Natural Moisturizers

A thought just came to me as I was reaching for my lip balm. Using a petroleum-based lip balm, such as Chapstick, is like drinking Coca-Cola to quench thirst. It may feel good in the moment, but it's only going to dry you out more. I have a petroleum-based lip balm from a hospital I was at two years ago, and I feel silly that I haven't yet thrown it away.

Petroleum jelly, or white petrolatum, is terrible for your skin in the long run, and its purchase supports the oil industry, which harms the environment and contributes to global warming. Mineral oil is also a byproduct of petroleum processing, and should be avoided at all costs. I wonder if it was so named just to convince people that it is healthy. I can't imagine there are any beneficial minerals in it.

I have preferred to use natural lip balms such as shea butter, coconut oil, and olive oil. I haven't made a concoction with essential oils, I just use the butter or coconut oil straight. Of the three, shea butter is definitely the best. Shea butter also works as a natural sunscreen. Olive or coconut oil as a lip balm (and general moisturizer) definitely work, but they end up just making me hungry. Shea butter has more staying power, as it is thicker. Cocoa butter is also a good moisturizer, but I haven't found a brand that doesn't pollute it with other unnatural ingredients, such as parabens which are carcinogenic and disodium-EDTA which is harmful to the reproductive system.

Vegetable glycerine is also a good moisturizer, but I prefer to keep it in stock for making herbal tinctures. It's so good to just buy these items in bulk and use them for multiple purposes. You don't need to buy a foot cream, hand cream, lotion, and lip balm. One tub of shea butter or coconut oil supplies all those needs. Coconut oil even works well as a shaving cream. I really just use soap and water or hair conditioner for that, anyway. 

Another good thing about using these items is that you can reuse their containers for storing leftovers or other things. Shea butter comes in a plastic tub and coconut oil in a glass jar. And the vegetable glycerine and olive oil bottles are recyclable. I bet you'll end up saving money just by using these few items in your beauty care routine. A little bit goes a long way, and with how successful they are at moisturizing, over time you'll not need to use them so frequently because your skin will have improved.