Skin Deep: A Lens into CSR in the Cosmetics Industry

Interesting CSR fact: most people don't put their money where their mouth is when it comes to their purchasing power. Asked whether they would pay more for an environmentally-sound product, many people eagerly nod yes, but follow them to the grocery store and their wallets speak differently.

The one exception to this may hold in situations where the person believes that s/he may actually be directly harmed by apurchase. To get a sense of what I am discussing, I urge you to visit Skin Deep, a database produced by the Environmental Working Group to share safety information about cosmetics. The results are pretty alarming, and demonstrate what an uphill battle cosmetics companies face in reforming their products. Reading through the website, it would seem that toxicity is absolutely inescapable (Mom, stop reading here).

To illustrate, I will lead you through my morning routine as evaluated by Skin Deep. In the morning I wash my hair with Estee Lauder's Aveda shampoo and my body with Dove Beauty Bar, exposing myself to ingredients linked with "allergies/immunotoxicity", and harmful effects such as neurotoxicity, endocrine disruption, organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), irritation, enhanced skin absorption, and biochemical or cellular level changes. I then brush my teeth with Colgate Total Advanced Clean Whitening Toothpaste (some similar effects as before, PLUS cancer and developmental/reproductive toxicity). Fortunately, my skin is "Light" rather than "Fair" or "Medium", which means that my Bare Escentuals makeup is slightly less toxic than it could be, with "persistence and bioaccumulation, organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), occupational hazards, biochemical or cellular level changes" as the only listed effects. But then I do myself in with my Procter and Gamble Secret deodorant, which seems to cause every possible health problem under the sun.

Now that I am considering never bathing again, I want to know a) what CSR officers for cosmetics companies think of Skin Deep; and b) which companies are doing the most cutting edge research on technologies that can make my morning routine safer. While I may very well do some legwork on my own, I ask knowledgeable readers to weigh in with any information you have about what cosmetics companies are doing to improve their potential health impacts.

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