Why Beautycounter

About 6 months ago I joined an amazing company called Beautycounter.  I first learned about Beautycounter through an old friend of my husbands who I didn't really know.  As I read through her email I became interested in the company mainly because the founder was a graduate of UVM.  Us alumni have to support one another!  I learned about the mission of the company, did some research on my own, and tried the products.  I was impressed!  Not only are the products amazing but Beautycounter is directly working to try and get regulations changed in the personal care product industry.   The United States has not passed a major federal law to regulate the safety of ingredients used in personal care products since 1938.  The European Union bans or restricts over 1300 chemicals from their personal care products, the United States, only 11!!! These two facts completely boggled my mind.  How is it possible that our government has such little regulation on products we all use every single day?  This is a human health issue and we as Americans deserve better.  

I have been aware for a long time about the importance of what we put in our bodies.  I remember about ten years ago watching the documentary Food Inc with my dad and it completely changed the way I eat.  However,  I was naive to what I was putting on my body. I thought that I was choosing safe products and was fooled by the terms "organic" and "all natural" that I was reading on labels.  Companies are able to put those false labels on their products because of the lack of regulations. Companies are also able to use terms like "fragrance" on their labels which is actually a trade secret, meaning those companies don't have to disclose what ingredients are hidden behind that label.  Scary stuff, right?  Take a moment to download the Environmental Working Group's app called Healthy Living.   This app ranks your personal care products (and food) on a scale from 1-10 with 1 being the least toxic.  It is a great place to start when thinking about cleaning up your lifestyle.  

I chose to work for Beautycounter for many reasons.  The final reason was because of my daughters.  I want them to grow up in a safer America.  I don't want them to have to spend time reading labels and innocently being exposed to harmful chemicals.  Teenage girls are the most at risk when it comes to levels of chemical exposure.  Did you know that only about 10% of the 10,000 chemicals found in personal care products have safety data?  And even crazier is the Food and Drug Administration allows companies to use chemicals known to be extremely harmful (lead, formaldehyde, and phthalates) in the products we use everyday.  Listen, I get that it is impossible to live a totally clean lifestyle and you can drive yourself crazy trying.  But I do believe that there are many things we can control such as the food we eat and what we put on our bodies.  And with that said, I will do my best to use the information I have to make healthier choices for myself and my family. 

Joining Beautycounter has allowed me to be apart of the change that is going to happen.  I had the opportunity to join 100 other consultants as well as Beautycounter's leaders in Washington, D.C. to meet with senators from all 50 states and have our voices heard.  It was an experience that will be with me forever and I can say that I helped change regulations to better the health of ALL Americans. 

Here are some amazing facts about Beautycounter:

*Beautycounter has banned over 1500 ingredients from our products, setting a new healthy and safety standard.

*We are a B Corporation. B Corps are for profit companies certified by the nonprofit B Lab to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency. 

*Beautycounter partners directly with the Environmental Working Group, the Breast Cancer Fund and Healthy Child, Healthy World.  

*Our mission is to get safe products into the hands of everyone.  We are doing this by trying to help change regulations in the United States.  

*We are a direct retail brand.  This means we sell our products through a variety of avenues.  We have consultants that help educate and inform as well as help personalize your shopping experience.  You can also shop directly through Beautycounter's e-commerece website.  And finally we have strategic partnerships with brands like Goop, J-Crew and Target.  Our limited Target partnership will launch in September and last 3 months or until supplies last.  Beautycounter has created a smaller, exclusive line for Target that will allow many more Americans to access our beautiful and safe products.  

I love educating others on our mission.  Please don't hesitate to reach out to learn about the many ways you can get involved in Beautycounter.