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Simply Sarena

Simply Sarena

Home | Toxin Free | Safe Sun(screen) | How to Protect Your Skin WITHOUT Sacrificing Your Health!

Safe Sun(screen) | How to Protect Your Skin WITHOUT Sacrificing Your Health!

Beauty, Toxin Free

***As a disclaimer, I am not a healthcare professional or nutritionist. Healthy living and nutrition are hobbies of mine and this blog is my own personal experience. For more information, please see my blog disclaimer.

Today was the first day this year that really felt like summer in Virginia! It’s 85 and sunny which is perfect to lay out at the pool (if the pool was open…) Pool and Beach season is coming so I thought now is a great time to write about a topic I feel SUPER STRONGLY about…Sunscreen.  

While we are told to wear sunscreen to prevent skin cancer and sun damage, what we aren’t told is how toxic the ingredients in conventional sunscreens really are! Conventional sunscreens (such as Coppertone, Banana Boat, etc.) have ingredients that cause our skin to be MORE SENSITIVE to the sun, they have ingredients that cause other types of cancers, hormone disruptors, skin allergies, and more.

I’m not saying you need to ditch your sunscreen altogether (that would not be a smart idea), but there are much better options out there!

I first started to think there was something fishy with sunscreen about 8 years ago. I’m super pale…like pink pale…so of course, as most of us ghostly white folks do, I slather on the sunscreen very generously. I’d put it on before going outside at the beach and pool, I’d reapply literally every 30-45 minutes, and I’d still end up with a painful, peeling sunburn! It seemed like the more sunscreen I layered on, the more I could feel my skin burning.

I couldn’t just avoid the sun altogether, as that’s totally unrealistic. So I started researching sunscreens and ingredients in sunscreen, on a mission to find the best sunscreen out there! What I learned made so much sense as to why I was burning so badly! I learned that some chemicals in sunscreen make your skin MORE sensitive to the sun, some of them are even linked to the development of melanoma! What the heck?!!

After learning this information, I trashed all my junky, toxic sunscreen and I switched to a completely toxin free sunscreen! I haven’t had a terrible burn since! (Other than the time I didn’t realize I’d be outside for so long and didn’t put any on…but that was my own fault…)

I’ve listed a few ingredients you should ALWAYS avoid! This is in no way all of the ingredients to avoid…it’s just a starting point! (Also, in my Facebook Group, I have a list of brands to avoid and why, so definitely join my Facebook Group if you’re interested in that!)

Okay, on to the Toxic Ingredients…

Oxybenzone: Oxybenzone is a hormone disruptor that mimics estrogen, it causes cancer, it’s associated with altered birth weight in infants, it’s found in mothers’ milk, and it causes reproductive toxicity! A study done by the FDA (yes this chemical is so concerning that even the FDA is worried about it), shows that when sunscreen with oxybenzone is used as directed, people accumulate 180 times the “safe” amount of it in their bloodstream and this chemical can be found in your bloodstream 3 weeks after use! (Source) This chemical is also damaging to coral reefs. Hawaii is in the process of banning this chemical in sunscreen due to the coral reef damage it causes.

Avobenzone: On its own, avobenzone isn’t terrible however, it’s only good to protect your skin for 30 minutes max, so it’s always combined with Homosalate, Octisalate, and Octocrylene which are stabilizers, to make Avobenzone last longer in the sun.  And Homosalate and Octocrylene especially have their own risks.

Homosalate: This chemical is also a hormone disruptor. It accumulates in our bloodstream faster than our bodies can filter it out. Homosalate also causes our bodies to absorb more pesticides…not good! Homosalate mimics estrogen and can cause breast cancer cells to grow faster! (Source)

Octocrylene: Octocrylene is restricted in cosmetics in other countries. When exposed to sunlight, it produces free radicals which lead to cell death. That pretty much defeats the purpose of sunscreen doesn’t it? Sunscreen is supposed to protect our skin from damage, but Octocrylene actually causes MORE damage!

Titanium Dioxide (in spray sunscreens, not lotions): In cream sunscreens, Titanium Dioxide is on the safer side of SPF ingredients however, in spray sunscreen, it’s toxic! Inhaling particles of Titanium Dioxide is cancerous. If you use sunscreen with Titanium Dioxide, stick to a cream…not a spray!

