The Quest for Clean

Tools and Tips on selecting food and cosmetic products that support a healthier lifestyle.

Perhaps I'm looking for something to blame for my shaky memory, crepey skin, or quaky internal reactions to certain foods as I age. Perhaps I'm just mentally resolved to doing anything within my power to age just a tiny bit more gracefully. Whatever the motivation, I'm slowly identifying as a holistic health enthusiast -- or at the very least, a hobbyist. I'm intrigued by how food is made, what applications really do make my crepey skin disappear (none, fyi), and what extra crap is added to our everyday implements that could ultimately hinder this over-60 body's resilience and longevity. Plus, I just flat-out don't want to feel like crap.

In today’s world, taking charge of our own health has never been more important. With misleading food labels and an overload of choices, many of us mavens seek more straightforward ways to enhance our well-being. Reducing the number of additives in the food we eat and the products we use is just one of many paths, and not the easiest thing to accomplish. However, studies show that up to 90% of processed foods contain additives linked to health concerns. That gets my attention.

Understanding Additives in Food and Beauty Products

Additives are substances added to foods and personal care items to enhance flavor, appearance, or shelf life. While some additives are natural, many are synthetic and can pose risks, particularly for women experiencing hormonal changes. And just because something is "natural" doesn't mean it can't have a negative impact on how your body functions or responds. Recently, I asked my doctor about using particular moisturizers, and he replied that even some organic herbs absorbed through the skin can create problems if not used properly.

In beauty products, many additives can also disrupt hormone function. Chemicals such as parabens, used as preservatives, are absorbed through the skin and have been linked to hormonal imbalances. A study published by the FDA found parabens in breast tumors, raising concerns about their safety. Food additives like sodium nitrite, commonly found in processed meats, have been linked to an increased risk of certain cancers. The list goes on and on.

Visit Cleveland Clinic's web site for more information on parabens.

The Yuka App: Your Personal Guide to Healthier Choices

I am blessed to be surrounded by like-minded, active, mindful, and smart women in my age range who share my interest in being the best we can be. We enjoy researching and reviewing and dissecting and dreaming as we journey through this phase of life together. It was my two "energizer bunny" girlfriends/walking partners who introduced me to a tool that's unleashed an avalanche of awareness...the Yuka app.

Yuka has changed my shopping habits, my skin care routine, and my meal planning. (It's also tarnished my view of Corporate America and advertising, but that's another blog post for another day.) And it's saving me an enormous amount of time (even though I might be just a tiny bit obsessed). Yuka is 100% independent and financed by its users, not brands. It's also free, unless you want to be able to use the search function, which costs $15 a year and keeps it alive.

This app is a powerful tool designed to help evaluate the quality of food and cosmetic products. By simply scanning barcodes, Yuka delivers instant insights on ingredients, nutritional value, and potential risks associated with the products. The app analyzes ingredients and rates the product on a scale from 0 to 100 for overall health impacts and nutritional quality.

Yuka has empowered me to make my own health-related decisions while understanding harmful additives, leading to a more informed shopping experience. It can also supply simple nutritional information regarding fats, sugars, and calories. (Note: they do not rate vitamins, supplements, cleaning products, or high protein products such as whey powder.)

If you want to go deeper, the app will lead you to descriptions of the additives and their risk level, giving you the freedom to determine your risk tolerance. It suggests healthier replacements for your powders or pomades or power bars, should you decide to toss them. Disclaimer: in our experience, some of the "healthier" products are not as effective, and many of them are more expensive. For me, this is still a rewarding and fun experiment that can lead to positive outcomes.

For giggles, picture David and me running around Target like we were competing on a game show, scanning everything we pick up and announcing its score. "Dave's Killer Bread...100! Cheetos...0!!!"

The carrot logo looks a lot like Instacart...

You can download the Yuka app on any App Store. Check out their blog here.

PS (There are other apps out there offering similar analysis...I encourage you to find the one you feel most confident in.)

Pleasant Surprises

Labels and advertising can be powerful and influential, particularly if that's as far as you look. Don't stop there, though, if you really want to take your clean choices to the next level. Scanning the consumer goods we already owned was an eye-opener...our assumptions on their healthy attributes were often debunked. Some boutique brands proclaiming to be "clean" or "free of..." rated low, and some popular, mass-marketed consumer brands rated high.

Tip...don't pressure yourself to toss everything at once, or at all. Products can be phased out or used in moderation if you really love them or have already invested and don't want to waste.

Lesson...don't ASS-U-ME (remember that one??) ;)

Product Recommendations for a Healthier Lifestyle

While the Yuka app is an excellent resource, it's not the only resource. Incorporating mindful practices, reading current articles from respected publications, gathering recommendations from like-minded (intelligent) friends, and listening to messages from your own body can further optimize your health journey.

Here are some of the discoveries from my own journey...all rated on Yuka as Excellent (76-100) if they fell in a qualified category.

Eminence Organic Skin Care Collection

If you zoom in on these labels, you will see words like "anti-aging" and "line reducing"...

