New Year Resolution Update: The Sweep
Some months ago, the good folks at Human Heart Nature reached out to me and invited me to participate in what they call The Sweep. Basically, The Sweep is an effort to sweep out chemicals in our daily lives, the ones present in the items we use daily such as our toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, you get my drift. I am no chemist but my own gauge of whether something is full of chemicals is judging by how many items in the Ingredients list I don't understand. And usually, there's a LOT. Some chemicals and their acceptable replacements:
Oxybenzone. Similar synthetics we may accept: Butylparaben, Octinoxate, 4-methylbenzylidene camphor.
Plastic Microbeads. Also known as: Polyethylene, Polypropylene, Polyethylene Terephthalate, Polymethyl Methacrylate. Switch to: Plant-based and biodegradable scrubs (bamboo, strawberry, coffee)
SLS/SLES, ALS/ALES Also known as: Sodium laureth sulfate/sodium lauryl ether sulfate, ammonium lauryl sulfate/ammonium lauryl ether sulfate
Replace with: Natural Surfactants
Mineral Oil. Also known as: Petroleum, Mineral Oil, Petrolatum, Paraffin. Replace with: Plant oils and moisturizers (sunflower, avocado, aloe vera, cocoa butter)
My first experience of The Sweep was with the Human Heart Nature Natural Toothpaste. I'm a big toothpaste geek, ask anyone. It's probably because I worked with Colgate for almost two years so it matters to me how much fluoride there is in PPM or parts per million. I was using Colgate Total Pro Whitening so I had to finish the tube first before I replaced it.
Thoughts: I had to remind myself again and again why I was doing this because HHN's toothpaste lacked the rather stiff / sticky paste consistency of Colgate and other commercial brands. I also had to get used to a less minty taste and less bubbles in my mouth.
Overall: It made me happy that I made the sweep BUT since I toothpaste is a non negotiable to me, I am sticking with my Colgate Total for now :)
My second attempt at The Sweep is the Human Heart Nature Salon Care Line, PHP 199. This one is easier to transition to since I've been a Human Heart Nature user since Mike keeps a bottle of their Peppermint Shampoo in the bathroom. I try to use that when I feel like I need to substitute what I'm using and HHN has always agreed with my salon-treated hair. When these arrived, it was easy to transition and try it out.
Thoughts: The coconutty smell is stronger than any of the HHN variants, maybe because it contains VCO and anything salon-esque would always yield stronger scents and thicker consistencies. This amazingly made my hair soft and the scent was tolerable. When most natural / organic haircare makes hair dry, this one is amazingly good. I think they've really nailed their formula.
Overall: I have no problem carting Human Heart Nature shampoo and conditioner at our next supermarket run. It makes me feel better about dumping stuff in the drain (sort of!) because now it's not as harmful as the usual chemicals. BTW, it's also available online via this website.
How are you doing with your New Year's Resolutions?
xx