I do the work that I do because I love the human body and the feeling of being well. As human beings, we are born with a birthright to health and wellness.

That said, the corporations that produce goods for our consumption owe it to us to provide consumables that are safe. Ideally, that’s how it should be. In the real world, however, that could not be further from the truth.

The truth is that there is little to no regulations in the wellness and beauty markets here in the United States of America. Countless lives are put at risk due to toxicant exposure while some companies prioritize profits over people’s health.

It’s also true that a safer and effective derivative of the traditional beauty and wellness market has been gaining momentum over the past few years. You might have heard about this segment, the “clean” beauty market. I prefer to use the term “toxicant-free” because let’s face a fact, what’s harming us are toxicants – man-made or synthetic substances that can potentially harm biological organisms and or the environment.

It’s also true that a safer and effective derivative of the traditional beauty and wellness market has been gaining momentum over the past few years. You might have heard about this segment, the “clean” beauty market. I prefer to use the term “toxicant-free” because let’s face a fact, what’s harming us are toxicants – man-made or synthetic substances that can potentially harm biological organisms and or the environment.

It’s also true that a safer and effective derivative of the traditional beauty and wellness market has been gaining momentum over the past few years. You might have heard about this segment, the “clean” beauty market. I prefer to use the term “toxicant-free” because let’s face a fact, what’s harming us are toxicants – man-made or synthetic substances that can potentially harm biological organisms and or the environment.

It’s also true that a safer and effective derivative of the traditional beauty and wellness market has been gaining momentum over the past few years. You might have heard about this segment, the “clean” beauty market. I prefer to use the term “toxicant-free” because let’s face a fact, what’s harming us are toxicants – man-made or synthetic substances that can potentially harm biological organisms and or the environment.

Toxicants are capable of causing DNA/cellular damage, neurological damage, endocrine disruption, allergies, infertility, environmental damage, organ damage and more.

As consumers become more aware of potential dangers from conventional brands they are demanding safer alternatives, and the clean beauty market, driven by indie brands are delivering. That’s great and wonderful and what we need. Here’s the problem. There is a lack of equity in the clean beauty space, which is no different from the conventional space.

Consider this bit of information. Black women spend upwards of 6.7 Billion dollars annually on beauty/cosmetics products and are being marketed the most harmful ingredients. A whopping 78% of the products purchased by black women contain ingredients that are potentially harmful to their health. So how do we change this? We create, we educate and we repeat. Black women deserve to have access to clean cosmetics and beauty just like their white counterparts.

We have to stay in the know. We have to step into this space and claim our right to produce and consume “cleaner” beauty and wellness products. It’s not a fallacy, they do exist, and black artisans are creators of functional, high-performing and safer alternatives.

My mantra is health and wellness first because without them you have nothing. Staying in the know and being “woke” also requires us to be involved and representing on all levels; legislative, source to shelf, B to B and B to C.

This leads me to the reason I decided to write this blog. Have you ever heard of the PERSONAL CARE PRODUCT SAFETY ACT, which was introduced by Senator Dianne Feinstein and Senator Collins? This bill is meant to provide greater protection for consumers by giving the FDA the power to regulate ingredients in personal care products.

I support the bill and its efforts to provide more regulation in the beauty industry. Of course, not everyone will agree as there are proposed manufacturers registration fees (there are exceptions for small businesses) and not everyone is for government oversight.

The bill was first introduced by Senator Feinstein (D-California) on May 11th, 2017, but I’ve been following the bill since March 19th, 2018. What struck me, up until recently was that there were no black-owned businesses supporting the bill. Now keep in mind, black women are the ones most affected by toxicants in beauty and cosmetics.

I’m pleased to say that after a series of talks with representatives from Senator Feinstein’s office, Inside Outer Beauty Market is now an official supporter of the Personal Care Product Safety Act.

It’s important to arm all people, but especially black women and women of color with this knowledge so that the can make informed purchasing decisions. Once in the know, the purchasing decision is then entirely up to the consumer. What matters is that they know.

I encouraging beauty and wellness consumers to read the Personal Care Product Safety Act, ( here ) and decide for yourselves if it is worthy of your support. And if you do support the bill. Share it with your friends, family and community.

Stay tuned for my next post where I’ll be providing a breakdown of the bill.