Retinyl Palimate: Retinyl Palimate is used in sunscreen for its anti-aging benefits however, when this chemical is exposed to the sun, it causes DNA damage, excess skin growth, and it may speed the growth of cancerous tumors! Not only that, but since this chemical gets absorbed into the bloodstream (just like the vast majority of all chemicals we put on our body), using products with Retinyl Palimate (or other forms of Vitamin A), contributes to Vitamin A toxicity. Vitamin A toxicity can cause hair loss, brittle nails, osteoporosis, and liver damage. (Source) (Thank goodness a lot of companies are phasing out this ingredient in sunscreens however, always check the ingredient label!)

Now that we know what to avoid in sunscreens, let me give you a few sunscreen options to use instead! I wanted to list products that are easy to find in stores. All of these brands, I have seen at my local Wegmans or Whole Foods.

***We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and other affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and other affiliated sites. Please see this blog’s Disclosure for more information.

Badger: Badger is my go-to sunscreen! I’ve tried just about all the sunscreens Badger makes and they all work so well!! I’ve never burned with this brand and I don’t have to apply it as often either. It’s not made with Nano Particles so you don’t have to worry about the Zinc Oxide (SPF) getting into your bloodstream. Each sunscreen from Badger has about 7 ingredients or less and they’re skin nourishing ingredients like sunflower oil and sea buckthorn extract! Also, a little goes a long way with this one, so you don’t have to use a ton of it. Badger is definitely my #1 choice!

Earth Mama: Earth Mama Sunscreen is made with Zinc Oxide as well. It also has a lot of skin nourishing ingredients such as coconut oil, shea butter, aloe, olive oil, and jojoba oil! All ingredients in this sunscreen are completely safe!

KISS My Face Organics: (The Organics lotion not the spray. Also, the ingredients in the normal KISS My Face sunscreen are okay, but the Organics ingredients are a little better!) KISS My Face uses Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide for SPF and the minerals are not Nano Particles either! Since it’s a lotion, Titanium Dioxide is safe. They also use skin nourishing ingredients like sunflower oil and green tea extract. Again, all ingredients in the organic version are safe!

By switching to safe sunscreen, you no longer have to sacrifice your overall health for the health of your skin and it’s better for the ecosystem too! Don’t be scared of the lower SPF in some Toxin Free sunscreens because it really does work better than the higher SPF versions of the toxic junk!

This last tip isn’t sunscreen related however, you can also help protect your skin from the inside out by eating foods high in antioxidants! I’ll probably do a post on that in my Facebook Group in the future!

May 15, 2020 · Leave a Comment

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HI EVERYONE!

I’m Sarena


I’m a Northern Virginia based Integrative Nutrition Coach, a Toxin Free Lifestyle enthusiast, a dancer, and a dog mom to my sweet girl, Miss Cammie.

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simply.sarena

So many women suffer every month from debilitating So many women suffer every month from debilitating period cramps. The conventional way of treating them actually makes the problem worse!

❌Birth Control covers up the symptoms because you don’t get a real period. Meanwhile, whatever is causing the cramps in the first place is still going on in the body and probably getting worse! Birth Control does not treat cramps…it only hides the problem!

❌Ibuprofen may help in a pinch but it doesn’t treat what is actually causing the cramps in the first place. Also, ibuprofen is really bad for gut health (and poor gut health could also be a cause of cramps) so you could be making the problem worse!

❌A lot of women turn to junk food on their period however, junk food is inflammatory so if your cramps are caused by inflammation, you could be making the problem worse! If you’re craving chocolate, you probably need magnesium, so if you’re going to eat it, eat good quality DARK chocolate! 

The biggest favor you can do yourself is listen to your body and figure out what is causing the issues in the first place! The answer is different for everyone and there is no one size fits all solution!

Feel free to DM me if you need any support! 

