. A “broad-spectrum” label in the United States means that at least 90% of harmful UVA rays are blocked, thereby mitigating burning and other risks.
  3. Avoid oxybenzone-based sunscreens. High levels of oxybenzone in the body were associated with low birth weights in a recent study. Oxybenzone can be absorbed through the skin and is present in about 80% of sunscreens on the market so it’s important to keep an eye out for this ingredient.
  4. Opt for zinc-oxide suncreens. Zinc oxide is a physical sun blocker that protects you by coating the surface of your skin and reflecting away light. Unlike chemical sun blockers, these molecules aren’t absorbed through the skin, which makes them a safer choice. Titanium dioxide is another common physical sun blocker, however it doesn’t appear to work nearly as well as zinc oxide.
  5. Beware of nano-particles. Nano particles are so ultrafine that they can enter into your skin. You’ll find nano particles in some newer zinc or titanium sunscreen formulations, particularly sprays. Nano particles are mostly untested and thus it’s very important for pregnant women and all parents to look for “non-nano” particles – like “non-nano zinc oxide.”
  6. Moderate exposure to Vitamin A. While some Vitamin A is essential for a healthy pregnancy you should get enough from your diet and supplements. Excessive Vitamin A is associated with birth defects and it can contribute to skin damage so pregnant women should be cautious. A very common A Vitamin in sunscreen is retinyl palmitate, but watch for the words retinol or retinoic acid on ingredients lists as well in order to minimize exposure. Plus they’re also found in other skin care products such as acne medications, so be on the look out!
  7. Apply rules for other cosmetics to sunscreen. While we’ve covered smart sunscreen shopping above, don’t forget that general cosmetics concerns apply to sunscreen as well. For instance watch out for parabens, phthalates and other such things that you might be trying to more widely avoid.
  8. Apply efficiently & amply. A number of studies have shown that people typically apply only 20-50% of the sunscreen the FDA uses when determining if a product works. This means that most people aren’t getting the protection they need or are counting on! It’s also just as important to reapply every hour or two to maintain that protection.
  9. Commit to brands that create simple, smart and safe products. We love Nine Naturals’ new Natural Sunscreen SPF 32: It’s an all-natural, non-nano zinc oxide sunscreen, which means that you don’t have to worry about chemical sun blockers like oxybenzone or nano particles entering your blood stream. Like all of our products, our pregnancy sunscreen is free from sulfates, parabens, phthalates, petrochemicals, DEA, synthetic fragrances and artificial preservatives. It’s also formulated with luxurious shea butter and jojoba seed oil to help moisturize you skin. Best part of all, our natural sunscreen is safe for the entire family (though you may be reluctant to share!).

Want more information? Read our article on Natural Sun Protection During Pregnancy.

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