If I could stress one thing to the American people (besides general human decency and environmental awareness), it’s that you are both what you put on and in your body. Somehow we’ve lost sight of what’s important and instead began to prioritize saving money at the expense of our health and the wellbeing of the planet.

But in reality, it’s pretty simple. If you wouldn’t want to eat it, it’s probably not safe getting into your body through other avenues. Let’s take a closer look at why it’s worth  investigating what’s in the beauty products you use today.

1. Clean Beauty = Clean Life.

Adulting is hard. Getting (and keeping) your life together is even harder. But one thing that is easy to fix is where you spend your money.

So let’s start with the basics. What is clean beauty? As you probably know by now, a large number of mainstream beauty products are not as pure as they claim to be. While it may make your skin “flawless” or your hair like “silk”, you really need to be aware of what is inside each of those bottles.

Like I stressed a few months ago, many of the skin products we use eventually end up in our bloodstream. Which is fine when they are derived from nature in the most unprocessed form as possible, but not so fine when it involves something straight from a lab that hasn’t been tested for its long-term impact on humans.

Clean beauty is the growing trend to move away from those and create powerful, highly effective products from consciously-sourced ingredients you can both pronounce and eat. And while it’s just a start to cleaning up your life, I personally feel much more relaxed knowing everything I put on my skin is actually good for it.

2. It doesn’t have to be ultra-expensive.

Each day it seems like more corporate retailers are starting to carry more eco and health-conscious brands. And while they’re certainly not going to be the same price as the generic or name brand, you’d be surprised at the quality you can get now for the price.

If you can afford to occasionally shop at a place like Sephora, you’ll be just fine. Or if you really want to get crafty, there are tons of instructions out there on how to make your own natural beauty products. For those of us who aren’t quite there yet, here are some brands I love.

One company on the right track is Skylar. Unlike other gorgeous fragrances their products do not contain allergens and harmful chemicals, and they just recently released a fragrance called Capri. It doesn’t smell like Capri to me but it does smell like joy. Salty, sandy, joy. Positano, Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast is one of my favorite places in the world, and any small thing that can remind me of it will always be treasured.

Try all 5 Skylar scents to earn your $20 credit.

Another personal favorite is Herbivore. Again, while it’s not drug-store prices it’s certainly worth the money. I personally use the Blue Tansy Resurfacing Clarity Mask or Lapis Facial Oil almost every day.

For more brands, I highly recommend checking out this list.

3. There are lots of people out there ready to help.

This spring in Napa I had the pleasure of meeting the duo behind Logical Harmony, and let me tell you what they’re doing is incredible. Tashina and Justin have created an incredible database of cruelty-free make-up and beauty products, as well as endless product videos so you can truly know what you’re getting before you buy it.

Thrive Market is also a great resource for me for discovering new healthy beauty products. You can search by specific traits like Organic or Vegan, see other customer reviews and get the products at seriously discounted prices.

Wherever you are in the world, if you have access to the internet there are lots of resources to help you find clean, green, mean beauty products, just waiting for you to discover them.

4. It could save you future health expenses.

Adding unnecessary chemicals to your body can cause some serious health issues, including but not limited to skin irritation, systemic toxicity, and even certain types of cancer. While it’s true our liver helps filter some of it out, our skin absorbs much more than you think so it’s important to clean up as much as that as possible.

5. You can be proud of every product you’re using.

Every step you take to improve your personal health and lessen your impact on the environment is cause for celebration. But before you go out and buy every product that says natural and organic on the label, remember you have to do your research.

Generally speaking companies that are prioritizing true, clean beauty products are often trying to find other ways to make their production as environmentally friendly as possible as well, but not always. Spend time looking companies up, seeing where they source their ingredients from and find out what steps they are taking to improve the lives of their customers and the world around us.

No matter what you’re buying, it’s important to be sure you’re putting your dollars towards an organization you believe in.

What are some of your favorite clean beauty brands?

For ways to clean up your home as well, click here.