Need help researching non-toxic products? Overwhelmed by the over inundation of options and don’t know what’s truly toxin-free?
I remember feeling like that when I really kicked up my commitment to non-toxic living back in 2020. I couldn’t discern between something that was actually not going to harm my health and something that was greenwashed.
Greenwashing, by the way, is something nearly every company is doing these days – it is a marketing trick to get you to believe a product is good for you and/or the environment. Unfortunately, a lot of people fall for it (including myself) because companies pay BIG BUCKS to convince people to buy their products. They’re really good at it too.
We just have to be smarter than their clever tactics by relying on different research resources that truly have our health and wellbeing in mind.
To help, here are my top 6 resources when trying to find non-toxic products:
- MADE SAFE
I first found MADE SAFE when searching for non-toxic candles. Which, hello! They don’t exist except for ONE company (thank you, Fontana!). MADE SAFE is a non-profit created by a mom who was plagued with the confusion of her children’s health issues. Come to find out, the toxic products in our every day items were the culprit. With MADE SAFE, you can find certified products that do not have any harmful or hazarous chemicals that can harm our health, including over 6500 ingredients that they ban in their products when evaluating MADE SAFE certification.
The navigation of the website is incredibly easy and you can search from categories like Apparel, Baby & Child, and Household, just to name a few.
You can read more about MADE SAFE by clicking here or you can follow them on Instagram. - I Read Labels for You
Irena, the founder of I Read Labels for You, is amazing. Not only does she have incredibly well-researched data, but she puts her top product picks in infographs on Instagram and creates all kinds of guides and e-books (some are free, while some are not). In fact, her infographs helped me switch a lot of my personal care products including body wash, toothpaste, and conditioner.
She even asks her followers for feedback, including what products they want to see reviewed, or what products they typically use. This helps her bring relavant content that is actually usable by her readers! - ThinkDirty
This app was recommended to me by the Office Coordinator at my chiropractor’s office when I was looking for a non-toxic lotion. It has come into handy so much when either looking for a new product, when analyzing my existing inventory of things I already own, or while deciding to buy something new in the store. Their search feature, product categories, and scanning functionality literally allow you to find information on anything. Thanks to ThinkDirty, I learned how chemical-ridden my face wash was that I had been using for nearly 12 years, and found an awesome non-toxic alternative. You can even build your own lists of products you want to save.
To make it easy for consumers, they use a 10-point scale to evaluate how toxic a product is – 0 being a product with clean ingredients and 10 being a product with dirty ingredients. If a product falls somewhere in the middle, you can click on the ingredient in question and it will provide full details on the alternative names, health risks, and even scientific literature and research to back up their data. Their color-coding organization make it even simpler to see whether a product is “dirty” at a glance (0-3 is green, 4-7 is yellow, and 8-10 is red). - Environmental Working Group (EWG)
The EWG was researching toxic ingredients before it was cool – try, since 1993! They are the true trailblazers of non-toxic product research and advocacy.
They have two particularly amazing resources – (1) the Skin Deep Database which allows you to search for products, brands, or ingredients in personal care products and (2) the Dirty Dozen list, a list of the dirtiest produce by pesticide level. We actually print out the Dirty Dozen list (and their sister list, the Clean Fifteen) and put it on our refridgerator. It helps us choose which produce to buy organic because of their high pesticide levels, and which is safer to buy conventionally. - Food Babe
Talk about a leader in the field of non-toxic products. Vani Hari has been exposing the deception tactics used by big food and agricultural companies for years.
I mean, did she break my heart when she told me that Hippeas had questionable ingredients? Sure! But, I know that awareness is king when it comes to healthy food choices. My husband and I know we aren’t perfect eaters all the time. That’s not even the goal. However, if we are aware, we can cognoscently make well-informed decisions about what goes in our bodies rather than being in the dark. It really gives us back the power, rather than being bamboozled by marketing.
I mean, just pick something in your kitchen cupboard and you will probably find something on the ingredients list that has you asking, “What is thatI?“. We lived like that for years until we learned about resources like Vani’s. Thanks to her videos, infographs, books, and articles, she is a critical resource for food awareness and education. - Gimme the Good Stuff
Gimme the Good Stuff was shared by a friend this past summer, and I am so thankful I learned about it. This website, marketed towards “conscious parenting”, is home to several product guides for safe, non-toxic, natural, and organic products for you, your family, and your home.
Just hover over here SHOP NOW and PRODUCT GUIDES tabs at the top of the page and you will find dozens of categories to pick from for non-toxic, clean products. There is practically nothing you can’t find on this website – which, by the way, was founded by a mama named Maia James who wanted to help parents understand the risk of products and provide safer alternatives.
Seriously, whether you are in the market for water bottles and sippy cups, eco-friendly kitchen products, or pet care to keep your furry friends safe, you will find what you’re looking for on Gimme the Good Stuff.
Other great resources
The list below contains other amazing influencers and bloggers who share non-toxic product alternatives, mostly on their social media platforms. I hope to continue building upon this list to ensure you guys are getting as many resources as possible when picking out safer products!