My goodness if I journaled all the skin care products I've tried (and added up all the money I spent trying them), the account would take up this whole blog. There are some excellent products out there...more than ever. And everyone's skin is so different! The Eminence line works very well for me and really truly is clean. (They had me at "age corrective!") The photo shows the specific products I've landed on for my personal daily routine after having 2 facials in 2 different locations to evaluate (and returning a few). Eminence also plants a tree for every order through a program called Forests For The Future (current count 29 million trees) and there are lots of variations to address various skin needs. Win win win!

Check out Eminence Organics' mission and tree-planting program here.

Clarins Self Tanner

Vanity, oh vanity. Many self-tanning lotions "tan" your skin, but also make age spots darker. Sigh. Aerosol "spray-ons" have their own problematic attributes. Just a few drops of this stuff in your regular body lotion adds a healthy glow, and so far for me, leaves the brown spots alone. Even just an application or two makes me feel less ghostly, so bring on the psychological benefits and save the skin cancer.

Dazzle Dry Nail Mend (and polish collection)

Humble brag. Back in May, I treated myself to a mani-pedi at the spectacular Kimpton Seafire Spa in Grand Cayman (daaahhh-liing) and discovered they exclusively used this polish line I'd never heard of. It literally dries in 5 minutes. What particularly intrigued me is the company's commitment to clean, in addition to the quick dry time and brilliant, sensibly-named colors. (Isn't Caribbean Coral much more descriptive than Toucan Do It If You Try?) An oil called Mend miraculously replenishes the white lines and spots that appear over time from wearing polishes, which dry out your nail. The Mini-Kit allows you to try a color without buying a full-size bottle and includes Revive, a solution to extend the life of your polishes that have gotten "gloopy." Excited about my newfound favorite, I researched salons in my town offering Dazzle Dry and found one just blocks away. Yay! Appointment booked. Move over, OPI...Susie Is My Avatar has left the building.

Note: Mend rated Excellent on Yuka, as did a few other of Dazzle Dry's nail maintenance items. The polish (and all polish)...not so much...yet they meet the criteria for humane and non-toxic. I still love the eco-friendly, ethical, socially responsible mission of this company...they have converted me.

Read Dazzle Dry's sustainable, ethical mission statement here.

Hello Toothpaste

I'm a long-time Crest Complete with Scope Outlast customer (the one with the little stripes)...so reluctantly, my incremental intentions to "Yuka-fy" my life led me to phase in the Hello line. Sold in many traditional retail outlets and offering different approaches to mouth health (charcoal, vitamin C, whitening, etc), it rated highly and also tastes great. And the package is recyclable. Our Target stocks several choices in this line...I bet yours does, too.

Hairspray and Leave-In Conditioner

Bye Bye cheap Garnier Fructis...hello, not-as-cheap Plump For Joy! I don't use hairspray every day, but it's still affirming to know I'm not inhaling as many toxic fumes or strong smells when I do. And this one luckily works better than my standard go-to from my pre-Yuka life...particularly in Florida humidity.

Shea Moisture offers many wonderful hair care products. I like this Daily Hydration Leave-In Treatment for its light coconut smell and heat protection from my blow dryer and hot rollers. (Yes, I did say hot rollers!!)

Facial Cosmetics

An internet search will pull up about a million "clean" cosmetic lines and products. A quick Yuka scan will eliminate (or delineate) a bunch of them. Embracing the paradigm that my skin is basically one large organ and that foundations, concealers, blushes, and eye shadows sit on my skin all day, exposing my entire body to whatever is in the formula, I am now officially taking this category seriously. This includes being more intentional about what comes into direct or indirect contact with my eyes, such as mascara and eyeliner. Some of the self-proclaimed "cleaner" brands I tried and tested were inconsistent...for example, Pur, Ilia, and Saia are firmly planted in the clean category overall -- yet both had highly rated products as well as poorly rated products in their mix. Be specific when you ask.

Laroche Posay Body Lotion

I saw the samples in a basket at my dermatologist's office and assumed they were just promo items dropped off by a sales rep. Then I scanned. Smooth, creamy, smells clean and light. Cera Ve...you let me down. Cetaphil...no surprise...also scored an Excellent rating on Yuka.

Suntegrity Face Primer

The praises and perils of sunscreens have evolved over time. Fortunately, a lot of scientifically-based current information now exists at our fingertips, compared to what we grew up with. (Baby oil and Sun-In, anyone? Ugh...) Admittedly, I'm not in the habit of daily slathering with sunscreen, although I am increasingly protective of my aging face and had already incorporated a primer with sunscreen into my daily routine to help fill lines and hold makeup in place. How pleased I was to learn the primer I'd already adopted scored in the Excellent range on Yuka! The pump delivery system is efficient and doesn't make a mess. It does contain zinc oxide, but rubs in smoothly with no white trace. Suntegrity is a keeper for me.

See CNN's list of safest sunscreens for 2025 here.

Shameless Plug...

OK you know if you know me or have read any of my previous blogs, it's no secret I'm a serious Trader Joe's Fan Girl. Yuka taught me an illuminating lesson, though...TJ's branding is solidly founded on selling only products with natural ingredients. However, even their products range in ratings. Here are three tried and true TJ staples you'll find in our house (now that we know!) where something else of similar purpose used to be.

