Critical Thinking

TPDTY: Salicylic Acid Might Not Help

by
salicylic acid molecule

I, and countless other people navigating acneic skin, have at one time or another bought and used a whole slew of salicylic acid skincare products to try to deal. My family’s favorite when I was growing up was pHisoderm, and if you’re a Millennial or older, you probably remember TV infomercial darling Proactiv.

What is Salicylic Acid?

Salicylic acid, a beta-hydroxy acid (BHA), is oil soluble – so it is good at:

  1. helping dead skin cells slough off
  2. penetrating deep into pores to break down sebum and gunk
  3. reducing inflammation (legacy wisdom described crushing aspirin and making a paste to apply to blemishes)

But it isn’t always the answer for addressing acne. Salicylic acid isn’t a silver bullet, and it can even make things worse.

Time Matters

Read more

Smart Toothbrush? Skip It

by
Smart Toothbrushes - Are they worth it?

Today, let’s talk about the scourge that is the smart toothbrush.

I’m a proponent of electric toothbrushes. They make oral hygiene easier to achieve for most configurations of teeth. My mouth is healthier for them. I’ve used brushes from both Oral-B and Sonicare (I use a 10+ year old FlexCare, which is a discontinued model; I would buy this one today) in my lifetime, and both made a positive impact on my oral hygiene and wellbeing, especially as I went through my Invsalign journey.

At some point within the last decade, those companies decided that the world really needed–that consumers really wanted– a smart toothbrush. Sigh.

What is a Smart Toothbrush?

A smart toothbrush is an electric toothbrush that incorporates advanced technology and connectivity features to enhance the brushing experience. These toothbrushes often come with built-in sensors, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connectivity, and smartphone apps or companion software.

Many modern electric toothbrushes still incorporate sensors to caution you against using too much pressure and timers to alert you when to change quadrants. So… why all the connections and internet? Why does my toothbrush need an internet connection or bluetooth?

Why Does a Toothbrush Need an Internet Connection?

In theory, the value smart toothbrushes provide lies in being able to provide you with data on your brushing habits. They can also gamify your daily hygiene by giving you virtual headpats for, you know, being an adult and taking care of your teeth.

Sense my derision?

Read more

Off Topic (Sort of): On Twitter

by
If you dislike Twitter, why are you still using it?

Something that fascinates me about the ongoing dumpster fire that is the unmitigated death spiral of Twitter is the users who still actively use it. I count friends among this group, so I’m not just firing shots in the dark at some abstract group.

In one breath, we see The Owner’s actions decried as absurd, destructive, hypocritical (they are). In the next? Posting as though its just Business as Usual.

Regardless of Ownership, Twitter Users Don’t Get a Say

What so many people inexplicably fail to understand is that Twitter is not, and never has been, a democracy. Despite whatever bullshit The Owner originally peddled about being a free speech absolutist, there’s overwhelming evidence that this is categorically bullshit. Being either in denial that the platform is largely fucked, or riding it out through the death rattles, just rewards the behavior you condemn.

You are the Product

Read more

Lab Finds Benzene in More Dry Shampoo

by

Early last week, I wrote an informative and scathing piece on carcinogens in dry shampoo. The news on the matter was focused on brands under Unilever’s umbrella, but unfortunately independent analytical lab Valisure found benzene in more dry shampoo.

How Many?

Not in a few. 70% of the latest round of tests, featuring 150 batches from 30+ brands across multiple parent companies, came back with high levels of exposure. Here are just some of the affected brands:

Read more

Recall: Carcinogens in Dry Shampoo

by

We had a post go live today, but I sat down this afternoon and wrote a whole entire ‘nother because this is NONSENSE. First, sunscreen. Now, there’s a multi-brand recall due to carcinogens in dry shampoo. It’s the same we’ve been seeing in sunscreen: benzene.

The amount of things being recalled for benzene in the last few years is too damn high. Carcinogens weren’t even really top-of-mind for me when I stopped buying dry shampoo a while back (which I JUST shared before this news hit), but there’s a hell of a good reason!

The Affected Brands

Per the release, which you can read on FDA.gov, this recall applies to products under Unilever’s sprawling umbrella. If you use any of these,

  • Dove
  • TRESemme
  • Nexxus
  • Suave
  • Tigi

You need to check the UPC and lot codes, which you can do here, to see if you need to take further action. Please note that just because you bought it recently doesn’t necessarily mean it was manufactured super recently! CHECK.

If it isn’t one of these, you may be in the clear – but I’ll come back to this.

Reimbursement

Read more

WTF? Beauty Retailers Now Sell Adult Novelties

by

First things first – if a frank discussion of an adult-adjacent topic bothers you, its best to skip this post. It isn’t going to get graphic or gruesome, but still.

I happened to be on Musings of a Muse the other day, and, well, the title says it all. I never would have seen it at Ulta, who is apparently the latest beauty retailer to join the fray, since I’ve stopped doing business with them. But I had no idea about Sephora – although I am still a Sephora customer, I haven’t browsed much this year.

ANYWAY. Isabella expresses some discomfort at seeing the novelties there despite having accepted their place among the sexual wellness and hygiene items at stores like Wal-Mart and Target. She shared that just doesn’t really want to be shopping for beauty items then BAM – vibrators.

What do you think?

Read more