Then she went to the Philippines on a church mission and went through a life-changing experience. Today Todra is a hardworking advocate for non-toxic cosmetics and the small brands that make them. You can find great recommendations on her website, HealthyBeautySocial.com. We spoke with Todra to find out just what changed her mind about beauty products, and what she feels is important for women’s health today.

Changed by a Child

“I’m not a kid person,” Todra says, “but when I went on a mission to the Philippines with my church, I ended up working at the orphanage.” She laughs and says she tried to fix the mix-up, but there was nothing for it. The orphanage was to be her place of work for the 2-3 weeks she was there.

“I realized really quickly that these children were different,” she says. “I had brought some crackers with me from the airport, and this little girl just kept staring at me, so I gave them to her. Her face lit up and she was like, ‘Are you sure, ma’am?’ I told her of course, to enjoy them, so she got ready to eat them and it was like someone stopped the record. All the children in the courtyard turned and stared at her, like, ‘Look what she’s got!’ I mean, these kids eat rice and bananas every day. The little girl looked around at all their faces, and then she took that small package of crackers—they were like Nutter Butters or something—and broke them all into little pieces and held her hand out so all the other kids could have a taste. I was crying!”

That was just one of the many moving moments Todra experienced on her mission, and when she came back to the United States, she wasn’t the same person anymore. “I was miserable,” she said. “I started thinking about all the people that were really poor and going through so much, and I felt my life was really extravagant, frivolous and silly.”

A Spiritual Journey

Looking for something spiritual and grounding, Todra turned to yoga, and found that her practice gradually broadened her desire for a cleaner, healthier life. “I realized I was consumed with so many things that have very little relevance,” she says. “Bit by bit changes started happening.” Todra took the junk food and sweets out of her diet and started feeling more energy and vitality. “What other natural things can I do?” she asked herself. “What other things are more in line with who I’m becoming?”

Natural Works Just as Well

As a makeup artist, Todra often receives free products from various brands to try in her profession. “Someone sent me a mineral makeup,” she says, “and I remember thinking, ‘What’s the difference?’” Her thoughts turned to the thousands of dollars worth of makeup she had in her professional kits. What was in them? Slowly, she began to separate herself from the flashy marketing, the celebrity glitz, and the design of the products, and began to read the ingredient lists.

“At first I had no idea what I was reading,” she says, but over time she began to research each chemical, even calling cosmetic representatives and researchers. Her blog, which she originally used to update people on her makeup projects, soon became a place to tell readers about safer alternatives. “I found small companies making amazing products, but they were not featured in major magazines like Vogue. I tried them, and realized these were good products—they just weren’t as well known.”

A Better Alternative

Todra became friends with the representatives from the natural cosmetic brands, and soon it was inevitable that she would end up helping them get the word out. Her website, HealthyBeautySocial.com, does just that, providing a forum where women can talk to women—and direct to the manufacturers—about safer alternatives.

Todra and her team screen the brands before allowing them to create pages on the site. Once the brands have established their presence, site visitors may ask questions about products and ingredients, and sometimes even make requests for customized items.

“We wanted the members of Healthy Beauty Social to be able to talk directly to these brand owners,” Todra says. “I love it because I see the heart these manufacturers put into their products,” she says, “and I like their products!”

As for her own journey, Todra says there’s no looking back. Today she continues to be careful what she eats, to use beauty products “without junk” inside them, and to work toward a satisfying exercise program. “I really notice a difference in how I feel,” she says, “and I love it when I tell someone my age and they go, ‘No! Really?’ I think a big part of that is just taking care of myself.”

If you’d like more information on Todra’s recommended products, see her website HealthyBeautySocial.com.

Rashes and other skin conditions can be devastating to your confidence. I remember when my father went through chemotherapy and broke out in an acne-like rash all over his face. He seriously didn’t want to leave the house. It broke my heart, as isolating oneself from people doesn’t do any good, especially if you’re fighting an illness like cancer. I remember applying some concealer on his face and how that profoundly changed how he felt about his appearance. If you’ve got a rash causing you embarrassment, try some of my makeup tips to camouflage it so you can feel more like yourself again.