Trader Joe's Almond Ginger Oatmeal Exfoliant Bar

We are bar soap people. Many of you are not (no judgement). This one is not only clean and contains natural ingredients, it's inexpensive and larger than regular bar soap, so it lasts longer. It smells fresh and the oatmeal adds a touch of exfoliation. The wrapper is paper. What else can you ask for? Please don't try to eat this, though. ;)

Trader Joe's Energy Bars

Woooooo there are as many versions of protein/energy/meal replacement bars out there as there are dumb reality shows! I don't tend to get enough protein in my diet, so a bar in the car is a go-to gap-filler for me. The peanut butter version scored just a bit higher than the chocolate chip and has more protein. But the chocolate chip sure is a satisfying snack when what I really want is the jumbo cookie from the coffee shop downstairs.

Trader Joe's Coconut Milk

Coconut milk is coconut milk, no? No. Even the simple canned stuff on the International Foods aisle can have additives like guar gum in them. Not this one, though...ingredients read coconut milk, water. If you're an almond milk loyalist, try Calafia Farms Organic Unsweetened Almond Milk...three ingredients...water, almonds, and sea salt.

Trader Joe's Lemon Room Spray

I'm not sure there's a worse product on the market for overall physical and environmental health than Febreze (except maybe Round Up). So I was more than happy to trade my leftover aerosol odor spray for this cute, fresh, and non-aerosol alternative with just a handful of ingredients including lemon myrtle and spearmint oil, even though Yuka does not have a rating system for this product. I keep one on the back of each of our commodes to remind my husband to please use it. ;)

For additional research on the health risks of air fresheners, check out this article and hundreds of others.

Tips for Reducing Additive Intake

If you care about this stuff too, here are some simple things you can do...

Read Labels Carefully

Make it a habit to read product labels and look deeper than the claims on the front of the package. Focus on avoiding additives like MSG, artificial colors (including "caramel" and color enhancers in seafood or meat), and excessive sugars. Soy has many names, as do gluten and corn syrup. If you can't pronounce it or spell it, look it up! Conveniently, we now have mini computers and scanners on the ends of our arms (aka, smart phones). Special note: many additives banned in Europe are approved in the U.S.

Make Your Own

Rather than relying on pre-packaged meals laden with additives if you're in a hurry or not interested in spending time each day cooking, try meal prepping. By preparing your meals in advance, you control what goes into your food, allowing you the satisfaction of knowing you’re eating clean. Then the healthier option is readily available and deters you from leaning on the convenience of pre-packaged, highly processed foods. Items like salad dressings, dips, spice rubs, and soup bases are easy to make and store well. Rule of thumb: the closer you get to one ingredient, the better.

Educate Yourself on Additives

Stay informed about common additives and their potential health effects. The food industry changes regularly and there are new medical studies released often. Numerous online resources summarize additives and their impacts, making it easy to stay updated. Recent national news has relayed upcoming bans on petroleum-based food dyes and other potentially harmful chemicals, which means items produced going forward will not pass inspection if it includes these substances. Yet there still may be grandfathered-in products lingering on a shelf at your favorite grocery store or big box. It's also fair to say that not all food additives are harmful. And please please please don't rely on just one source. Knowledge is power.

Engage with a Community

Motivation and inspiration! We sometimes hit a cafe for a healthy snack on our walks.

Connect with health-focused communities, whether online or locally. (Or get yourself some energetic, smart, health-minded, walking girlfriends!) These groups can provide encouragement, share tips and tools, and recommend products that have worked for them, keeping you motivated on your health journey. For me, interest in improving my health has created an opportunity for lively, engaging, educational, and (mostly) non-political conversation with people I really like. The regular morning walk chat among us walking gals is typically peppered with food/health topics alongside what we're currently watching on Netflix or reading (or both), so by the time I get home, I've got a whole new world to explore.

Other Clean Living Resources I Love

• For whole food and easy recipes, I gravitate to Giada Laurentis' Eat Better, Feel Better cookbook. I could eat a vat of her sweet potato hummus and chia breakfast pudding (not at the same time though). For a sample of her recipes, click here.

• Non-toxic cookware are those made without PFAS chemicals, including stainless steel, cast iron and enameled cast iron, carbon steel, pure ceramic cookware, glass, and PFAS free ceramic coated cookware. My personal favorites are my grandmother's cast iron skillets and a our full set of Langostina hammered copper lined with stainless steel cookware, which I partly love because they look pretty. Bonus.

• Food storage is another place where you can make healthier choices. And we love our leftovers!! I traded in my Baggies and plastic "Tupperware" style containers (well, most of them) for stackable Pyrex glass containers with either bamboo or silicone lids.

Parting advice...do your homework, embrace change in increments, and know your body. You are perfectly and wonderfully made.

To Read On...

https://www.organicauthority.com/organic-food-recipes/non-toxic-cookware-brands-to-keep-chemicals-out-of-your-food

https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/mood-by-microbe/202402/4-ways-that-food-additives-affect-your-health

https://drjessesantiano.com/10-toxic-food-additives-in-america-the-hidden-dangers/