09.13.2007 JAYPLAY
health
Being GREEN never felt so GOOD
CREMER
PHOTO BY ANNA FALTERMEIER
Organic health products are becoming more popular, not only because they are better for you, but also because they just make you feel fresh.
By Chris Horn
Isoestaramidopropyl ethyldinium ethosulfate, cocoamphocarboxyglycinate-disodium salt, and sodium isoesteraophropopionate. These compounds could be some multiple choice answers on your next biochemistry test, but they're also a fraction of the 46 ingredients found in Clairol's Herbal Essences shampoo for normal hair. Compare these chemicals to olive oil, beta-carotene and rosemary, all of which are part of the ingredient list in Simply Organic's everyday shampoo.
Juliet Hart, education professor, has extremely dry, sensitive skin. The harsh Kansas winter wreaks havoc on her face and she says she is cautious about what she puts on her skin.
"I practically wear scarves around my head rather than my neck in the winter," Hart says. "I'm afraid to put just anything on my face here, where my skin responds so harshly."
Hart regularly purchases organic food wash at Salon di Marco, 733 Massachusetts
Street. She recognizes a major difference in her complexion and also enjoys the perks that come along with being ecofriendly.
"My skin isn't dry or bloody," she says. "I know there are no harsh chemicals and when it all goes down the drain, I don't have to worry about harming the environment."
PHOTO BY ANNA FALTERMEIER
Becca Evanhoe, health and beauty manager at The Community Cantilever, 901 Iowa Street, is not only the merchandise buyer for the store, but she also buys organic products for her use.
The Merc offers more than 100 organic body-care products ranging from shampoo to deodorant. Evanhoe has an extensive routine she must go through to buy products for the store. She examines a product's ingredients, ethics and its national sales. She associates the increase in organic beauty product sales with the rise in organic food consumption.
Evanhoe says that her personal routine has been made all the better by including organic and all-natural products into her morning and evening regimens.
"More people are realizing that what's put on the skin is as important as what's put into the body," Evanhoe says.
"I've been using organic products for a few years now," she says, "and now conventional products smell and feel strange to me."
Fashion designers and major celebrities, such as Stella McCartney and Alicia Silverstone, have taken notice to the positive effects of organic body care, both physically and financially, and publicized the trend. McCartney is working side-by-side with haute couture fashion house Yves Saint Laurent to launch an exclusively organic skincare line. Silverstone is a propponent of animal rights and environmental awareness and swears by her everyday beauty regimen. Both women boast of the benefits associated with an organic beauty routine.
Elizabeth Much, Silverstone's publicist, notes that Silverstone enjoys her organic products for multiple reasons.
"Alicia uses an Australian organic line called Jurilure," Much says. "They don't test their products on animals and they are good for you."
Michelle Dick, Leavenworth senior, purchases all-natural shampoo and conditioner from Aveda. She says that although organic products tend to be higher in price, she is willing to
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pay more for the positive effects.
"My hair has never been so soft, Dick says." I understand that the organic products are expensive, but I like how
I feel after I take a shower. I'm refreshed and energized and I don't feel like I lather unknown chemicals on my body.
Consumers have started to prioritize beauty and health which is evident in the increasing sales statistics of organic beauty products.
Rolling in the Green
According to the United States Department of Agriculture's National Organic Program, organic products consist of renewable resources, cultivated by certified farmers, and ingredients that improve the conservation of the planet's natural resources and enhance the environment.
The USDA regulates organic products, although beauty/skincare products have far less certification requirements than organic food because they're just
starting to catch attention.
A 2006 study by Klein & Company found that the global market of organic beauty products is valued at $1 billion.
The study also reports a 50 percent growth since 2002 and predicts the industry will double its revenue over the next five years.
The Global New Products Database, an organization affiliated with the market research group Mintel International, predicts that more organically-based products will hit the market in 2007 and that people now look for internal health and external beauty in one package.
source:www.usda.gov,
www.cosmeticdesign.com