I’ve always been aware of the harmful effects of plastic, however, the incident in East Palestine made me even more determined to stop using so much plastic.
One area we use so many single use plastics is in the bathroom. Our body wash, shampoo, conditioner, facewash, disposable razors, toothpaste, etc. are all packaged in PLASTIC.
Beyond the plastic, most of these products contain many toxic chemicals in their formulations. In this post, I’m going to focus on body wash since everyone uses body wash.
In this post, I’ll cover…
- Sustainable, zero waste body wash options.
- Why I’m Not A Fan Of Refillable Pouches
- Toxic chemicals commonly found in body wash.
- My favorite sustainable body wash.
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Sustainable, zero waste body wash options
Bar soaps wrapped in paper are great zero waste body wash options! Even better, bar soaps not wrapped in anything are truly zero waste. A few good zero waste bar soap body wash options are…
These options are all toxin free too!
Why I’m Not A Fan Of Refillable Pouches
I’ve seen quite a few companies advertise refillable pouches for “reduced plastic”. These pouches are still made of plastic! This is definitely a better option than buying a new bottle of body wash every time however, bar body washes are actually zero waste! They do not contain ANY plastic, so I would stick to those if possible.
Toxic chemicals commonly found in body wash
Clearly, I will not advertise or recommend products that contain toxic chemicals here, but because there are still quite a few plastic free body washes that contain toxic chemicals, I thought I’d list some chemicals to watch out for. Just because something is “vegan” or “eco-friendly” does NOT mean it is low tox or toxin free. Also, just because a body wash is zero waste does not mean they don’t use toxic chemicals. ALWAYS READ INGREDIENT LABELS!
Some common toxic ingredients in body wash are…
- Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate: Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is SOAP. It’s extremely drying, pore clogging, and not a great ingredient to put on your skin. Sodium Laureth Sulfate is an ethoxylated ingredient which means it contains 1,4 Dioxane due to the ethoxylation process. 1,4 Dioxane is “likely to be carcinogenic to humans.”
- Propylene Glycol: Propylene Glycol is a skin irritant and I’ve seen it on MANY body wash ingredient labels.
- PEG’s/Polyethylene Glycol: Again, these contain 1,4 Dioxane due to the ethoxylation process as well.
- Phenoxyethanol: Created with highly corrosive phenol and cancerous ethylene oxide. It’s in SO MANY personal care and cosmetic products (even ones that claim to be “natural” or “toxin free”).
- Fragrance: A mixture of undisclosed chemicals that can cause anything such as skin irritation, allergies, asthma, hormone disruption, and cancer. AVOID!
My favorite sustainable, zero waste body wash
Really, I have 2 favorites and for different reasons. My favorites are Zum Bar and Crunchi’s Charcoal Body Bar.
Cost-wise, Crunchi’s Charcoal Body Bar is $22 and it lasts me 6-8 months so it’s super cost effective! It also smells really good and makes my skin feel great. It doesn’t dry out my skin at all.
I love Zum Bar because of its convenience. Like the Body Bar, it smells amazing (I love the Almond scent) and it makes my skin feel so good. I love that I can get it at Wegmans. Sometimes I wait until I run out to re-purchase and when that happens, I don’t have time to wait for shipping.
Has this post encouraged you to make the switch to zero waste, toxin free body wash? Let me know which kind you’re excited to try!
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