“Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall… Who’s the Fairest One of All?” ~ Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs… Gluten Free Beauty

“Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall… Who’s the Fairest One of All?”
~ Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs…

~ Gluten Free Beauty ~

I think that one of the most amazing things to me is that fact that in my new Gluten-free life, I have found out that there is Gluten in Make-up!!

According to National Geographic, skin is the largest organ of your body! They also state that it was some 8 lbs! Amazing!

So when considering how much skin you have, & how it is an important line of self-defense during cold and flu season, while traveling and taking care of sick family members… must we consider keeping that skin safe, and moisturized with gluten free lotions and other beauty products?

For years, I have made my own coconut oil lotion and added a various mixture of Essential Oils to ward off illness, add to the skin’s elasticity, or to relax me.

Thankfully, according to the Mayo clinic, Gluten cannot be simply absorbed through the skin (http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/celiac-disease/expert-answers/celiac-disease/faq-20057879), but imagine that your lipstick contains gluten… you would be injesting it all day long! Every time you drank, licked your lips, ate something, or kissed someone, you would be exposed. Then constantly applying and reapplying, all the while unaware that you are setting yourself up for catastrophe, or a least a bad reaction in the not to distant future.

So, for a brief list of gluten free cosmetics companies, you can look at these, contact them directly and verify. Please keep in mind that I’ve not personally tried these yet!!

Red Apple Lipstick
Gabriel Cosmetics
Mineral Fusion
Nars
Afterglow Cosmetics

Here is another great list of gluten free cosmetics! http://www.alysarushton.com/gluten-free-self-care It is very detailed and easy to follow!

The List of Hidden Gluten items are as follows and can be found here:http://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/topic/34-gluten-free-lipstick/ and I have posted the ingredients listed below. Must give credit where credit is due!

“BARLEY DERIVED INGREDIENTS
AMINO PEPTIDE COMPLEX, BARLEY EXTRACT, HORDEUM VULGARE (BARLEY) EXTRACT, PHYTOSPHINGOSINE EXTRACT

WHEAT DERIVED INGREDIENTS
AMP-ISOSTEAROYL HYDROLYZED WHEAT PROTEIN, DISODIUM WHEATGERMAMIDO PEG-2 SULFOSUCCINATE, HYDROLYZED WHEAT GLUTEN
HYDROLYZED WHEAT PROTEIN, HYDROLYZED WHEAT PROTEIN PG-PROPYL SILANETRIOL, HYDROLYZED WHEAT STARCH, HYDROXYPROPYLTRIMONIUM HYDROLYZED WHEAT PROTEIN, STEARYLDIMONIUMHYDROXYPROPYL, HYDROLYZED WHEAT PROTEIN, WHEAT AMINO ACIDS, WHEAT BRAN EXTRACT, WHEAT GERM EXTRACT, WHEAT GERM GLYCERIDES
WHEAT GERM OIL, WHEAT GERMAMIDOPROPYLDIMONIUM HYDROXYPROPYL, HYDROLYZED WHEAT PROTEIN, WHEAT PROTEIN
WHEAT (TRITICUM VULGARE) BRAN EXTRACT, TRITICUM VULGARE (WHEAT) FLOUR LIPIDS, TRITICUM VULGARE (WHEAT) GERM EXTRACT, TRITICUM VULGARE (WHEAT) GERM OIL

SOY DERIVED INGREDIENTS
GLYCINE SOJA (SOYBEAN) EXTRACT, GLYCINE SOJA (SOYBEAN) FLOUR, GLYCINE SOJA (SOYBEAN) OIL, GLYCINE SOJA (SOYBEAN) PROTEIN, HYDROGENATED LECITHIN, HYDROGENATED SOY GLYCERIDE, HYDROLYZED SOY PROTEIN, LECITHIN, MIXED SOY PHOSPHOLIPIDS, PEG-5 SOYA STEROL, PEG-10 SOYA STEROL, PEG-16 SOYA STEROL, PEG-25 SOYA STEROL, SOY PHOSPHOLIPIDS, SOY STEROL, SOYBEAN EXTRACT, SOYBEAN OIL, SOYBEAN PHOSPHOLIPIDS, SOYBEAN STEROL, TOCOPHEROL, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE
TOCOPHERYL LINOLEATE”

When considering the effects of gluten on the body, one must now also consider the effects of GMOs! Many times, Soy beans are from GMO crops! According to this article, 93% of all soy is GMO! SCARY!! Especially if you are Celiac or Autoimmune! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/margie-kelly/genetically-modified-food_b_2039455.html