1. Clean & moisturize. First you need to prepare your skin. Gently clean skin in lukewarm water with a safe product (free of toxic ingredients), then pat dry and apply a hydrating but light moisturizer that will help your skin heal as you go about your day. Consider soothing ingredients like aloe, calendula, oat extract and licorice root to relieve itchiness so you won’t be tempted to rub and touch your makeup later in the day. Be sure to clean gently so you don’t further aggravate your rash, and no rubbing!

2. Make sure you don’t forget sunscreen. While your skin is trying to heal from a rash, sun exposure can be especially damaging. Make sure to apply your safe sunscreen before your makeup. Even if your foundation has SPF, it’s usually not enough. Look for formulas that are oil-free, chemical-free, and non-comedogenic.

3. Use light and hypoallergenic makeup. Sometimes your makeup may be the cause of your rash—or at the very least, it may make it worse. Make sure your makeup is non-comedogenic (free of clogging ingredients like mineral oil), fragrance-free, and is made without toxic ingredients (use my Ingredients to Avoid list). Make sure it feels light and comfortable on your face (not like a mask). It’s up to you whether you choose liquid formulas or powder ones. However, liquids will be more hydrating. Also consider whether or not it can be easily removed, as you don’t want to have to rub and pull at your irritated skin just to get it clean.

Step 1: Start with concealer. Choose a color that matches your skin tone (or a little lighter—don’t go darker), then apply with a small concealer brush over red and raised areas or over broken capillaries. For areas that are really red, you may want to try a green concealer, as it will help neutralize the redness. Test the color by applying some to the red areas and see if it helps them disappear. Use concealer only on the areas you want to cover—using too much can make your skin look cakey, which will make the rash more obvious. If you have acne-like pustules, a yellow-based concealer is best, applied from the center out and blended will at the edges.

Step 2: Choose foundation based on coverage you need. If you have just a mild rash, a light foundation may be enough, but if yours is more severe, feel free to experiment with cream foundations that provide more coverage. Match your natural skin tone as closely as possible, and use a brush or sponge rather than your fingers to avoid adding oil or bacteria to your already sensitive skin. Many rosacea sufferers love mineral powder foundations because they’re oil-free and feel less irritating to skin rashes.

Step 3: Skip the blush. Your skin is already red, so most likely you don’t need blush. If you do want a little color on your cheeks, use a sheer color.

Step 4: Dab of powder. Using a loose face powder lightly over the red areas can help to further camouflage them. Just be careful not to use too much so it doesn’t look cakey and dry.

Step 5: Less is more. Keep your eye makeup light so that you don’t look over done. Also, choose a neutral lip color. A bright red lipstick can bring attention to the redness of your skin. Choose instead a softer, neutral color or light gloss.

Have you had to camouflage a rash? Let us know if you have any tips.

Photo courtesy Brixton Street via Flickr.com.

Spring is near and I can feel it in the air! With the few warmer days we’ve had, my mind has turned toward spring cleaning, but not just in my house. This time of year, I like to do a body cleanse as well as a “skincare/makeup” cleanse by clearing out my bathroom drawers. It’s a great time to start the season with clean and fresh formulas. If you want to join me, consider getting rid of not only your old, expired products, but also those full of toxic ingredients.

I got my start using cleaner, safer formulas by making small changes, one product at a time. By gradually replacing your toxic brands with safer products, you’ll contribute to your own well being and peace of mind. Always read labels when shopping for your new products, avoid these ingredients, and try these few simple steps:

