How I decide what to recommend- please read 1st
I’m a label-reading mama on a mission to find the safest products on the market, for my family & yours!
Some have suggested I am unduly bashing companies that aren’t on my best-of-the-best list. In my opinion, that is an extremely backwards view on what I am trying to do here. The ONLY interest I have in mind in publishing this list is the safety of families, ESPECIALLY babies/children who have no choice in what products are getting lathered on them. If you are an adult who can read labels, research ingredients, and come to a decision based on the information presented that you are fine with using any product from the greenwashing list, that is your right!! My goal is to make you more aware of what you are putting on your body, but especially that of your precious child. Most people on my page are here because they are looking for eco-friendly, AND family-friendly products. Every parent I have ever met only wants what’s best for their family. Companies are not known for having the same interests in mind.
If you are a company who does not like where I placed you on the list, it’s because I don’t like the ingredients you are using in your products. Please don’t get mad at me, make your products safer! I’m not trying to be mean to anyone, 1/2 of these companies I had never heard of before looking into them. I had no preconceived notions but went straight for ingredient labels– they speak for themselves!! I wish there were no need for this list. In my dream world, ALL products made by ALL companies would be safe for families & the environment. Sadly, that is just not the case! This list is the result of products folks on my page have asked me about, one-by-one. I finally got smart & started saving my findings, to save myself from having to research the same products over & over when the question inevitably comes up in the future. I HOPE you find this helpful, useful, and not an attempt to bash any company unjustly. While the Greenwashing portion is quite large, the Approved and So-So (which has many decent options) portions have grown too!
How do I decide what to recommend? Pretty simple– I don’t recommend anything I wouldn’t use on myself or my family. I am not a chemist, just a mama with a background in education and am putting my years of researching and educating to use on this passion of mine. My methodology: I reference EWG’s databases, which are certainly not the end all and be all for a final verdict, but they’re a great starting point. They reference real research on ingredients, and I can go from there to PubMed, or just good ol’ Google where I key in: concerns with X ingredient in skin care, to find out which concerns are associated with that ingredient. While I enjoy researching, these resources have lots of great information to offer, and depending on where products fall on these databases, I may not have to look any further. Are these databases a definitive answer on the safety of the products in question? NO. Like most agencies, the staff at EWG is surely overworked & understaffed. New products come onto the market daily. Formulations change. Skin Deep has 78,000 products in their database, the cleaning database has 2,000, and still there are numerous products I’ve searched for that aren’t in there, so then I look at individual ingredients. Also, many products/ingredients will have a 0 rating, but there is limited or no info on particular ingredients and/or data gaps. SO, I take their results with a “grain of salt”. But, it’s a great starting point. If I look up a cleaning product and see they give it an F, I don’t look further. If I see they give it an A, I do look further, because ingredients in that product can still rate poorly with some significant concerns.
I have created a tiny listing of Ingredients to Avoid here on my blog, which gathers my main concerns with several very common ingredients. Many are fine with the using Sodium Benzoate and/or Potassium Sorbate. I am not. Using 1 product with 1 of those in it a day, I would have very little concern. But the fact is that many very popular brands (all on my So-So list) contain both of them (+ more so-so ingredients). If you’re using 10+ products/day, with multiple so-so ingredients, well, you get my drift. My feeling is that if there is even a shred of doubt on the safety of a product, I’ll pass in favor of products that do not contain them. The good news is that there are several product lines using neither Potassium sorbate, nor sodium benzoate, so I figure why support the ones that are…
Is my opinion a definitive answer of these product lines? Of course not! I encourage you to get familiar with ingredients yourself, and research products further, especially if a product you love gets a negative rating from me. My greatest hope is to get more people reading labels, and familiar with ingredients. Many say “Well, it’s better than X product”. That’s not good enough for me, I won’t settle for anything less than the best of the best for my babe. Sure the best of the best products may not be available at Wal-Mart, and may cost more than we’d all like to pay, but when used sparingly, they go a long way!
If a company I looked into does not disclose ingredient lists on their website, I get incredibly frustrated, and look no further. If you’re using products from one of the companies where I’ve noted that fact, and you have a link to an ingredient list you’d like me to look at, please send it my way. My feeling is that any company that doesn’t offer full disclosure has something to hide. Also, if ingredients look OK, but the company has made unethical moves in the past (CA baby), I won’t support them no matter how safe a product is (google CA baby reformulation scandal, in case you missed it!). Burt’s Bees is owned by Clorox, and Tom’s of Maine by Colgate. Would you buy those products if they were correctly labeled with the true destination of your dollars? Many would not.
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Eco-Friendly Mama: Safe product recommendations with a focus on organic and Made in USA! 
Feb 20, 2014 @ 19:03:17
Please review my company, Just Skin Food. We are listed on EWG and all of my products are either a 0 or 1. 3 items are only 2.
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Feb 20, 2014 @ 20:33:21
Your stuff looks great! Would you like to send me a package to do a review on, and share with my audience?
