In 2018 my sister was diagnosed with breast cancer, and was concerned that personal care products could play a role in reoccurrence. During her recovery she changed her diet and radically changed her personal care routine. Here are her recommendations for products which she found particularly helpful.

After my breast cancer diagnosis, I changed most of my beauty products and many household items as well. I never gave this much thought before. But many products have toxic industrial chemicals, like carcinogens, pesticides, reproductive toxins and hormone disruptors which can lead to cancer. Ugh!

I learned about the Dirty Dozen toxic cosmetic chemicals to avoid — and now use an app called Think Dirty if I’m not sure about a product (which is basically almost always!) I love that you can use the app to read a UPC code and it rates the result for you. Admittedly, about half of the products I’ve tried to scan aren’t in their database but they are adding them all the time. If I’m not sure, I don’t buy it. 

By far my favourite store so far, The Detox Market  carry so many clean beauty brands it can be overwhelming. Another great store is Pure and Simple. But here are a few of my favs (I absolutely do not work for any of these brands, this is just my opinion):

• Sunscreen for the Face – The Body Deli (which has a fabulous line), specifically Solar Day Cream. I’ve also tried ThinkSport Every Day Face which is more economical and has a slight tint to it that I like. 
• Sunscreen for the Body – Green Beaver is my go to. See ewg.org for a sunscreen guide. 
• Face Wash – Sukin is very reasonably priced and I love their facial cleanser
• Face Moisturizer – Creme de la Rose by The Body Deli, I just LOVE this stuff! It’s expensive but worth it. 
• Toothpaste – Toms of Maine which is a little different than Crest/Colgate but still a little minty
• Makeup – W3LL People and Jane Iredale
• Deodorant – Green Beaver – it takes a few weeks for your body to adjust but you need to get away from the Aluminum in most deodorants
• Soap and Body Care – Dr. Bronners – this is a great line. I switched out all of the soap dispensers in my home with their liquid soap and also love their hand and body lotion. 
• Hair – yes your hair is going to come back! (if you had chemotherapy like me), and it’s highly likely it will come back curly! I am still searching for the perfect shampoo and conditioner – if you find one let me know!
• Hair Colour: Organic Colour Systems – this was recommended by my naturopath Dr. Jill Shainhouse who has quite a bit of knowledge in this area. The salon I’ve just tried with good results is Diana Osborne
• Finally, I had physiotherapy to help get my range of motion back after surgery – and absolutely loved Motion Medicine which my physiotherapist introduced me to. It really does help relieve pain and helps improve motion – plus gives you a tingling feeling from the menthol about 5 minutes later!