Personal Care Products for Mommy - Standards in Personal Care Products
What is organic?
In the U.S., the term "organic" is regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A product is organic only if at least 70% of its ingredients are organic and it is certified organic by the USDA or another independent organization such as EcoCert. Ingredients are deemed organic if they are grown and processed without the use of pesticides, herbicides and insecticides. See www.ams.usda.gov for more information.
What is natural?
The term "natural" is not regulated by the U.S. government and the definition of natural may vary from one company to the other. A product will often be deemed natural if it is plant-based and contains naturally-derived ingredients without any parabens, phthalates, petrochemicals, sulfates and synthetic fragrances or dyes.
Recently, the Natural Products Association developed the "natural standard" for personal care products. Under this standard, a product can be labeled natural only if the product is made from 95% natural ingredients. The natural ingredients must come from renewable resources found in nature and must not contain any petroleum compounds. There are currently 753 ingredients labeled natural. The list can be found at www.naturalproductsassoc.org. Only companies with at least 60 percent of their products meeting the natural standard can use the Natural Seal, but only on those products that actually meet the natural standard.
Natural vs Organic?
Under the USDA standard, a product is organic if 70 percent or more of its ingredients are organic. The remaining 30 percent of ingredients are not regulated and technically the use of synthetic ingredients does not disqualify the product from being labeled organic. On the other hand, natural products bearing the Natural Seal must contain 95 percent natural ingredients. However, these ingredients need not be organic. Thus, both organic and natural products may contain some "undesirable" ingredients.
Are synthetic ingredients hazardous?
Certain widely used synthetic ingredients such as parabens, glycols, sulfates, DMDM hydantoin and petrolatum (in any form) may pose a health hazard, even though they are considered safe under government standards (both U.S. and E.U. standards). Please click here for a full list of ingredients the safety of which may be questionable.
As natural and organic products contain less synthetic ingredients, they provide a good alternative for parents who are concerned about the potential health hazards of certain widely used synthetic ingredients.
While natural and organic products are generally safer for moms-to-be than products containing mostly synthetic ingredients, certain natural ingredients present in a number or natural and organic products may be unsafe during pregnancy. Such ingredients include salicylic acid and aluminum. In addition, certain herbs that are generally beneficial may actually be harmful if consumed or used during pregnancy, such as saw palmetto, goldenseal and roman chamomile. See www.americanpregnancy.org/pregnancyhealth/naturalherbsvitamins.html
A number of companies now produce personal care products designed specifically for use during pregnancy.
Bottom line
Parents and parents-to-be concerned about the potential health hazards presented by a number of synthetic ingredients, preservatives or ingredients grown with the use of pesticides or herbicides, may consider using products that are certified organic, natural or specifically developed for moms-to-be. Parents and parents-to-be should always scan the list of ingredients on every product to make sure there are, in fact, no ingredients that may be potentially harmful.
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