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Feb 22, 2014 @ 03:46:53
Yes I will send you a package. Please send me your address. Thank you, Gabriella
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Mar 02, 2014 @ 05:02:15
I am a serious label reader too. Have you heard of Ava Anderson Non Toxic? It’s the best line I have found and I’ve tried them all! It’s a full line of personal care & household products. They are amazing and they ALL rate 0-1 on EWG. You can check it out here: http://www.avaandersonnontoxic.com/savvy
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Mar 02, 2014 @ 12:53:44
Of course! They’re on my so-so list, you can read why. There have been many issues that have left me unhappy with the company, and I’ve asked so many questions that have not been answered… Kim banned me from their FB page 😦
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May 06, 2014 @ 13:43:14
could you tell me where I can find your “good” list. Before I leave Melaleuca I want to find an alternative
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May 06, 2014 @ 17:20:01
Of course! It’s in the same tab as the so-so & greenwashers list here on my website: https://ecofriendlyusa.wordpress.com/product-reviews/safe-products/
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May 30, 2014 @ 19:34:20
I was wondering if you could send me a link to the products I can buy that you do suggest?
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May 30, 2014 @ 20:15:19
Yes, right under where you found this info is my approved list- thanks for asking! https://ecofriendlyusa.wordpress.com/product-reviews/safe-products/
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Jun 08, 2014 @ 23:18:47
I enjoyed reading this blog post. Have you heard of Radiantly You? We are an all natural health, beauty, and cleaning product line that is officially launching June 28th. Could I send you a sample? Check out our site!
Marissa Shields
Senior Team Leader
Radiantly You
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Jun 09, 2014 @ 18:16:07
Yes, my co-admin Jolene did a review of a couple items. I will get around to adding them to my listing soon! https://www.facebook.com/397517646930548/photos/a.568349859847325.144572.397517646930548/869177403097901/?type=3&theater
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Aug 05, 2014 @ 13:02:00
I don’t think EWG should be trusted so blindly…
https://www.activistfacts.com/?s=environmental+working+group+
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Aug 05, 2014 @ 13:06:26
I don’t trust it blindly. I’m the 1st to point out it’s not perfect, no system analyzing 70,000 products will be. What it HAS done is help me become familiar with ingredients of concern, and taught me that no matter what the score they give, you ALWAYS have to look at individual ingredients. I was very disappointed with their sunscreen guide, some that they gave a 2 score to had very icky ingredients. It’s a starting point, not an end point. I always take their scores with a grain of salt.
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Aug 05, 2014 @ 14:30:06
That’s good. I just wanted to show you some information on EWG. A lot of their ratings are based on very little scientific evidence and/or poorly conducted, non-peer reviewed studies. It’s important to try to find information that is scientific and from non-biased sources, and EWG seems to be a very biased source. I agree that their website can be useful since it is a searchable database of products and their ingredients; I use it for that myself, but ignore their ratings.
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Sep 02, 2014 @ 18:29:38
What do you think of then Au Naturale cosmetics line?
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Sep 04, 2014 @ 00:05:15
🙂 https://ecofriendlymamausa.com/2014/06/23/jolenes-safe-make-up-list/
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Oct 28, 2014 @ 23:11:24
Hello, please visit my site:www.mysmilebaby.com. MOMiN is a 100% Natural USDA Organic Baby Skin Care Products that are made in the USA.
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Oct 29, 2014 @ 19:34:04
I like what I see! What can you tell me about the mixed tocopherols?
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Mar 19, 2015 @ 00:22:04
Tocopherols are a family of vitamin E compounds naturally found in vegetable oils, nuts, fish, and leafy green vegetables. The nutritional benefits of Vitamin E (d-alpha-tocopherol) and its importance as a daily part of the human diet have been well documented. The gamma- and delta-tocopherols present in a Natural Mixed Tocopherol product have great utility because of their ability in protecting the oils and fats in edible oilseeds from oxidation. Natural Mixed Tocopherols have great utility in preserving the taste and preventing the oxidation or rancidity of many foods that contain oils and fats. Please visit: http://www.mysmilebaby.com
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Apr 06, 2021 @ 19:09:09
Apparently he can tell you that he is a SPAMmer who likes to copy FDA-type propoganda and that he has absolutely no concern for the safety of hia products and ingredients.
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Nov 11, 2014 @ 23:57:35
I would love to see Radiantly You products on your approved list. Have you checked them out?
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Jan 18, 2015 @ 19:33:14
The link for for fakers versus nonfakers tells me I don’t have permission to view, even after creating an account 😦
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Jan 18, 2015 @ 20:40:14
Thanks for letting me know, you never used to need an account, guess I’ll remove that link!
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Jan 27, 2015 @ 17:09:31
http://www.greenoptions.com/a/list-of-fakers-and-not-fakers I could see it without an account
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Jan 27, 2015 @ 19:25:04
I will remove the link, thanks.
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Mar 18, 2015 @ 02:17:28
So if you had to recommend 1 brand for your kids to use which would you choose? I use Honest Company right now but clearly that isn’t good enough after reading this!
