Your skin is the largest organ of your body, with a fully grown adult having anywhere from 1.5 – 2 square metres of surface area of semi-porous skin.

Should you be concerned with what products you put on your skin?

Think about how many personal care products you might use in a day… …shampoo, conditioner, moisturiser, toothpaste, makeup, deodorant, body wash, perfumes… and that is just to name a few!! While one of skin’s main features being protection, it also allows products put on the skin to be absorbed into your body in a semi-permeable manner. Living in today’s modern society with a high chemical load, it is helpful to know what your skin care and cosmetics contain before choosing to apply them to your skin. This is important in order to make the best decisions for the health of yourself and your family. The Skin Deep app or website from the Environmental Working Group is a handy app to have installed on your phone to check for chemicals and product ratings, which give warnings about possible health and environmental hazards.

What chemicals do your skincare products contain?

Products can be searched for by brand (mainly a USA database) or by ingredients they contain, and the app provides a handy rating system in green, yellow or red that makes product decisions easy to make to help promote health and reduce exposure to toxins such as endocrine disruptors phthalates, parabens or triclosan; heavy metals, or carcinogens such as formaldehydes. Get the Skin Deep App on iTunes:

Get great Nutritional and Skin Care Advice from Karen Ball