One resource for your green journey is the website of the Environmental Working Group (EWG). I call this group the “Consumer Reports of green living.” They are an independent third-party research organization that keeps tabs on pretty much anything that might affect the health and wellbeing of a consumer. They cover such topics as cosmetics, food, cleaning products, laws and policies, environmental issues, water quality and more. There’s so much on their site that if you dive into it headfirst, you just might be overwhelmed and drown. Let me give you a few starting places.
Skin Deep Guide to Cosmetics:
This was my first introduction to EWG. On this page you can plug in the name of over 70,000 cosmetic products and see their hazard rating. It certainly is not exhaustive, but it is a great start to learning about cosmetic safety. If a particular product isn’t on there, you can look up its individual ingredients.
Check out EWG’s Skin Deep Guide.
Guide to Healthy Cleaners:
I was thrilled when they added this section. While there is little regulation and oversight on cosmetics, there is even less on cleaners. This site is a great way to see if that “green” brand you’ve been buying is as green as you think.
Check out EWG’s Guide to Healthy Cleaners.
Dirty Dozen/Clean Fifteen:
If you see me on my phone in the middle of the produce aisle, this is probably what I’m looking at. This tells you what produce is most important to buy organic. Generally produces that is eaten in its entirety is most important. It’s a great help when I’m deciding how best to allocate my food budget.
Check out: EWG’s Dirty Dozen/Clean Fifteen.
Guide to Sunscreens:
Every year, sunscreen manufacturers reformulate their products. Some get better, some get worse. From what I’ve observed, they’re paying attention to this list as well. I spend hours every year trying to figure out the best sunscreens to buy for my family. This guide helps a ton.
Check out EWG’s Sunscreen Guide
Two considerations I leave you with: First, hours pass on this site in the blink of an eye. Second, once you know something, you can’t un-know it and it’s hard to ignore it.
If your green journey has plateaued, this just might spur you to the next level.
I’m looking for a healthy mattress.
Hi Phyllia- I’m sorry, I haven’t done any research on mattresses – but I certainly should! I searched “mattress” on the EWG.org website and found some articles there that may be helpful. Here’s the link to my search results: https://www.ewg.org/search?fullsearch=mattress
Very useful resource. It’s very helpful to girls as they love cosmetics. I would love to share your blog with my friends so that they get benefited from it. Keep posting such articles.
Hi Ajay – Glad to have helped! Thanks for sharing it.
EWG is a fantastic resource. I just finished a certification in Environmental Health from AZCIM and EWG is one of the many resources mentioned to help us maneuver the many chemicals we are exposed daily. I love the Dirty Dozen/Clean Fifteen! Great share Lisa and thank you again for all the great cleaning tips that help us and mother earth.