I’m going through a change in how I look at my cosmetics and toiletries, I’m not just looking for the cheapest, I want to know what’s inside, how it was made, and more importantly that it is good to the environment. Recently, Neal’s Yard Remedies brought to my attention microbeads, tiny bits of plastic found in some cosmetics, mainly face and body scrubs and toothpaste that can pollute our oceans. It’s hard to believe that adding plastic to a face product can be the best idea, and even worse that I had never heard of this before and I love a good body scrub.
Well, for World Ocean’s Day, Neal’s Yard Remedies has teamed up with Green Peace to promote their ocean-friendly scrubs, free from microbeads as they only use natural exfoliants in their scrubs and polishes. I’m such a fan of Neal’s Yard Remedies anyway, I love that most of their ingredients are organic anyway, but to know that they are the first UK brand to be “Look for the Zero” certified, meaning that they have no microplastics in any of its products, makes them my new go-to beauty brand. I do love it when a brand makes it easier for me to be good to the environment.
My two favourite Neal’s Yard Remedies products at the moment has to be the Seaweed Salt Scrub, seriously this detoxifying and exfoliating beauty is the best at stimulating and toning skin, especially legs and for me, is a summer essential. I wish you guys could smell this scrub through the internet as it’s the blend of black pepper, grapefruit, and seaweed that makes this a key product in my bathroom. I love it, plus a little goes a long way, just simply massage gently into damp skin, concentrating on those target areas.
My other go-to product has to be the Nourishing Melissa Hand Polish as my hands are seriously dry at the moment, and this is one of those areas that I think can look worse in the summer if you don’t moisturise properly. This polish gently exfoliates as well as being cooling, using this product has become a little ritual at night, I damp my hands, massage in the argan and rosehip seed powders and rejuvenating oils of lemon, frankincense and melissa gently and then I rinse it off. Trust me you’ll be surprised by how soft your hands are after you use it.
So how do you know that your favourite product is free from microbeads?
Well, the main two types of plastic to look out for are polyethylene and polypropylene. To be on the safe side, I would check to see if the product is free from polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polytetra uoroethylene (PTFE) and nylon, if they are like Neal’s Yard Remedies products you are good to go.
If you want to help ban the use of polluting plastic microbeads sign Greenpeace’s petition on their website and head on over to Fauna & Flora and download their Good Scrub Guide, it lists the brands that have plastic-free products.