Students concerned with product safety

Diana Dzielski and McKenna Harbison

Everybody has heard the expression that beauty is pain, which makes sense because beauty is painful at times. Unfortunately, sometimes beauty can also be straight up disgusting. Gross things could possibly be lurking in everyday products.

It’s easy to fall into a beauty-routine-comfort-zone and ignore what’s going on in the beauty world. But, it’s important to know about the weird ingredients sneaking around in beloved products.

Roadkill. It’s in lotion, lipstick, and pretty much anything that slicks onto your body. It’s called Tallow and it is made by boiling animal carcasses and using the dissolved fats from their body. Animals are harvested from shelters, zoos, and from livestock that have died of natural causes. Even animals scraped off the road could be used!

The artificial red dye in blush is likely using some version of Cochineal. The Cochineal Beetle actually doesn’t look like a beetle at all because they’re fuzzy little bugs with no visible legs or antennae. They gather in hordes and since their bodies are full of pigment; when crushed, they produce a vibrant red color.

Chicken bone marrow, known as Glucosamine, is found in a lot of topical makeup products used on the skin. Items such as foundation and concealer use this as an anti-inflammatory. It’s said to have a lot of anti-aging properties because of how it functions in the bone itself.

If these haven’t evoked fear yet, then take a look in the bathroom using the “Think Dirty” or “EWG’s Healthy Living” app which can both be downloaded from the App Store.

“Think Dirty” and “EWG’s Healthy Living” allow consumers to scan a product and learn about all of the ingredients and harmful things that they contain. These apps help consumers make informed choices about cosmetics and personal care. They provide product ingredient information, product ratings based on the potential health impact of certain ingredients, and product comparisons.

The product ratings on either app provide rationale to consumers on the bodily impacts of the ingredients used in the products. Components of everyday products have been found to be toxic to organ systems and reproduction, hormone disruptors, and carcinogens.

So, next time you’re about to apply your makeup or put anything your skin, think about scanning that product first to really know what the price of beauty could be costing you.