• Choose lipsticks without lead: Tests by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics found that 61% of name-brand lipsticks contain detectable levels of lead. Check out their cosmetics databse website for brands without lead. Make sure you always protect with a sunscreen underneath. EXPIRATION: Throw out anything over 6 months old. LOVING: Pure Moist Lip Colors by Jane Iredale.
• Choose mercury-free mascara: In mascaras and other personal-care products, mercury comes from an ingredient called “thimerosal.” Look for that or for “mercuric” on the label. EXPIRATION: Throw out anything over 3 months old. LOVING: Volume Mascara By Dr.Hauschka.
• Be cautious with micronized mineral makeup: Tiny particles called nanoparticles and micronized particles make makeup look smooth and flawless, but they can also be a health risk, especially for those with allergies and asthma. Reduce the chances of particles floating about in the air by working the powder into the brush, or wetting it down to reduce airborn particles. EXPIRATION: Throw out anything over 6 months old. LOVING: Korres Wild Rose Mineral Powder Foundation.
• Read labels on foundations and concealers: Read the ingredient list, and avoid things like parabens, talc, and mineral oil. Choose natural formulas that actually contain good ingredients for your skin. EXPIRATION: Throw out liquids over 3 months old, and powders over one year old. If the product changes color or texture, toss it. LOVING: RMS “Un-Cover up” Concealer.
• Avoid chemical sunscreens: We know that UV rays can contribute to skin cancer, wrinkles, and premature aging. Manufacturers have capitalized on our concerns by producing products full of sunscreens, from moisturizers to foundations to blushes. Unfortunately, many of these are made with potentially harmful chemicals like oxybenzone, PABA, and cinoxate. Choose instead safer options like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, then use sunscreen-free or safe-sunscreen makeup products. EXPIRATION: Check for an expiration date on the package. If there isn’t one, discard anything that’s over 3 years old. LOVING: TecNiche Therapies DNA Protect Natural SPF 30.
• Go for safer nail products: Avoid nail products with toluene, dibutyl phthalate (DBP), and formaldehyde, all linked with health effects. EXPIRATION: Throw it out if the container is damaged or if the polish had started to separate or turn colors. LOVING: Non-Toxic Nail Polishes by Priti and Aquarella.

How do you spring clean your skin care? Please share any tips you may have!

Photo courtesy J-Sol via Flickr.com.

We want to go a step further and ask you to take an overall look at the chemicals in your daughters’ worlds. The idea that chemicals in the environment and in the products we use can disrupt hormones and cause health problems is now an accepted fact. The question now is how much exposure translates to increased risk?

Until we know the answers, it’s wise to do everything we can to lower the amount of chemicals in our lives, to safeguard our health and the health of our children, who are at a higher risk because of their developing bodies. According to the EcoWaste Coalition, which earlier this year released the report “Girl, Disrupted: Hormone Disruptors and Women’s Reproductive Health,” manmade, hormone-like chemicals in the environment harm women’s reproductive systems, particularly when exposure occurs during prenatal and early-life development.

“I continue to be surprised by the number of doctors that come up to me at conferences and comment on what they are seeing in their patients that they have never seen before,” said Dr. Tracey Woodruff, Director of the Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment at the University of California. “Girls entering puberty at extremely young ages, young women suffering from the inability to get pregnant and conditions normally associated with older ages such as very painful fibroids, endometriosis and breast cancer.”

Hormone disruptors are found not only in beauty and personal-care products, but in plastic bottles, sports bottles, canned foods, microwave containers, polyvinyl chloride (in some shower curtains), first- and second-hand smoke, detergents, herbicides, auto exhaust, and more. They can also come from agriculture, industry, and lawn-care products. Because they’re all around us, we can’t possibly eliminate all exposure, but we can certainly make choices that will reduce it. Stacy Malkan, cofounder of Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, suggests that beauty products, which are inhaled (perfumes and sprays), swallowed (lipsticks), and absorbed by the skin (makeup, cleansers, and lotions) are a great place to start, since the contact with the human body is so direct.

“While we may not be able to control the carcinogens we breathe from the air or drink from the water,” she says, “we don’t need to be putting these chemicals directly on our skin.”

Read our list of ingredients to avoid, visit EWG’s cosmetics database (Skin Deep), choose products with fewer ingredients and fewer chemicals, ditch the plastic water bottles, use glass to heat things in the microwave, and try to cut down on the number of products you use, or even the days you use them. For example, on the weekends, have a “makeup-free” day with your teen, where neither of you use makeup products. Make it fun to get educated, and you may just raise a more health-conscious teen with a lower risk of cancer and other hormone-related health problems later in life.

