Natural Does Not Mean That A Product is “Safer”

This is referred to as the Appeal to Nature Fallacy... and it's super popular in the holistic, wellness, crunchy, clean, etc. space. especially when it comes to promoting personal care/wellness products. The "appeal to nature" logical fallacy assumes that things that are natural are inherently better and safer, and that things that are man-made, aka "unnatural" (synthetic) are inherently worse, and harmful.

Natural # Safer

Some of the most dangerous substances on Earth are 100% natural- think things like arsenic, asbestos, and opium, to name a few.

And guess what? They can all be deadly.

And countless man-made products, including chemicals, are not only safe, they’re beneficial! On the flip side, something being synthetic doesn't mean it's harmful. In fact, simply being made in a lab doesn't, on its own, have any bearing on whether it's harmful or not. That's like the saying, "If you can't pronounce it, don't eat it or put it on your skin." Whether someone can or can't pronounce something has no bearing on anything other than whether they can pronounce it!

Hi - I am literally terrible at spelling and pronunciation (at 36 years old)... there are a ton of things I can't pronounce that are super beneficial for use!

So, how do we make informed choices?

Rather than focusing on whether something is "natural" or "synthetic," it's more important to understand what it is, how it works, and whether it's safe for you. The bottom line? Nature is beautiful and amazing —but not always harmless. Man-made isn't inherently bad, either. Let's ditch the black-and-white thinking and aim for a more balanced perspective.

And as always... just because one influencer or facebook mom group tells you something that is "man made" is "OMG BAD AND GREENWASHED" - doesn't actually mean it is... use your discernment and always reach out to a company with questions! Lately I have received a ton of messages in regards to "so and so said this product was bad because it has — synthetic ingredient" or "I can't believe you'd promote — - it's not all natural"

First and foremost, saying something is "natural" is misleading. There currently is no legal definition for buzzwords like "natural", "clean", "green", etc. it's up to individual interpretation. And with that... comes a lot of grey area and a lot of mixed opinions on the topic.

Just because a product is natural doesn't make it safer or better for you right of.

Just as a product with all man made ingredients doesn't make it bad or toxic for you.

In a world full of click this link, and click bait headlines - always always use your discernment.