Almost everyone loves a good bath bomb, they are relaxing, they smell good, and often times, are hypnotizing to watch. But... More often then not when you buy a bath bomb, you probably don't realize how harmful the ingredients actually are.
What exactly are in these bath bombs that are so damaging? Through some of my own research I have made a little list.
"Fragrance". Sounds fresh, and nice right? Wrong. This is probably one of the most toxic ingredients in bath bombs, as well as many other bath products. Why are synthetic scents so bad? Really, i could go on and on with explanations for that, but here are a few big ones. An estimate of 95 percent of chemicals used in fragrances are derived from petroleum.
Lots of these are known endocrine disruptors, other chemicals that help to trigger things like hormonal imbalance and increase risk of things like infertility, breast cancer, type 2 diabetes and lots more. These things are especially damaging to children and pregnant women, along with their babies still developing in the womb. If you're reading over ingredients and see things like "Fragrance oils", "Fragrance", "Fragrance oil blend" are all big red flags. They are a legal catch. Fragrance ingredients have been linked to neurotoxicity, cancer, allergens, respiratory issues, lots of scary stuff. Acetaldehyde, a compound in fragrance , is a carcinogenic to humans and damages kidneys, the nervous system, and the respiratory system.
Really, there is a lot more that can be said regarding dyes, acids, and GMO starches, but even i like to add a splash of color to my bath bombs sometimes, and making them for other people, I am guilty of using little bits of glitter here and there. But even that, when you think about how much is used all over the world, it really can be damaging to the environment, and the eco system. Where does glitter go when it gets washed down the drain? Straight to the ocean my friend. Now if it were a few people using a pinch here and there, it might not be as big of a deal, however that is not the case... So it's safe to just always be mindful of those things.
My go to recipe for bath bombs only have a few ingredients, and with the help of good pharmaceutical grade essential oils, can create a real relaxing, healthy, beneficial bath. I recently made a large batch of bath bombs to sell at a production I was performing in. ( The sorcerers apprentice) And they actually sold really well. All I used was baking soda, epsom salts, organic corn starch, organic citric acid, organic grapeseed oil, pharmaceutical grade essential oils, a couple drops of food coloring, and a tiny bit of glitter. I myself am not a huge fan of glitter, or color in my bath, but it made them a bit more magical, so it matched the theme of the ballet better.
Getting back on track, its oh so important to pay attention to what you are putting on your skin, your skin is the largest organ on your body, and applying damaging chemicals to your skin can almost be worse than actually ingesting them. The fact that a bath bomb can affect a baby in the womb is scary, and there is absolutely no need for that nonsense. We should not have to be so paranoid about little things like lotion, soap, toothpaste, shampoo, lipgloss, deodorant, etc. But alas, this is the world we live in, and I can't stress enough how important it is to be aware of what you let come in contact with your body.
Healthy living leads to happy living, and even if it means starting with bath products, or something smaller, you can begin to live a chemical free life. You have to start somewhere, even if that somewhere is just being aware.
Sincerely Cedrusilva.