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#womenshealth #periodcramps #periodcrampsrelief #nontoxicliving #lowtoxlife #lowtoxliving #hormonehealth #hormonehealthcoach #womenshormones #hormonal #hormonalimbalance #hormonalimbalances #nutritionforhormones #nutritioncoach #healthandnutrition #holistichealth #holistichealthtips #periodtips #periodproblems #periodpositive #periodpain
Sugar gets such a bad reputation, but not all suga Sugar gets such a bad reputation, but not all sugar is bad!!!

Natural sugar is necessary because it gives us energy! You can find natural sugar in fruits, vegetables, and sweeteners like raw honey, pure maple syrup, dates, coconut sugar, and more.

Watch out for sneaky sugars in processed food as they cause blood sugar spikes which gives us that instant energy but we crash. It also causes type 2 diabetes and insulin issues. 

When you’re reading the ingredient label on food, watch out for different (not so obvious) names for sugar. 

Just because something says 12g of sugar doesn’t mean that 12g is bad sugar…which is why you always need to check the ingredient label for the source of the sugar!

Also, people think Stevia is healthier which isn’t necessarily the case. Stevia is highly processed and should only be consumed occasionally unless you’re consuming stevia in its purest form! 

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#addedsugar #naturalsugar #stevia #holistichealth #holisticnutrition #sneakysugar #ingredientlabels #ingredientsmatter #lowtoxlifestyle #lowtoxdiet #sugarfree #sugarfreediet #sugarfreelifestyle #nontoxicliving #healthyeatinghabits #healthyeatingtips #sugartips #nutritioncoaching #nutritionfacts #nutritiontip
Birth Control does NOT cure a hormone imbalance!!! Birth Control does NOT cure a hormone imbalance!!! Birth Control hides the symptoms of a hormone imbalance, meanwhile the problem is getting worse.

A lot of women struggle with severe symptoms when they come off birth control because they never addressed the underlying cause of their hormone imbalance.

If you are struggling with hormonal acne, period cramps, severe PMS, mood swings, etc. and you think birth control is going to fix the problem, it will not!

There are a lot of factors that can cause a hormone imbalance from our diet, to hormone disrupting chemicals in our daily products, to external factors like stress, lack of sleep, etc. that can throw our hormones out of whack!

If you need support with your hormones, feel free to DM me!

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#hormonehealth #hormonehealthcoach #lowtoxlife #lowtoxlifestyle #crunchyblogger #holistichealthcoach #holistichealthandwellness #womenshealth #womenshealthmatters #womenshealthtips #womenshormonehealth #birthcontrolproblems #birthcontrolpills #birthcontrol #holistichealthcoaching #naturallivingideas #naturallifestyle #naturallivingtips #healthtipsforwomen #pcoslifestyle #hormoneimbalance #hormoneimbalances
Our bodies and hormones are so complex! If you’r Our bodies and hormones are so complex! If you’re eating right, limiting toxin exposure, and still can’t seem to get your hormones under control, it could be a different lifestyle factor coming into play!

We are not men, we do not have the same 24 hour hormone cycle that men have.

We have different needs for different times during the month! Being in tune with your body and doing what it needs at that time is so important!

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#hormonehealth #womenshealth #womenshormones #holistichealthandwellness #lowtoxlifestyle #toxinfreeliving #healthandwellnesscoach #healthandwellnesstips #birthcontrolproblems #birthcontrol #regulatehormonesnaturally #hormoneimbalance #womenslifestyle
These are foods that have been marketed to be heal These are foods that have been marketed to be healthy, but they’re not. There’s so many other actually healthy foods you could eat that are much more satisfying than these. Keep reading for why these aren’t the best options!

❌Whole Wheat Bread: This one comes down to the ingredients. One popular whole wheat bread contains Soybean Oil, Soy Lecithin, and Natural Flavors. Also because I have a gluten sensitivity, eating slices of any bread is a no for me!

❌Cereal: So many cereal’s are full of sugar and synthetic vitamins which are not properly absorbed by our bodies, not to mention artificial colors and flavors. Also, a lot of cereal has extremely high levels of glyphosate! Not a great way to start your day.

❌Flavored Yogurt: Any yogurt except plain yogurt has a lot of sugar. You’ll also find natural flavors and gums in some popular brands. Natural flavors is an easy way for companies to not disclose all ingredients and gums can cause digestive issues. In my opinion, you may as well have a bowl of ice cream and enjoy it than try to be “healthy” with flavored yogurt.