Have you started educating your teen on dangerous chemical ingredients? Please share your story!

Photo courtesy BrittneyBush via Flickr.com.

Cancer definitely changes your face. It may be hard to recognize yourself in the mirror on some mornings. Following are some tips to help you camouflage problem areas without overdoing it, or putting a huge dent in your already crammed schedule. Of course, remember to always use non-toxic, natural products!

1. Gently cleanse. Throw away those harsh, exfoliating cleansers (especially the acne ones) and go for a gentler, more moisturizing, non-toxic, safe brand. Go easy on your skin, rubbing gently with your fingers, and rinse with tepid (not hot) water. If you use a toner, make sure it is alcohol-free. Toners with alcohol can further dehydrate and irritate sensitive skin.
2. Hydration, hydration! Cancer skin is terribly dry and fragile, so hydrate inside and out. Drink lots of water through the day, and apply toxic-free, preferably organic moisturizer to your skin at least twice a day. Don’t forget the physical sunscreen, too, as your skin will be more photosensitive.  (A formula with zinc oxide is the safest.)
3. Foundation. If your skin is fairly smooth and suffering only from dryness or a bit of off-color, choose liquid foundation for its moisturizing and sheer-looking qualities. If you’re fighting with acne or redness, go for a cream or mousse that will give you a bit more coverage but not dry you out. (Skip the powder foundations for now.) Use a clean sponge (discard after each use to avoid infection) and sweep over your entire face. Don’t forget to blend, blend, blend, especially along the jawline and hairline.
4. Concealer. For problem areas like blemishes or dark undereye circles, use a liquid concealer after foundation to spot-cover. If you’ve got darkness or redness on your cheeks, you may want to try cream concealer on those areas before you apply foundation. Pat and blend with your fingertip.
5. Bronzer. If your skin is looking a little dull (which tends to happen with cancer treatments), brush a shimmering bronzer on the nose, chin, and forehead. Save the cheeks for blush.
6. Blush. Nothing livens you up like a little color in the cheeks. Again, creams will be less drying, so try them over your foundation on the apples of your cheeks. Use a clean sponge to apply to avoid risk of contracting germs. A little goes a long way, so don’t overdo. The effect should look like you’ve got a little blood rushing to your cheeks—like you have just finished a workout. (Powders are okay too, just sweep lightly on with a large brush—not the one in the container!)
7. Eyeliner. Especially if you’re suffering from loss of eyelashes, you can’t go without eyeliner. If you’re in a hurry, choose a crayon over liquid. (Crayons are more forgiving than liquids if you make a mistake, and more moisturizing than pencils.) Draw along the lash line, and smudge a little to fill in any empty spaces between the lashes. To help eyes look open and lively, only line the outer half of your lower lid.
8. Mascara. Be careful, here. A little mascara will help fill in sparse eyelashes, but if you use a harsh or waterproof formula, you risk rubbing more eyelashes away when you take it off. Don’t use an eyelash curler (unless it’s a special occasion), as it can pull out fragile lashes. If you really need curl, heat a spoon and touch it to the ends of your lashes. (Be careful!) Apply mascara only to the tips of lashes.
9. Eyebrows. Again, you may be losing a few hairs here, so use an eyebrow pencil or matching shadow color to fill in, then brush hairs in place with an eyebrow brush or a toothbrush.
10.  Lips. Your mouth needs a lot of extra moisture through treatments, so keep the organic lip balm with you and hide the matte, long-wearing lipsticks, as they can be drying. Choose moisturizing formulas, or better yet, go for a simple lip gloss.

Have you had cancer as a teen? Do you have tips for applying makeup? Let us know.

Photo courtesy Crustina via Flickr.com.

“It’s definitely scary,” she said. “I’ve been using all of these things all of my life and not realizing it.”

In the survey, EWG detected 16 chemicals from 4 chemical families (phthalates, triclosan, parabens and musks) in the blood and urine samples from 20 teen girls age 14-19. Two of the parabens were detected in every single girl tested.