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Mar 18, 2015 @ 13:21:04
We mainly use Poofy Organics, but a variety of products from this approved list: https://ecofriendlymamausa.com/product-reviews/safe-products/
Poofy truly has it all, and you said 1 brand so that would be it. I became an affiliate ~8 months ago after using & recommending them daily for almost 2 years, you can check out what they have to offer here: poofyorganics.com/ecofriendlyusa
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Mar 21, 2015 @ 19:39:15
What are your thoughts on Green shield organic laundry detergent? I didn’t see it on your lists and on the ewg website it seems really good, but I’m still trying to navigate all the dangers that aren’t so readily apparent. I also liked that I could order it through amazon. Please let me know your thoughts.
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Mar 22, 2015 @ 12:25:30
It is way down at the bottom on my approved list, but has received a lot of bad reviews. Many people don’t feel it works well, although some do like it!
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Apr 19, 2015 @ 23:35:21
Would love your opinion on Beautycounter – I love it!
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Jun 09, 2015 @ 20:17:00
On my So-So list, several ingredients I wouldn’t use nor recommend: https://ecofriendlymamausa.com/product-reviews/murky-middle-ground-products/
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May 25, 2015 @ 18:17:56
Just wondering if you have checked out Chagrin Valley Soap & Salve Co. All their products are certified 100% organic and are amazing. Their shampoo bars are the best thing I have ever used on my hair, and no nasty chemicals. Since I started using their products I won’t use anything else. Even though I live in Australia, it is worth having them sent from the US.
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Jun 09, 2015 @ 20:04:16
No, I’m not familiar with them I’ll have to check them out- thanks! And I agree, I’m a huge lover of shampoo bars, they work great & NO plastic bottle!!!
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May 26, 2015 @ 10:19:24
I am using Amway G&H body shampoo …contains following chemicals ..Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamide DEA, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Fragrance, Sodium Chloride, Citric Acid …is this chemicals are harmful?
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Jun 09, 2015 @ 20:02:01
Sodium chloride is salt, citric acid is fine, FRAGRANCE can contain hundreds of chemicals itself, I only use or recommend products scented with natural essential oils.
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Jun 09, 2015 @ 20:02:35
And yes, both Sodium Laureth Sulfate & Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate I would avoid as well.
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Jun 17, 2015 @ 19:38:07
I don’t see anything about Jane Iredale make up. Have you heard of the products?
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Jun 22, 2015 @ 20:30:58
On this list: https://ecofriendlymamausa.com/2014/06/23/jolenes-safe-make-up-list/
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Jun 19, 2015 @ 09:29:33
Hi! I’ve done some research about EWG, and I’m not impressed. When you have time, would you check out this link and get back with me? Wondering what you think since you referenced them. Thanks!
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Jun 22, 2015 @ 20:36:14
Hi! Yes, I’ve read that. I always say you have to take any database with a grain of salt. It’s not the end all & be all. But it has really helped open my eyes on ingredients of concern & I love that they link to the scientific studies when possible so you can read more. There will never be a perfect database. And EWG has many flaws. 0 is a default if they have no data on an ingredient, so that obviously skews things. Also, many go with the upfront score & say “it scores a 2, great”, but when you click on the product you may see individual ingredients that rate 5-6, or higher. The easiest thing, that many in the natural/organic community live by: if you can’t pronounce it, if you HAVE to look it up, avoid it. That’s pretty easy to do! There are many great lines on my ‘approved’ list that have very easy to read & understand labels!
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Jun 19, 2015 @ 11:22:40
Forgot to include the link! https://www.activistfacts.com/organizations/113-environmental-working-group/
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Feb 21, 2016 @ 14:40:57
I can appreciate what you are doing and it is a huge undertaking. I can tell you right now the information you have on Arbonne is outdated. The baby products DO NOT have those ingredients in them. I have extensively researched the ingredients in Arbonne I found it to be one of the safest product lines out there. Yes they still use Retyinyl Palmitate but they use less than .1% in there products, which is very safe. They are working on way to harvest natural palm that will not hurt the environment but these things take time and eventually this ingredients will disappear. Arbonne is a company that is committed to pure products but it does not happen overnight. So before you go bashing a company thats really trying to make a difference really do your homework.
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Feb 21, 2016 @ 21:50:16
I updated it last month, the update is below the original post.
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Aug 26, 2016 @ 18:05:26
I am a new NYR Consultant and I’m wondering why you put NYR on the so-so list, thanks! 🙂
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Aug 27, 2016 @ 21:14:59
Alphabetical order here explains it 🙂 https://ecofriendlymamausa.com/product-reviews/so-so/
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Oct 18, 2016 @ 03:18:37
Thank you for all the info. I’d like to know what you think of Puracy products?
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Oct 18, 2016 @ 13:39:42
I’ve not heard of it, will make a note to do so & report back!
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Jun 14, 2021 @ 23:22:37
Qqqq
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