❌Farmed Salmon: You may think you’re making a healthy choice by choosing salmon however, farmed salmon should be avoided as it is basically big agricultures version of salmon. It is bred in crammed cages, fed an unnatural diet of fish meal & animal by products, and they are full of pesticides and antibiotics 🤢

❌Granola Bars: Granola bars are full of a lot of sugar including corn syrup. You may also find soybean oil or canola oil which are inflammatory, and natural flavors. You’re better off baking some cookies and knowing exactly what you’re putting in the cookies. 

Did any of these surprise you?? Let me know in the comments! 

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#healthyeatinghabits #unhealthyfood #lowtox #lowtoxlife #crunchygirl #holisticnutritioncoach #iinhealthcoach #iinalumni #iingrad #toxinfreeliving #nutritiontips #nutritionfacts #eathealthybehealthy #healthychoices #foodismedicine #dontbefooled #biggovsucks #biggovermentsucks #healyourselfnaturally #healyourselfwithfood
I’ve had so many women reach out to me lately ab I’ve had so many women reach out to me lately about wanting to get off birth control, but they’re scared how it will effect their body.

The truth is, if you got on birth control for bad period cramps, hormonal acne, irregular periods, etc., birth control was covering up the problem…not fixing it!

When you go off birth control, you’ll probably find you’ll have the same problems of not worse.

That’s why balancing your hormones is so important when coming off birth control!

These 3 tips are a great place to start! There are so many different things you can do to get your hormones in check. 

Follow for more holistic health & nutrition tips!

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#postbirthcontrolsyndrome #getoffbirthcontrol #hormonehealth #hormonehealthcoach #saynotobirthcontrol #womenshealthcoach #womenshealthmatters #womenshealthtips #womenshealthandwellness #womenshealthadvocate
✨Make sure you save this recipe for later!✨ T ✨Make sure you save this recipe for later!✨

These are the BEST healthy peanut butter chocolate chip cookies 🍪 

Recipe: 

1 egg
1 cup of peanut butter
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1/2 tsp aluminum free baking powder
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips (make sure you check the ingredient label and only use clean chocolate chips!)

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 8-10 minutes!

Let me know if you give these a try! 

#healthydessertrecipes #glutenfreecookies #refinedsugarfree #bakingreel #holisticnutrition #hormonefriendly #womenshealth #womenshormones
It’s still January for a few more days! Last y It’s still January for a few more days! 

Last year, I did a lot that wasn’t working for me. I got so stuck in my routines, I was saying “yes” to everything, even if I didn’t want to, because I didn’t want to offend anyone.

This year, I’m only doing things that light me up and that are in alignment with my goals 💕✨

Health isn’t just about what we eat and the products we use, it’s also about how everything else in our life makes us feel and effects our physical health.

At the end of 2022, I realized I needed to make a change when I was starting to get headaches almost daily again. I had also spent soooo much money it makes me sick thinking about it.

No more! I’m putting myself and my goals first this year! 

#newyearnewme #2023goals #freshstart #holistichealth #holisticwellnesscoach
I ALWAYS have these 5 tea’s on hand 🍵 Green I ALWAYS have these 5 tea’s on hand 🍵

Green Tea: Contains caffeine so it gives me energy. Green Tea is also high in antioxidants!

Echinacea Tea: Has immune supporting properties. It’s even known to shorten symptoms of colds and the flu!

Dandelion Tea: This tea is a powerful liver detox! It also has anti-inflammatory properties.

Raspberry Leaf Tea: This tea is great for a woman’s cycle. It’s high in magnesium and vitamin B6 so it helps relieve PMS symptoms and helps regulate hormones.

Chaga Tea: Chaga is the king of medicinal mushrooms. It’s full of antioxidants and has anti-inflammatory properties. It helps regulate blood sugar and blood pressure, it boosts the immune system, and it may even slow the growth of c**cer cells. Literally the KING! 

My favorite brands of tea are @yogitea, @tradmedicinals, and @numiorganictea. These brands have organic teas and their tea bags are plastic free!
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