(It’s Natural Health Weekend!)
WHAT IS MINERAL OIL?
Mineral oil is a colorless, odorless petrochemical derived from crude oil (yep, the same crude oil used to produce gasoline). It’s cheap and widely available. Mineral oil serves as an over-the-counter laxative when ingested, and is widely found in lotions and other cosmetics for external use on the skin. Other names for mineral oil include petrolatum, petroleum jelly (Vaseline), liquid parrafin, light liquid parrafin, propylene glycol and baby oil.
WHAT’S THE PROBLEM WITH MINERAL OIL?
Mineral oil causes elevated estrogen levels in our bodies (aka, estrogen dominance or hormonal imbalance). It acts as a xenoestrogen, a potent “estrogen mimic”, which also affects the fetus of pregnant women and nursing mothers. Xenoestrogens are administered directly to babies through the use of petroleum jelly and baby oil. Mineral oil products also lead to estrogen dominance in men, low sperm count, low sex drive, testicular and prostate cancers.
[Note: Xenoestrogens are also released from plastic food containers during microwaving, leached from plastic water containers, and found in birth control pills.]
Daily use of products containing mineral oil is linked to the early onset of puberty, various cancers (including breast cancer), thyroid disease, blood sugar issues, weight gain, irregular menstruation and depression, to name a few.
Although women undoubtedly face some level of hormonal issues with age, I have a personal theory that prolonged use of mineral oil products and long-term exposure to xenoestrogens over a period of many years exacerbates hormonal symptoms in older women.
PRODUCTS THAT CONTAIN MINERAL OIL
Don’t just look for “mineral oil” on the label. Get familiar with the other names for mineral oil. This toxic ingredient is widely found in lotions and creams, skin cleansers, cold cream (make up remover), perfumes, shampoos, mascara, lipsticks, foundations and other cosmetics.
Negative effects of mineral oil in skin care.
HEALTHY, SAFE ALTERNATIVES TO HYDRATE YOUR SKIN
I’m still in the process of 100% ridding my home of mineral-based products. I recently bid farewell to Vaseline and said good-bye to my formerly beloved Lubriderm body lotion. Both are xenoestrogen offenders.
Since I already keep Raw African Shea Butter and Jojoba Oil on hand to condition my hair naturally, I began to use these products on my skin. Their moisturizing effectiveness blows conventional lotions out the water and I have peace of mind that my whole family is using products that keep them safe from exposure to toxic ingredients.
Raw African Shea Butter: Shea butter has been in use for centuries. It’s most often extracted by hand, coming from the nuts of the Shea (Karité) Tree found in West Africa. The use of Shea butter in conventional products is on the rise, but those products are highly processed, stripping Shea of its natural healing properties. These mainstream products may also contain mineral oil. It’s recommended that Shea only be used in its pure, raw form (dense and yellow in color).
Shea Butter Uses/Treatments:
- contains Vitamin F for skin moisturizing & chapped, dry lips
- treats eczema and burns
- aids dark spots, stretch marks and scars
- helps restore skin elasticity
- deep hair conditioner
- natural sunscreen
- Vitamins A & E for skin balance & normalization
- provides collagen for anti-aging benefits
- pain reliever for swelling and arthritis
- massage aid for muscles and stiffness
- diaper rash treatment
- Shea Butter Full Profile
Pure, raw Shea butter is extremely thick, yet does not clog pores. It contains the fatty acids Oleic, Palmitic, Linoleic and Stearic. It will appear to be a yellow, hardened block, yet quickly melts in your hands as you rub it into your body. Shea on the lips provides superior moisturizing results compared to petroleum jelly, Chapstick, or other conventional products designed to hydrate the lips and protect from the elements. Shea is also a superb hair conditioner for all women, and is a top notch daily hair moisturizer for women of color (I use it almost everyday!).
Raw African Shea Butter is very affordable and a little goes along way. I sometime use Shea together with a few drops of Pure Jojoba Oil
A “CALL TO ACTION” TO PROTECT YOUR HEALTH
1. Get familiar with the myriad of names for mineral oil.
2. Examine the labels on all of your beauty products to identify the offenders.
3. Get rid of any products containing mineral oil. You just gotta!
4. Explore Shea Butter as a multi-purpose, natural alternative and research other organic cosmetics.
5. Share this mineral oil alert with your loved ones.
6. Give yourself a pat on the back for an anti-mineral oil job well done.
One free bitch slap is available upon request to anyone who ignores this critical call to action.
Oooh, I am on this. I need to check a few things but thankfully my Tarte cosmetics say they have no mineral oils.
Barbara recently posted..I Will Call Him Count Trackula
Since i don’t wear make up, and use coconut oil for moisturizing when i need it, and only pure soaps, there shouldn’t be much of this around here, but i will look. Also, i will look into mixing coconut oil with the shea butter for the dryer parts of my skin.
Thanks for this great info and reminder. I always try to use natural products but sometimes get lazy (yes, I know, hard to believe) but want to be a bit more diligent especially when it comes to my girls (ages eight and two).
Adrienne recently posted..Focus, people. FOCUS.
Oh, and I forgot to add. Thank you for the permission to give a bitch slap. I am more than happy to do so and then will just present the pass you have provided. You are making the world a better place in so many ways
Adrienne recently posted..Focus, people. FOCUS.
Twitter: YumYucky
says:
yes ma’am. If necessary, my slapping hands can stretch all da ways to Boston.
Yum Yucky recently posted..Natural Cures & Home Remedies For Cold Sores And Fever Blisters (HSV1)
i just started using argan oil. it’s expensive but you use literally just a drop or two. it straightens out my hair, which i’m not sure if i like or don’t like…
merri recently posted..Chalking My Hair
Thats exactly why we started using doTERRA beauty products and coconut oil to take off makeup. Healthy safe and natural. How you been liking my samples?
Lawd!!! I had no idea! And we put Vaseline on babies ALLA time. I have used it on my girl’s lips occasionally. Thanks for the report!
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana recently posted..Weightlifting Ideas to Pump Excitement into Your Recovery Week
Do you have the links to the studies that show the consequences of daily use? I’d be interested in reading them.
Must have missed this one. Excellent.
Emergefit recently posted..Misguided Intentions…
Hi Josie,
This is great information. I mostly use natural products, though. I love using black soap, shea butter and coconut oil, oh yeah and jojoba too.
Thanks for the info!
Evelyn recently posted..Foods To Avoid When Eating an Alkaline Diet
this was very informative; i’ve noticed that the growth of my women whiskers have slowed down, but i wasnt sure why. i’ll have to watch the vaseline intake – actually get rid of it. but i just got a lovely body butter for christmas and the main ingredient is mineral oil…what to do?!!!
have a wonderful new year…glad i found your funny and inspirational blog.
nylse recently posted..This is 46
Twitter: YumYucky
says:
nylse, thanks so much for your visits to my blog this year. Always glad to see you here! As for the body butter, it sounds amazing, but ((sigh)) if it were me, I’d have to chuck it. Ain’t that terrible???
Twitter: mjgrice
says:
Thank you for posting this! I have been aware of the horrible effect of mineral oil for some time now. I am super conscience of what I put on my kids’ skin and always watch on the ingredients for mineral oil as well as other toxins that the FDA doesn’t bother to regulate.