If you’ve been following along, you know that I am newly pregnant after a very long journey and multiple rounds of IVF. After years of IVF, I became an expert in chemicals that not only disrupt our fertility, but cause cancers and other diseases. Unfortunately, most of the stuff in your medicine cabinet and makeup bags are filled with such chemicals because the U.S. has extremely lax laws about regulating both industries.
Methodically cutting these chemicals out of my life was a major part of my being able to get pregnant. Once I became pregnant, I was even more cognizant of what I put on my skin, knowing that whatever I used would be absorbed into my bloodstream and passed on to a growing baby. Any toxins or chemicals could have horrific effects. For instance, did you know that using any skincare with Retinol in it could cause horrible birth defects? Phthalates and parabens, which are incredibly common in most beauty products and soaps, can also cause birth defects. Even the “feel good” brands with the organic and clean branding tend to hide lots of bad chemicals inside them, so I had to really do a lot of research to find the products I am recommending below.
So, I put my journalist hat on and scoured all of my existing products and added new ones that I could feel guilt-free using while I am pregnant without sacrificing quality. Will you pay a little more for clean beauty? Yes. But the ingredients are so much better for you and can improve your health, fertility and other aspects of your life longterm. Whether you are pregnant or not, I totally suggest switching to these brands so that you can weed out these harsh chemicals.
Skincare:
Tata Harper Water Lock Moisturizer: Tata Harper’s skincare line is the gold standard for clean beauty. You can feel safe putting literally anything from her line on your skin, and this moisturizer ($68) is the GOAT. It has a lovely smell and goes onto your skin super smoothly. I use it every morning after showering and it kept my skin supple through a particularly harsh winter in New York. The packaging is brilliant and eco friendly. You can buy refills to drop into the container at a lesser price than $68 to reduce your environmental impact. Overall I cannot recommend this product enough.
Goopgenes Eye Cream: Say what you want about Gwyneth Paltrow, but she remains committed to clean beauty and was one of its early proponents. Pre-pregnancy, I was very into retinol-based products to target fine lines and wrinkles, but since retinol is toxic to growing babies, I had to find an alternative. I chose this $55 eye cream after reading the glowing reviews, and I have to agree with them. I use it in the mornings because I use a heavy duty cream at night.
Jurlique Skin Balancing Face Oil: I’ve been using this Jurlique face oil for years and it lasts forever for its $55. This natural skin oil works similarly to a serum without making your face greasy. It is the part of my nightly routine because it feels like it’s locking in my moisture and has the most glorious smell to it that relaxes me before bed. It’s almost Pavlovian at this point that once I apply Jurlique, my body begins preparing itself for sleep.
Kari Gran Essential Serum Balm: This Seattle-based brand hits on all the marks. It is eco friendly, in glass packaging, it only uses plant-based ingredients and essential oils and it WORKS. Their entire range is amazing, but their essential serum balm ($65) is a home run unlike any product I’ve ever used before. This pot of creamy product goes such a long way and is incredibly rich. I use it every night under my eyes since it nourishes and locks in moisture. If I have any dry patches on my face, or I have a cold and have chapped skin, I apply it there as well and by the next morning, the chapping is completely gone. It’s borderline miracle cream.
Weleda Skinfood Nighttime Moisturizer: At night, I like a heavier moisturizer that I typically wouldn’t wear during the day under makeup. A friend turned me on to Weleda’s Skinfood which is a super thick moisturizer and is incredibly reasonably priced at just $12.
Makeup:
100% Pure Cosmetics Foundation: On the days I do my makeup (which isn’t very often anymore, thanks pandemic), I’ve been super conscious about what goes onto my skin. This starts with my foundation, and luckily I found 100% Pure Cosmetics, which only uses pigments and ingredients derived from plants. I use their full coverage foundation with sun protection ($48) and I’ve been impressed by how smoothly it goes on and covers imperfections. It’s almost velvety in texture. The range comes in a ton of different shades.
Ilia Limitless Mascara: I am a mascara snob, and while I miss my tried and true Benefit Cosmetics “They’re Real” mascara, I just could not justify passing its chemicals to my baby. When it came to the clean beauty makers, Ilia’s Limitless mascara ($28) is the clear winner. It lengthens and extends, even if it doesn’t have the wow factor of my Benefit mascara. It gets the job done at a reasonable price and without the ingredients I am avoiding.
Kosas Weightless Lipstick: This clean beauty brand is every bit as good as prestige lipsticks such as Nars, which was my old favorite before switching to Kosas. It is super highly pigmented and long-lasting, and if I didn’t know it was clean I would swear it isn’t. It’s $28 each and comes in a ton of great colors.
Personal Care:
Shmidt’s Deodorant: I have to say, natural deodorants have come SUCH a long way during the last few years. Traditional deodorants are horrible for you. They typically contain aluminum, which has been linked to cancer, and other chemicals I don’t want in by body. Years ago I switched to natural deodorant, but could only use it in the colder months because it just didn’t hold up in heat. But, more recently they’ve gotten their formulas right. Shmidt’s natural deodorant ($10) is as good as anything you’d find on the shelf at CVS but without the toxins. It’s my go-to for the protection it offers, great natural scents and lack of harsh toxins.
Tom’s Toothpaste: It’s important to avoid anything with “whitening” properties during pregnancy because it can be harmful to your baby. I switched from Colgate to Tom’s once I became pregnant because the brand espouses clean personal care and costs about the same price as normal toothpastes.
Public Goods Shampoo, Conditioner and Body Wash: One of the sneakiest source of phthalates, paragons and SLS is in your body wash and haircare. Even brands that claim to be clean often uses these toxins in their products (seriously, go look at the ingredient list for your shampoo and prepare to be horrified), and it was very important for me to find formulations without them. I love the range of personal care from Public Goods, a Los Angeles-based store that is committed to reasonably priced clean products.
Read More of Our IVF Coverage:
Chic and Functional Diaper Bags with Freshly Picked
Baby Registry Must-Haves For New Moms
Clean Skincare & Makeup While Pregnant.
IVF Diary: My First, Unsuccessful Round of Egg Freezing
IVF Diary: My Second Round of Egg Freezing
IVF Diary: Egg Retrieval, Recovery & Embryo Results
IVF Diary: My Third Round of Egg Freezing
IVF Diary: Successful Results From Our Third Round of IVF
The Supplements I Take To Improve Egg Quality
Wow, thanks so much for doing all of the research! After following your supplements guide, I too, am beyond blessed to say I am finally pregnant too! I will be ordering and trying these products for sure! It’s so sad that even products that claim to be clean, are not.