Ironically, humans are destroying the world that we call home.

If that doesn’t infuriate you, I’m not quite sure what will. If it’s not global warming, it’s the chemicals in our products and food that companies are putting in for consumers to use or eat. Some foods that we ingest are of course toxic to our insides, while products that we put on our skin absorbs into our bodies causing harm. Not only are such products affecting people, but it’s also negatively impacting the living creatures that roam on our planet.

After receiving so many beauty products on Christmas, I decided to educate myself by looking up harmful ingredients found in skincare brands. I came across unfortunate but true information in the article, “10 Toxic Beauty Ingredients to Avoid” in which common additives are put into lotions, makeup, and soaps. Instead of helping skin stay moisturized and glowing, like the bottles claim, the added chemicals can dry out and irritate skin and can even cause cancer.

I’ve always been one of those buyers, like many others, that smells the shampoo before choosing that specific product to purchase; companies are aware of this. Fragrances and added dyes are incorporated into our perfumes, soaps, and lotions to make the substance appear and smell nice. However, when applying it to our bodies, they aren’t so nice after all.

Isn’t it odd that some lotions make our hands feel dry? Or that some lip balms only temporarily work until you have to apply it over and over again like a mad person? Companies intentionally make this happen so that you can keep using their brand in hopes that after the 10^th use it might actually work. Another gimmick that companies do is they put stickers saying, “Dermatologist Tested” on the front of their bottles to make consumers believe that it must be good for their skin.

Wrong! If a product is only tested, it does not mean that it was approved.

Think about that one, folks! I’m even beginning to think that our bodies don’t need sunscreen when going out on a sunny day since the chemicals in sunblock are more harmful than the sunrays itself.

What can you do, you may ask? You can simply take out the time to purchase paraben free products by looking at the ingredients found on the back of the bottle. I know it may be annoying and time-consuming but let me just say, it may help to prevent us from getting sick. We may not be able to avoid every toxic chemical, but we can reduce the amount by keeping a close eye.

But what about the animals? Ah, yes. My aunt recently gave me a foaming body wash from Dove and I couldn’t help but notice the fact that nowhere on the bottle did it say that it wasn’t tested on animals. I was in utter disbelief considering my family uses the soap on the regular.

I took it upon myself to look up brands that still have the nerve to test on animals and brands that generously don’t. Another website I found reveals the ugly acts that occur just so that humans can get their hands on effective and safe beauty and house products.

Even though some brands do not directly test on animals, they still might send their products over to other countries that make it a standard to test on animals before selling products out to their people such as China and Australia. Of course, Dove was not listed under cruelty-free brands since they choose to sell their soap to other areas that require animal testing.

Even though these countries are making some effort to rid these horrific laws, we shouldn't stop now. The companies that aren’t considered cruelty-free are almost endless. By now, this should be illegal everywhere. These innocent creatures should not be put through torture just so that people can exfoliate their bodies and blacken their eyelashes. It’s a vile disgrace.

If you are disgusted, what can you do? Well first of all, you can avoid buying from these brands in general. If you are unsure if the company animal tests or not, you can just look at the list of brands that are cruelty-free, in which I have provided.

Normally, the bottles will have it labeled on the front or back. You can also sign an online pledge to buy cruelty-free brands so that others can see how much it matters to the environment. If you want to take action, you can reach out to the company by going on their website and let them know why you won’t be purchasing from them any longer. This hopefully will urge them to consider their practices and what countries they sell to.

Of course, companies can be money hungry and careless, so it’s legitimately up to us to prevent toxic chemicals from entering our food and products by not purchasing certain brands that do so. Also, by not buying brands that practice animal testing, they won’t have the means to test if there isn’t revenue coming in.

Without a doubt, America is heavily reliant on consumers, but we should continue to care about the products we buy especially if it’s damaging our own kind along with animals. Animals are living beings too and do not deserve to be treated inhumanely for a product.