These types of chemicals are dangerous for everyone, but particularly for young girls who are still developing. Parabens are hormone disruptors, and have been linked with breast cancer. Pthalates have been found in animal tests to damage the liver, kidneys, lungs, and reproductive systems, even mess up sexual development in babies. And fragrances can contain as many as 200 undeclared chemicals. It’s not yet clear how dangerous these toxins are in minute amounts, but researchers are concerned their effects could compound over time.

This is the first look at teen exposure to such chemicals in cosmetics, so more research needs to be done to determine what’s really going on. (Parabens are used as preservatives in foods, as well, so the source in the girls’ blood has not been proven.) Still, it raises some legitimate concerns. Teens are still growing, and since they’re going through puberty, they’re just starting to develop reproductive systems. Hormone-altering chemicals present in the blood stream could be particularly harmful during these tender years. “Emerging research suggests that teens may be particularly sensitive to exposures to trace levels of hormone-disrupting chemicals like the ones targeted in this study,” says Rebecca Sutton, Ph.D. Since teens use even more personal-care products a day than adult women, their risk of absorbing chemicals is significantly higher.

What to do? Educate yourself. Check out our ingredients to avoid list and the EWG’s shopping guide, read the ingredient lists on products, and start shopping for organic and synthetic-fragrance-free alternatives. (If you like fragrance, choose products that use natural sources like essential oils for scent.) The EWG recommends you try to reduce the number of products you use; choose paraben-free skin products, shampoos, and sunscreens; and avoid antibacterial hand soaps with triclosan. Check your favorite personal-care products against the EWG’s Skin Deep Database for safety. If you’re a mom with a teen in the house, create a fun outing with your teen and head to the organic section of your department store for some major label-reading!

If you’re a teenager, are you concerned about chemicals in products? Please share your thoughts.

Photo courtesy of Eric K Veland via Flickr.com.

Many personal-care companies have already stepped away from the practice, including Avon, Almay, Jason Natural Cosmetics, Liz Claiborne Cosmetics, and many more. However, according to caringconsumer.com, some are apparently still doing it at least on some of their product lines—companies like Clairol, L’Oréal, Max Factor, Olay, and Ponds. And some, to avoid bans or market their animal-friendly stance, outsource the testing to other companies.

What are these tests for? Usually, to make sure the product (or an ingredient in the product) won’t irritate or harm human eyes or skin. Eye shadows are tested on rabbits to determine damage or irritation. Sunscreens are tested on guinea pigs to test for allergic reactions or skin irritations. Many times, the animals suffer pain, bleeding, or even death as a result. So why do companies do it?

Originally, animal testing was done to protect human health. Consumers wanted safe and effective cosmetics, so as companies developed new formulas, they tested them on animals first, to be sure they would have no adverse affects on humans.

Unfortunately, cosmetic testing on animals can cause severe allergic reactions, liver problems, ulcerations, swollen eyelids, and even death. Besides that, it’s expensive, and animal skin doesn’t respond the same as human skin, so sometimes the results aren’t even reliable. Most importantly, alternatives are available. In vitro testing using cell cultures as well as sophisticated computer models are now used as alternatives to torturing animals.

Fortunately, most companies know that we consumers don’t approve of blinding rabbits for the sake of a new mascara, so they’re using ingredients that have already been proven safe, or that can be tested by other methods—including on human volunteers. It’s not necessarily simple. Alternatives to animal testing can be difficult to find. But it is possible, as “cornea” testing has demonstrated. (The FDA has approved the use of bovine and chicken corneas for use as proof that an eye product is safe.)

“Recognition of the inadequacy of animal toxicity testing has resulted in the development of better techniques,” says Kara Rogers, Ph.D., biomedical sciences editor for Britannica.com.  “An example of a toxicity test performed on animals that often produces inaccurate results is the Draize test, in which a chemical, such as a cosmetic or pharmaceutical agent, is applied to the skin or eye of a rabbit. The results are supposed to indicate how toxic a chemical is to human skin. The inaccuracy of the Draize test has been recognized for many years, but its replacement has not been a simple matter…The European Union recently approved a replacement for the Draize test called the EpiSkin® test, which is an in vitro method that uses test-tube–sized models of human skin. The approval of EpiSkin® is a milestone in the progress toward discovering reliable alternatives to animal testing.”

