Thinking dirty

Because that’s what you expect from me, right?  What other health blogger is posting inappropriate photos of 5sos?  (And if you missed that, check out my recent post on collagen (Collagen confusion).

But when I say “thinking dirty,” this time I’m actually talking about the stuff we put on our faces and bodies.  There are crazy toxins in many products that we use every single day, without thinking.  And guess what?  There’s an app for that!

 

Think Dirty is a free app designed to help you find the safest possible cosmetics when you are out shopping.  You scan the UPC code, and it spits out a rating from 0-10.  A rating from 0-3 means the product does not contain any known controversial or harmful ingredients.  If it is rated from 4-7, the ingredients could have moderate long term health impacts, and from 8-10 means serious long term health impacts.   This is similar to what the Environmental Working Group does (see my post I get drawn in by the naughty names,) with a cute, fun app.

And why would we need an app like this? Not to be a big downer, but in the US, only 11 percent of the 10,500 cosmetic ingredients listed by the FDA have even been reviewed.  Only 11 chemicals have been banned in the US. Compare this to Europe, where the European Health Commission has restricted over 1,300 chemicals.  The US Government’s regulations for cosmetics haven’t been updated since 1930.  WTF??!!  (They are working on it now.  I’m not holding my breath.)

So as soon as I downloaded this app, of course I had to run over to Ulta (conveniently located next to happy, healthy and hot headquarters, aka Starbucks.)  And here’s the problem…the app is very appealing and easy to use, but seems to be lacking some popular products.  I wanted to check on Urban Decay’s waterproof mascara, called Cannonball, and it was not listed.  The Tarte blush that I use daily could not be found either.  Bummer.

When I got home, I started scanning some items I already have.  If you followed my advice on dry shampoo (see the post It’s everywhere…even at Urban Outfitters), you’ll be happy to know that Burt’s Bees Baby Bee Dusting Powder is rated a 3.  And the John Masters Organics shampoo that I use was rated a 0!  You can also type in names and look products up if you don’t have them in front of you to scan.  I was happy to see that the Annmarie Gianni products that were included had really low ratings also.

The app has some interesting features.  You can create a profile, earn badges, and can even have friends.  No idea what they mean by badges and friends.

Be forewarned…anything with added fragrance is automatically rated a 9.  That is because fragrances are considered trade secret, which means they could be a mixture of potentially dangerous chemicals.  When I scanned my Aveda hairspray I was shocked that it received a score of 9.  If you click on ingredients, it tells you why the product received the score it did.  In this case, it was just because of the fragrance.  And from what I understand, Aveda’s fragrance is safe.  Whew!!!

So, can the Think Dirty app help you be even more happy, healthy and hot than you already are?   Well, it’s free and it has a naughty name, so I say go for it.  Anything that makes you stop and think what you are putting on and into your body is a good thing.  Just be aware it doesn’t list everything. So have some fun and Think Dirty!