…Cosmetic legislation in the U.S. hasn’t been updated since 1938, meaning current safety data is unaccounted for—data that connects common chemicals like parabens and phthalates to hormone disruption and breast cancer, and shows carcinogenic heavy metals in personal care products. ~ Phyllis Ellis (documentary filmmaker)
After watching the Toxic Beauty trailer, I strongly believe this should be categorized as a horror film instead of a documentary. It’s chilling to hear chemists talk about how dangerous ingredients in our everyday makeup and skincare are.
Toxic Beauty is making waves in the film festival industry. It has won “The Founders Award,” at the Miami Fashion Film Festival, and the “DGC Best Documentary,” at the Calgary International Film Festival.
This documentary digs deep as whistleblowers highlight the unregulated chemicals in the cosmetic industry. It includes an exposé from scientists, lawyers, advocates, regulators, politicians, and ovarian cancer survivors.
One part of the documentary follows a widely known lawsuit that’s made headlines for a specific harmful chemical. This chemical said to have caused cancer to thousands of women.
After falling ill—panic attacks, memory loss, hormonal imbalance, rashes—two decades ago, the makeup artist had a strange interaction with the technician delivering her lab results. ~ BeautyTruth and RMS Beauty founder Rose-Marie Swift’s symptoms. https://www.vogue.com/article/toxic-beauty-documentary
Rose-Marie Swift is a makeup artist, who’s worked in the industry for decades. When started developing severe health issues, this alerted her start intense research as to why. After consulting with a chemist, she didn’t need to look any further.
“Then he said, ‘The cosmetic industry is destroying women’s cells.’” ~ Annoynmous Chemist
Swift’s test results showed high levels of chemicals found in her system, specifically her hair, blood, and urine.
Inspired to make a change Swift is now the founder of RMS Beauty and an all-natural organic makeup line. Additionally, in 2004 she created BeautyTruth, a website exposing toxic ingredients found in beauty products.
Another part of the documentary focuses on Boston University medical student, Mymy Nguyen. Nguyen has a 27-step beauty routine that she prides herself on, as she wants to “maintain a certain aesthetic.” However, her recent benign scare of breast cancer made her hone in on the products she used, and if they were the cause.
Over the course of three days, Nguyen submits three blood tests. One after her 27-step regime, the next with zero products use, and finally a detox day. The results are jarring!
To find out more check out the sources below.
Sources: https://www.vogue.com/article/toxic-beauty-documentary https://www.whitepinepictures.com/toxic-beauty https://www.rmsbeauty.com/ http://www.beautytruth.com/