Others things to consider were found here and are as follows: http://glutenfreern.com/gluten-free-cosmetics/
“Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Flour, Cyclodextrin, Dextrin, Dextrin Palmitate, Hydrolyzed Malt Extract, Hydrolyzed Oat Flour, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Hydrolyzed Wheat Flour, Hydrolyzed Wheat Gluten
Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein/PVP Crosspolymer, Secale Cereale (Rye) Seed Flour, Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Gluten, Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Starch, Wheat Amino Acids, Wheat Germ Glycerides, Wheat Germamidopropalkonium Chloride, Wheat Protein, Wheatgermamidopropyl Ethyldimonium Ethosulfate and Yeast Extract.”

Consider looking through your bag of cosmetics (everyone has their favorite), and contact the company to get it “straight from the horses mouth” that their products are safe.

You may also want to consider making your own! I’ve done so for years with various products and love the savings on high quality beauty and health care as well as knowing where and how my products came into being… My next post will include some helpful recipes of homemade beauty products. 🙂

I will leave you with one last thing to consider, Emily Dickinson said “Beauty is not caused. It is.”

Beauty itself does not just come from the external, but from within. “A mode of conduct, a standard of courage, discipline, fortitude and integrity can do a great deal to make a woman beautiful.” Jacqueline Bissett

(All chosen quotes today were from brainyquote.com)

Until next time,
Happy Reading and Eating!
~ Christa ~

“Stuff that’s hidden and murky and ambiguous is scary because you don’t know what it does.” Jerry Garcia… Surprising Sources of Hidden Gluten!

“Stuff that’s hidden and murky and ambiguous is scary because you don’t know what it does.” Jerry Garcia

So just how far down does this rabbit hole go?

When first discovering that one must “give up” gluten, some may think, “So, can’t you just pick it out?”

Sadly, no. Gluten is the stuff that glues things together in many forms!

It is in make-up, gummed envelopes, labels and stamps, and other non-edibles. But what about every day foods?

Everyone knows about the baked goods that can contain gluten, but what about rye, barley and the cross-contamination of oats milled in locations that also mill those grains. Some would even think to add corn since corn also has a type of protein, or gluten in it.

Imagine sitting down to that wonderful Thanksgiving meal, you have your gluten free stuffing, and all the trimmings. You even went the extra mile and expense to purchase a hormone free turkey… but did you check to make sure it wasn’t self-basting? Did you know that self-basting turkeys can contain gluten? What about French fries, and playdough (the stuff that kids play with!) How about the cardboard boxes that orange juice is sold in?!?

To help out, here’s a small list of hidden sources of gluten… Some, you would never even think of!

Coatings, colorings, Emulsifiers, the fillers in luncheon meat and hot dogs, modified food starch, citric acid, flavorings made with grain alcohol (yes, this means you vanilla extract!!!) all contain gluten. Vegetable protein, certain vinegars, oils and soy sauce as well as, hard candy, candy bars, and many condiments can contain gluten as well.

To read more about the hidden sources of gluten please read the following links;

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/healthy-eating/special-diets/gluten-free

Click to access Hidden_Gluten_Sources.pdf

Read here about the hidden source of gluten in playdough! http://www.practicalgastro.com/pdf/September08/HlywiakArticle.pdf

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-7731/11-hidden-sources-of-gluten.html

Here is a great set of videos with great details!

This video is about hidden gluten!

Gluten in beer and alcohol.

Gluten in coffee and tea.

Gluten in Food Storage Containers.

Gluten in Medicines, Vitamins, and Probiotics.

There is a sea of knowledge and so much information. The best action is to educate yourself so that you may know why your body may do certain things. Through experimentation and deductive reasoning, you may find some answers. But then, sometimes, it’s just a mystery.

Recently, I drank bottled water with a flavored mix I added to it. The mix was sold as “gluten free” but still triggered a reaction. Could it have been due to the citric acid? Perhaps… who knows? Everyone’s body is different. Just because one person’s body reacts doesn’t mean that another person’s body will react the same way.

The purpose of my sharing this information is not to overload, but to help educate. If your body acts one way after eating or drinking something, it may not mean that it was because of the item itself, but perhaps because of the container it was stored in. Hopefully, through the process of elimination, you may find some answers.

The labyrinth of gluten is magnificent. In time, with a little luck, education, and intelligent experimentation, you and I both, will find our way!

Be blessed, don’t give up, and
Keep Reading and Eating!!
~ Christa ~