A friend of mine recently sent me a picture of the inside of her bathroom cabinet. She had read that I was working with Neal’s Yard and wanted to show me all the products that she currently used.
First of all, I need this friend to come round and sort out my bathroom cabinet, never have I seen something more organised or beautifully arranged! It was pretty much all Neal’s Yard including the coconut oil, the carrier oils, essential oils, deodorant, face wash etc. I was impressed with her dedication to organic natural products until I spied the bottle of Coco Chanel in the corner. This got me thinking, what is in the perfume that we wear day to day? I already wear Neal’s Yard Eau de parfum but that’s because my husband gave it to me for Christmas one year and I love it. I mean when choosing perfume in the past, the only consideration I have ever given is whether or not I like the smell.
So, I do a bit of research into the contents of a typical bottle of perfume and the results were clear, whilst most perfumes might contain trace amounts of natural essences, the majority of the ingredients are potentially hazardous synthetic chemicals which cause hormone disruption, reproductive problems and even cancer. And I’m sorry to say for all those Coco Chanel wearers out there that this ranks as second in terms of the amount of chemical ingredients that it contains.
There is masses of information on this subject, including how unregulated it all is. One of the sites I found to be interesting was Mercola
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/11/27/toxic-perfume-chemicals.aspx
The information on there will make you think twice before reaching for your favourite bottle of scent and spritzing it straight onto the delicate skin of your neck and wrists. So where does that leave you? Well you could try going natural, some men even prefer it (or so I’m told!), or, you could get a carrier oil and mix your own blend of essential oils to smooth on your skin, hence creating a scent that is unique to you. Or you could try my favourite, Pure Essence Eau de Parfum No.1 Frankincense which is all natural and will get you many admiring comments. It has aromatherapy benefits but my favourite thing about it is the scent which is distinctive and simply gorgeous. My only gripe is that I often have to spray again during the day (although I wonder if sometimes I might have got used to the smell and may be overpowering those around me). There is also a Rose Perfume at Neal’s Yard but I have never smelt t his one.
Organic Health & Beauty 