What's in your child's shampoo? Earth Mama GIVEAWAY

In March of 2009, Safe Cosmetics released No More Toxic Tub which enlightened many parents to the dangers in baby personal care. E was 2 at the time and had been suffering from eczema and rashes her whole life. Her doctors told me it was genetic and I could use this really harsh cream if I was concerned. I declined and never thought to research other causes. I had been given a huge gift basket at my baby shower that was filled with Johnson & Johnson products- enough to last me 2+ years. So when I read the report and learned I had been washing my baby with formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane, I was beyond appalled. I then threw out all of our J&J and began learning about safe, non-toxic baby care.

Other double offenders that contained both formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane from the report were:

• American Girl Real Beauty Inside and Out
• Shower Gel – Apple Blossom (three samples)
• Baby Magic “Soft Baby Scent” Baby Lotion
• Barbie Berry Sweet Bubble Bath
• CVS Baby Shampoo
• CVS Kids Body Wash – Blueberry Blast
• Dora the Explorer Bubble Bath
• Equate Tearless Baby Wash
• Grins & Giggles Milk & Honey Baby Wash
• Hot Wheels Berry Blast Bubble Bath
• Huggies Naturally Refreshing Cucumber and Green Tea Baby Wash
• Johnson’s Baby Shampoo
• L’Oreal Kids Extra Gentle 2-in-1 Fast Dry
• Shampoo – Burst of Cool Melon
• Pampers Kandoo Foaming Handsoap – Magic Melon
• Sesame Street Bubble Bath – Orange Mango Tango
• Tinker Bell Scented Bubble Bath

*Note there were other brands listed with just having formaldehyde or 1,4 dioxane. You can read the full report here.

Now it has been over 2 1/2 years since the report and a call of action was issued November 1 from Campaign for Safe Cosmetics stating that Johnson & Johnson (including Aveeno) baby products have yet to be reformulated and it's time to ask them to clean up baby shampoo all over the world. The real kicker is that they have a safER version in other countries! J&J is selling versions of the shampoo in Denmark, Finland, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Sweden and the U.K. that don't contain formaldehyde-releasing chemicals.

Even though formaldehyde was classified as a carcinogen (cancer causing substance) this year, Johnson & Johnson issued a statement saying: "The preservative technologies we use are safe and approved by authorities in the European Union and in the United States, as well as in China and India, and we have not seen any evidence of allergy in hundreds of millions of real life uses of these products." They have also said they would phase out these chemicals (no time given) to undetectable levels.

Over the past week I've listened to numerous parents voice their concerns and I'm kind of in shock by some of the responses. I've heard a lot of parents say, "well it's just trace amounts" of formaldehyde and people are "overreacting." Another one commonly heard was, "my parents used it on me and I turned out alright." The fact is that some cancers are caused from our environment and over time toxins can build up in our systems and cause harm. Since I'm a mother of a kiddo who breaks out in horrible rashes when exposed to harsh chemicals, who has battled eczema, and has had hives so bad she had to be rushed to the ER from a chemical reaction- I've seen the instant reactions from the harmful chemicals that are said to be safe. I know these parents love their kids, but I honestly don't get why they would risk exposing them to nasty chemicals- even trace amounts. I wish I had people around 2 years ago telling me safe brands to buy- it would have saved me a whole bunch of trouble!

When I read the first No More Toxic Tub report, I made mistakes in buying personal care items from greenwashers. It wasn't until 2 years ago when Earth Mama challenged me to look up our "natural" and "organic" products on the EWG's Cosmetic Database. I was in shock at some of the things I found! Luckily, I was sent a bottle of Angel Baby Shampoo & Body Wash with ZERO toxins, and we've been hooked ever since. They kind of set the standard of safe baby care for us. If they can make excellent products with ZERO toxins, why can't everyone else? Sure, I make exceptions for some things like bubble bath. But my rule is that it can't rate higher than a 3 on the Cosmetic Database.

Earth Mama's gentle castile soaps are great for the whole family. The castile soaps have a PH high enough to deter mold and bacteria growth. Synthetic surfactants (detergents) need to have preservatives added to prevent mold and bacteria from growing- that's why J&J adds the Quaternium-15. You can read more about soaps vs. detergents here written by Mama Melinda.

My favorite Earth Mama soap is the Angel Baby Shampoo & Body Wash.

