What we put on our skin and baby’s skin gets absorbed into the blood stream. Go simple, minimal, as few ingredients as possible. It is important to reduce your toxin load as much as possible and even more so during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Also, your baby’s toxin load. If you can control it….do….because you are getting so many toxins from the environment that you cannot control.

Generally speaking I do not recommend using products on babies or yourself that you can pick-up at a drug store or grocery store. There are some out there that you can get in stores that are safe, but I recommend the ones below specifically for expecting mothers and babies.

Safe Body and Hair Products

Innersence Organic Beauty

Primal Life Organics

Annmarie Gianni

Beauty Counter

Mother Dirt

Top Ingredients to avoid in products:

• Aluminum chloride hexahydrate: Found in antiperspirant; check for aluminum chloride hexahydrate and aluminium chlorohydrate
• Benzoyl peroxide (used in acne products)
• Beta hydroxy acids: Salicylic acid, 3-hydroxypropionic acid, trethocanic acid and tropic acid
• Benzalkonium Chloride: cleansers, antibacterial
• DEA (Diethanolamine (DEA): Found in hair and body products; stay clear of diethanolamine, oleamide DEA, lauramide DEA and cocamide DEA), MEA, and TEA (foam booster)
• Dihydroxyacetone (DHA): Found in spray self-tanners; could be harmful if inhaled
• Dioxin (doesn’t always appear on ingredients lists, but is commonly added to antibacterial products, ethoxylated cleansers, PEGsand emulsifiers)
• DMDM hydantoin and urea (used as preservatives)
• FD&C colors and pigments (made from coal tar)
• Formaldehyde: Found in hair straightening treatments, nail polishes and eyelash glue; look for formaldehyde, quaternium-15, dimethyl-dimethyl (DMDM), hydantoin, imidazolidinyl urea, diazolidinyl urea, sodium hydroxymethylglycinate, and 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1,3-diol (bromopol)
• Hydroquinone: A lightening agent; abstain from hydroquinone, idrochinone and quinol/1-4 dihydroxy benzene/1-4 hydroxy benzene
• Parabens (Keep away from ethyl, propyl, butyl, isopropyl, and methyl parabens; used as preservatives)
• PEG or polyethylene glycol (are in most products)
• Phthalates (found in many products, not usually labeled); (Found in products with synthetic fragrances and nail polishes; avoid diethyl and dibutyl especially)
• Propylene glycol (PG) and butylene glycol (in many products)
• Retinol: Vitamin A, retinoic acid, retinyl palmitate, retinaldehyde, adapalene, tretinoin, tazarotene and isotretinoin (Here are some retinol alternatives)
• Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) (used as a foaming agent)
• Sunscreen chemicals (Avobenzone, homosalate, octisalate, octocrylene, oxybenzone, oxtinoxate, menthyl anthranilate and oxtocrylene.)
• Thioglycolic acid: Found in chemical hair removers; can also be labeled acetyl mercaptan, mercaptoacetate, mercaptoacetic acid and thiovanic acid
• Toluene: Found in nail polishes; skip methylbenzene, toluol and antisal 1a
• Triclosan (an antibacterial agent)

This is a good site to use to check the quality of the products you are using.

Wellness Mama  put out a post on essential oils and pregnancy.

Here is a post about Herbal Remedies In Pregnancy; more specifically which ones to avoid.

Real Food Liz  mentioned she used the Mad Rash Baby Blam for irritated neck rolls. She did a great post recently here discussing her favorite “products for baby’s butt”.

Please also use clean water to shower and bathe in if you can. Particularly the water you bathe in if you can. Particularly the water you bathe your baby in.

I wish you all the healthiest of pregnancies and babies!

If you missed my first All Things Baby post….click here.