Natural and organic products are all the rage these days. Go down any aisle at the grocery store, and the shelves are filled with organic products such as cereal, sauces, chips, and many other items. Personal care products such as soaps, shampoos, conditioners, facial cleaners, moisturizers, and makeup are touted as being natural and or organic. But are these products really natural or organic? Be careful because that natural soap on the shelf may not be as natural as one would think.

Before purchasing a product that claims to be “natural or organic,” read the label. Words that are red flags are “nature inspired, made with natural or organic ingredients, and natural origin.” Products can be “certified organic” without being 100% organic. Only 70% of a product’s ingredients must be organic, the other ingredients can be anything. To become educated about organic labeling, visit the USDA.

For those concerned that products are tested on animals, be wary of the wording “not tested on animals.” If products are not tested on animals, labels will have a symbol of a rabbit in a circle with a line through it; the prohibitory symbol. Visit Leaping Bunny, “The Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics to view companies who make the “grade.” To learn more about product testing on animals, visit earth-conservation.org, an organization in Poland founded in 2003.

Links to Natural and Organic Products

Shop at MotherNature.com for thousands of all-natural Health & Wellness products. They even have a “home and grocery” aisle.


Tom’s of Maine. For all of your natural personal care products. Try the “Natural Anticavity Fluoride Mouthwash in Spearmint.” It tastes great!

Snack Healthy & Be Heart Healthy with Genisoy. Soy foods that taste great!


Green Living Now. A women owned natural and organic products online store.

Whole Foods Market. Was founded in in 1980 in Austin, Texas. Now the company is the world’s leading retailer of natural and organic foods.

As fresh as it gets! Premium gourmet coffees direct from the countries that grow them. Buy Café Britt online. “We work to preserve the environment and ensure the sustainable development of our communities and well as micro, small and medium-sized growers and suppliers.”

Jason-Natural. “Since 1959, JASON Natural Products has been the leading purveyor of pure and natural products for skin, body, hair and oral health for the whole family, giving consumers effective, environmentally-friendly alternatives to mass-produced, synthetic chemical products.”

Burts Bees. Is an “Earth Friendly, Natural Personal Care Company.” Burts Bees creates “natural, Earth-friendly personal care products formulated to help you maximize your well-being and that of the world around you.”

Many people have jumped on the “natural and organic” band wagon. However, you must still read the ingredients. Just because food is labeled natural and organic does not mean healthy. Furthermore, if you love the rain forest and wildlife then you better read the ingredients in organic peanut butter. Palm Oil or “cruel oil” is an ingredient found in organic peanut butter which comes from Borneo, Malaysia and Indonesia. Unfortunately, the environment of the orangutans in these areas are being decimated for the harvest and planting of palm oil plantations. Before you dig into that peanut butter, you may want to make sure you will be able to “stomach” it.

If a package is labeled 100% organic, this means the product is completely organic or made of all organic ingredients. An “organic” label means that product is at least 95% organic. If the package is labeled “made with organic ingredients,” the food contains at least 70% organic ingredients. Visit the Mayo Clinic to learn more about organic food.

Links to Healthy Living

Eat Well & Be Happy with Genisoy. If you love soy products then you will love Genisoy. They offer a variety of products that really do taste great.

Find high quality vitamins and supplements at Vitamin World! For all of your vitamins and supplements to healthy living.

GNC is giving away $2000 each month through December. Visit GNC for all of your nutritional supplements, weight loss maintenance, and other health products.

Remember to read labels carefully. Just because something is labeled as natural does not mean it’s good for you. Arsenic is a natural substance but it’s poisonous! Here’s another tip. Those packages of 100 calorie snacks are not necessarily “healthy” alternatives. Please read the ingredients in the 100 calorie snacks. Some of the products contain ingredients that sound disgusting! What exactly is beef plasma? Yeah, that sounds healthy and tasty!