The more we demand that animals be treated humanely, the more we’ll encourage scientists and companies to find alternatives to hurting another species. Look for labels like “No Animal Testing” on your products, and check out lists like this one from caringconsumer.com.

Cinco Vidas does not approve of animal testing and strongly urges consumers to buy from those companies who use alternative testing practices.

Photo courtesy of meta-morphosis via Flickr.com.

If you’re going through treatment for cancer, this may sound like a normal day. Drugs like isotretinoin and tretinoin, cytarabine, fluorouracil (Adrucil, 5-FU, 5-Fluorouracil, Efudex); radiation; and medications to reduce side effects can all cause dry, gritty, sensitive eyes that water and itch, and often create blurry vision. Not a horrible side effect, but certainly one that can interfere with your daily activities, restrict your use of contact lenses, and screw up your makeup in a big hurry.

Unfortunately, besides using rewetting drops, there’s not much you can do about contact irritation. If they’re too hard to put up with, try wearing them for just a few hours at a time, or go with glasses.

To relieve discomfort, as always, ask your doctor—he/she may have some lubricating ointments you can use at bedtime. Your eye doctor can also prescribe artificial tears that you can use throughout the day. (Don’t confuse these with formulas that just reduce redness—they don’t address the cause of dryness.) A user favorite is NutraTear with vitamin B from the Dry Eye shop. You can also try one of the herbal eye drops at iHerb.com.

To help rejuvenate your eyes at night—and to avoid that burning, sticky sensation in the morning—try Tranquil Eyes hydrating goggles for around $50. The kit includes goggles, foam pads, and a travel case. The idea is you soak the foam pads in water, put them on your eyes and wear the goggles over them, to help seal in moisture and prevent the evaporation of natural and artificial tears.

To protect during the day, sunglasses are a must. We recommend that you take it a step further and go for one of the 7Eye (or similar) brands. These glasses form a seal around your eyes and really cut down on the wind and grime that can get into them—and a lot of them are really cool looking! Of course, stay away from smoke and wind whenever possible, and use a humidifier at night.

Another trick: consume more omega-3 fatty acids. Research from the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston showed that women who had the highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their diets reduced their risk of dry-eye syndrome by 20%. Eat more fatty fish (salmon, sardines), nuts, and flaxseed oil, or try fish-oil supplements.

What if you’re a woman? Do you have to go without eye makeup? According to Medical News Today, “…makeup that flakes and gets into the tear film can increase your eyes’ irritation. In such cases, you should discontinue use of powder eye shadow and glitter makeup.” Optometrist Andrew Pearson Gay reports, “Problems arise if the make-up is applied too thickly or in the wrong place. If eyeliner is put on the eyelid margin then it can act as a bridge that allows the skin oils to contaminate the tear oil. Mascara that finds its way down to the base of the lashes can also form a bridge for contamination.”

Makeup artist Bobbi Brown recommends you avoid lash-lengthening mascaras and powder shadows, and use thickening mascaras and cream shadows instead. (We like toxin-free cream shadows by RMS Beauty.) Apply mascara only to the tips of eyelashes, and refrain from using any on lower lashes. Look for products made for sensitive eyes (or contact-lens wearers) as well as hypo-allergenic formulas. (Try mercury-free Pure Soul mascara.) Remove makeup as soon as you can, rather than waiting until the end of the day. Avoid waterproof formulas—the rubbing required to remove them further irritates your eyes. Dr. Gay recommends you avoid Vaseline and baby oils (read more on the dangers of petroleum-based products), and use organic, toxin-free eye makeup remover for sensitive eyes, like Herbal Eye Makeup Remover From Eminence. Above all, don’t leave makeup on the eyes overnight, and replace makeup products frequently to avoid chance of infection.

Have you struggled with dry eyes during treatment? Have any tips?

Photo courtesy of Stzydek via Flickr.com