CREDIT: JESSICA THOMPSON
Many of the products we use on a daily basis are filled with harmful chemicals, luckily the Clean Team is here to steer you in a healthy direction.

If I told you that you could place a chemical on your skin and it would give you super powers, make you feel attractive and smell like a god or goddess, would you do it?

Now what if I told you that same chemical could disrupt normal hormone activity, reduce sperm counts, cause reproductive malformation and has been linked to liver and breast cancer, diabetes and obesity, would you still put it on your skin?

What if I told you that you already have been? According to studies by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the average adult woman uses around 12 personal care products containing 168 different chemicals each day, the average man uses about six products which is approximately 85 different chemicals, and the average teenager uses around 17 different products.

These chemicals are present in deodorant, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, perfume and cologne and hair products. So now that we have identified the problem it’s up to Clean Girl and her Fanshawe student sidekicks to save the day.

Our mission is simple: protect the masses from a toxic attack and build a team of super clean student superheroes. Time to start your superhero training.

The villain’s many disguises

Obviously, I am not going to list 168 unique chemicals for you to search for on all your personal care products. That would be way too time-consuming and quite frankly no one would do it.

What I am going to give you is a list of the Dirty Dozen; these are the 12 worst offenders. Think of these guys as the Injustice League, Legion of Doom and Suicide Squad or for all you non-comic fans it’s pretty much a team of bad guys.

If you see any of these bad boys on your bottles feel free to toss, punch or roundhouse kick that one in the trash like the superhero you are.

Now you don’t have to throw them all out at once; start small and begin to incorporate more natural alternatives each time you would go to replace a product.

The Dirty Dozen as per the David Suzuki Foundation are as follows:

• BHA and BHT

• Coal tar dyes

• DEA, Cocamide DEA and Lauramide DEA

• Dibutyl phthalate

• Formaldehyde-releasing preservatives

• Parabens

• Parfum

• PEGs

• Petrolatum

• Siloxanes

• Sodium laureth sulfate

• Triclosan

If you are ever unsure of what toxic chemicals might be hiding in your products and you don’t feel like carrying this article around everywhere you go, I encourage you to download the Think Dirty app or the Environmental Working Group’s Healthy Living app.

These apps are free and take all the guesswork out for you. You can search your product or for us lazy folks scan the barcode, and it will give you a rating of how toxic it is. It’s basically an easy-to-use tech tool that belongs on any superhero’s utility belt.

Okay, so now we know what the bad guys look like, and hopefully you can kick some chemical butt right out of your bathroom cabinets.

The problem still stands however, what should these products be replaced with? Below are some solutions.

Your Clean Team

Natural personal care products: make the switch from a chemical product to a more natural one. Some good choices of natural products can be found on the apps listed above. In London Purdy Naturals is a great store to find natural products.

DIY: for those who are looking for a cheaper alternative or are feeling crafty, you can always make your own products. This can be a tactic for beauty products as well as household cleaning products.

Drink more water: water is the main way we flush junk out of our body.

Take care of your liver: your liver is basically the garbage truck of your body. It takes all the bad stuff and processes it so your body can eliminate it. Things you can do to help take care of your liver are eating fresh fruits and veggies, avoiding tobacco and cutting back on fried foods, alcohol, animal fats, sugar and caffeine.

So there you have it; you know the villain, you have your utility belt of apps to help you find the bad guys and you have your Clean Team of tools to help you conquer the day.