Pure Beauty, Pure Brilliance

by Renée Sande Often during times of great need, is when we find our purpose in life. Amber Doyle’s pursuit of wellness led her to find her “purpose” when extreme allergies became so bad, she found it hard to leave her home. After researching the very unregulated skin care and beauty products industry and realizing that what she was putting on her face was actually harming her in more ways than just the obvious red itchy eyes, she felt compelled to share the wealth of knowledge she’d gained, as well as provide safe, healthy alternatives to others. So she opened an all-natural/organic spa called Pure Beauty in October 2008. “I want people to know they have healthy choices that don’t necessarily cost more,” said Amber. “—that they can look good and at the same time, feel good about the products they’re using.” However, most people aren’t even aware that the products they’re using are toxic at all, says Amber, speaking from personal experience. After having her eyes nearly swell shut and developing red rings she had to cover up with sunglasses, she started researching the products she was using, quickly becoming thoroughly disheartened with what she found—mercury in mascara, lead in lipstick, synthetic estrogens that have been found in breast cancer. Even after using well-known “all-natural” products from a local high-end salon, her allergies continued. So she read the ingredients and did more researching, finding out that parabens—commonly-used toxic preservatives used in beauty products—were highly present. “You have to be proactive,” says Amber. “ ‘All-natural’ is one of those buzz adjectives in the industry these days that’s not being regulated. So often the product doesn’t live up to what it’s promoting, and that’s unfortunate, especially when it comes to our kids.” Dozens of top-selling children’s bath products, including Johnson’s Baby Shampoo, despite their claims of being “gentle” and “pure,” are contaminated with the cancer-causing chemicals formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane, according to product test results released in March of this year by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. But even if you look at the list of ingredients, you might not find them, as the chemicals do not have to be disclosed on product labels because contaminants are exempt from labeling laws. The belief that our government ensures the safety of personal care products before they are sold, is blown out of the water by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) itself, which states that although it is against the law to produce a personal care product that poses a health risk to the consumer, they cannot require premarket safety testing and therefore it is up to the individual companies to follow the safety guidelines. But wait a minute. There are no guidelines as the FDA refuses to define what “safe” means and how to achieve it. Therefore the bottom line is: “…public health is in the hands of an impotent agency and the burden of choosing safe personal care products falls squarely on the shoulders of each consumer,” as stated in a report by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a highly-trusted industry watchdog, in March 2005. However, Amber has shouldered some of that burden by doing her clientele’s research for them. She often refers to the EWG’s website—cosmeticsdatabase.com—which keeps her up-to-date on what’s safe, what’s not, and what is being done to ensure that safety standards in the United States aren’t far off. The website provides an in-depth list of personal care products on the market, the ingredients—all of them—and how safe or how toxic the product is for you. “Once you find out what’s actually in these products and how they’re potentially harming you, it’s hard to go back,” says Amber. So I decided to have her do a little research for me, on how safe my favorite fragrance, Fendi—one that I’d used for years—was for me. A quick enter into the search box, and there it was, labeled with a red light, as opposed to green or yellow, and the number 8, from a scale of 1 to 10 of health risk. Bummer. In addition, it told me that 85% of the fragrances on the market were better for me than the one I was using. Lucky for me, she carries the Pacifica Skincare line from New Zealand, featuring amazing organic skin scents like Tahitian Gardenia and Gingerlily & Clementine. In addition, she offers 14 or so other all-natural/organic skincare lines such as Nature’s Paradise Organic Skin Care, including a Baby Organic line, which is USDA certified organic, meaning the products are safe enough to eat, Naturecolor hair color that “…does an amazing job at hiding those stubborn greys,” and John Masters Organics—a pioneer in the industry, who opened the first “clean-air” salon in 1994 in Manhattan, meaning he doesn’t use any toxic chemicals, and whose line offers an intriguing and comprehensive selection of organic hair and skincare products. Current services include skincare and make-up consultations which can be customized into spa parties. And prices are encouraging as they are very comparable to or less expensive than department store cosmetics and even some drugstore cosmetics as well. “I love what I do,” says Amber. “I almost feel myself fortunate that I suffered the allergies I did as I not only gained better health, but a new sense of what I was meant to do and the chance to share that with others.” Now that’s worth a bundle.