Before I post the recipes I mentioned in my last post, I'd like to mention a few health & beauty products I've recently come across which I've found really good and helpful for keeping my external symptoms at bay.
At the moment I'm very into natural toiletries; I was really interested to read on Katie's blog, a few weeks ago, that parabens are thought to overload the immune system, thus triggering allergic responses as well as affecting hormone levels. I've long been concerned about the possible negative effects of chemicals in toiletries, household cleaners, make-up etc, absorbed by the body, and that little nugget of information really made me wonder about my own problems with allergies and intolerances. So, I decided to seek out some paraben-free products.
Facial skincare
Since I've been using Faith in Nature's cleanser, toner and moisturising night cream, the overall tone of my skin is much improved. I still get the occasional spot, but many fewer blemishes, dry and sore patches. I even managed to venture out of the front door without foundation for a few days last week: that's not something I've achieved on a regular basis since I was about twelve! The products are very gentle, but effective and delicately fragranced with lavender, which helps to calm the skin. The handcream is good too; very easily absorbed. I buy mine from my local independent health food shop, but you can order products from the Faith in Nature shop. They're reasonably priced too!
Shower gel
My skin is very dry and can get quite scaly. I spend a fortune on moisturising shower gels and body lotions, mostly with little noticeable improvement. The only halfway effective solution I've previously come up with, is to douse myself in baby oil while still wet from the shower, but my avoidance of parabens counts that option out. Instead I've started using a shower cream made from goats milk and natural oils, which I picked up a couple of weeks ago at the Suffolk Show(of all places!). It's made by Roseacre, based in Ireland, but I'm sure there must be similar products made by other companies available. My assessment? It's great! The shower cream is quite gloopy and doesn't lather as much as you might expect, but it cleanses without drying or irritation. I hardly need to apply any additional moisturisers anymore. And it really doesn't smell of 'goat' at all! ;)
Toothpaste
Last, but not least, is Kingfisher toothpaste. Since I've been using it I haven't suffered a single mouth ulcer or sore patch (usually a fairly constant complaint, even when I was following the anti-Candida diet religiously). Not only that, my teeth have never been whiter! Its even getting to work on the tartar and tea stains on my lower front teeth, and usually only my dentist can deal with those! My only complaint is that my mouth doesn't feel as fresh as it might using conventional toothpaste, but overall, the pros vastly outweigh any cons.
A great bonus of all of these products is that they are produced in the British isles, from locally and/or ethically sourced ingredients and using largely recyclable packaging. Great if you're keeping an eye on your carbon footprint.
No comments:
Post a Comment