Given its vital role, it is important to be aware of potential threats to this "front line" organ. Here's a quick "rhetorical" quiz: Do you know what Imidazolidinyl urea, Triethanolamine, and Carrageenan are? These are ingredients found in many bath and body products that are known to have harmful impurities and/or cause cancer in humans. Some of these harmful ingredients can clog your pores, inhibiting the skin's cleansing ability. Other harmful ingredients are penetration enhancers allowing other harmful chemicals to enter into the skin.

TIP: Read the ingredients of all the bath and body products you purchase carefully. There are reference websites you can use to look up ingredients of cosmetics, bath, and skin products to determine if they pose any health risk. One reference site is

Although there are many products that have harmful ingredients, there are also many healthy alternatives. Some of these alternative products have only minimal amounts of preservatives to prevent spoilage, others are 100% chemical-free, 100% natural, or certified organic.

Read the ingredient label the next time you pick up your favorite shower gel or hand cream. Are these the ingredients you want absorbed into your skin? If not, try a chemical-free brand and be good not only to your skin, but your whole body.
About the Author

Cassandra Harris strategically blends her extensive professional education and experience as a registered nurse, and masters-prepared clinical nurse counselor, with her passionate and extensive holistic-living research and study. The result is the Creations By Cassandra product brand and lifestyle information.