I LOVE the vanilla orange scent! E and I both use it as a body wash and E uses it as a shampoo. Castile soap is great for fine baby hair, but it can cause tangles for older kids and adults. E has ultra fine hair, so it is great for her! (For adults I recommend John Masters Organics Bare.) E's eczema has definitely calmed down and she has less flare ups since we started using Earth Mama. The amazing thing about the soap is that it comes in a foaming container which pumps out over 300 pumps of soap!

We also have the Calm & Clean, Happy Mama, and Non-Scents at each bathroom faucet. So not only are they great shampoo and body washes, they are great every day hand soaps. All of the soaps are natural germ fighters! We also keep a mini bottle in my bag so E can wash her hands when using public bathrooms. (When I noticed my kiddo was using soap in public places that contained triclosan and not fully washing the soap off- I got grossed out.)

All of the Earth Mama soaps are USDA certified made with organic ingredients, vegan, cruelty free, anti-bacterial, are hospital recommended, and have ZERO toxins. Miami Valley Hospital just started using Earth Mama Angel Baby products in their NICU and nursery!! I am hoping more people start recommending their local hospital make the switch.

This is a great blurb from Earth Mama's site:
"Regarding the most recent Toxic Tub news story (Baby’s Tub is Still Toxic ), Earth Mama Angel Baby thinks it’s simple; a mama should be able to know what she is putting on her baby, and her whole family, without having to have a degree in chemistry. “With all this news about formaldehyde-releasing Quaternium 15 and 1, 4 Dioxane in babies’ tubs, we want to make it clear that Earth Mama Angel Baby has never contained those ingredients, or ANY toxins ever.” says Olson. Every Earth Mama product rates a ZERO for toxins on the Skin Deep database, and Mama’s Promise® is to offer only safe, pure, natural products that work. If it doesn’t measure up to Mama’s standards, it doesn’t leave the building."

What can you do?

Nobody thinks it’s a good idea to put toxins on babies (or big people for that matter), and when news like this hits, it spurs mamas to make changes. But how? Here are some ideas:

• Make your voice heard – leave comments on articles you read to show the media that people care.
• Get involved with companies like the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics who work to bring these issues to consumers.
• Read ingredients and know what’s in your products.
• Support change by buying safer products.
• Pressure companies to do the right thing. The consumers have the power, and if people don’t buy it, the companies won’t make it.

GIVEAWAY: One lucky winner will win their choice of any 1 of Earth Mama's soaps!

Rules: You have until 11:59 p.m. EST November 20, 2011 to enter. The winner will be chosen by random.org and announced after they respond to the winning email. The winner has 48 hours to respond to the winning email, or a new winner will be chosen. You must leave your email address! This contest is open to the US and Canada

How to Enter: Tell me which soap you want to try! Go Click on "Comments" to leave your post. Make sure to leave your email address!! I cannot contact the winner without it!

EXTRA entries: You must complete the "How To Enter" before making any extra entries. Make sure you leave a comment for each extra entry and tell me which one.

2. Become a fan of Mkokopelli on FB, Follow Mkokopelli on Twitter, Follow my blog on GFC, Follow on tumblr, Follow me on Networked Blogs (1 entry for each one)

3. Subscribe to my blog by email (on the right sidebar) You must verify and be active at the time of the giveaway- those who are unverified will become disqualified (3 entries)

4. Blog, Tweet, or send a message on FB and leave a link here (1 entry per day)

What's in your child's shampoo/soap? @EarthMamaHQ #giveaway on @Mkokopelli Win any choice of castile soap Ends 11/20 http://nblo.gs/pxfwr

5. Sign up for the Earth Mama Angel Baby Newsletter
6. Become a Fan of Earth Mama Angel Baby on Facebook
7. Follow @EarthMamaHQ on Twitter
8. Tell me something you learned on the Earth Mama Angel Baby site

9. Tell me a rating of one of your personal care products

10. Tweet either things:

Looking for a safe baby shampoo? Check out @EarthMamaHQ with ZERO toxins!http://bit.ly/bXMHmg

Do you know what's in your child's soap? Learn more at @EarthMamaHQ http://bit.ly/tw7tYv

*This is a personal review. These are my thoughts, feelings, opinions, and results. I've been using Earth Mama products for over 2 years and no product was given for this review.