How to Be a Sustainable Beauty Brand: Emma Lewisham Review

emma lewisham pump jar

This is a sponsored post. Sustainability and environmental impact is a huge topic in everything these days, and it’s a tricky topic. It’s obviously something that the vast majority of us care about, but a lot of companies are approaching it in a way that’s easy to market even though it doesn’t make a lot of scientific sense. There’s a …

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Eco Friendly Products? Zero Co Review

Zero Co Facebook Ad

My name is Michelle, I’m a millennial and I’m the opposite of a domestic goddess. And Facebook can obviously tell, because they’ve been serving me up Zero Co ads. Their branding is pretty much catnip for millennials. Obviously, I bought the whole set. I’ve now tried them all and I thought I’d review them because I think it’s a cool example …

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Is Your Sunscreen Killing Coral Reefs? The Science (with Video)

Is Your Sunscreen Killing Coral? The Science (with Video)

You might have seen that Hawaii has banned certain sunscreens that have been linked to coral bleaching. In particular, it’s the organic “chemical” sunscreen ingredients oxybenzone and octinoxate that have been banned. It sounds like a great victory for the environment, right?

But if you search a little past the headlines, you’ll find that there are actually a lot of coral experts and marine ecologists who aren’t happy with the decision. Why is that?

To find out, let’s look at the science behind sunscreen and its effects on coral.

Check out the video here – keep scrolling for the text version.

What Is Coral Bleaching?

The concerns about sunscreen’s effects on coral come from studies on isolated coral samples, and the main possible impact is coral bleaching.

Coral live in symbiosis with algae (zooxanthellae) that live inside them. The algae are important to the coral because they absorb sunlight and photosynthesise to create nutrients to feed the coral. The algae are also responsible for the beautiful colours in coral.

But when the coral is overly stressed, it expels the algae, leaving the coral bleached and pale, and without their main source of food (algae provide about 90% of the coral’s energy). Bleaching is sometimes reversible, and if the stress is only temporary, the algae can return to the coral. But if the stress is prolonged or too severe, then the bleaching continues and the coral will eventually starve and die.

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What are microbeads and why should I be concerned about them?

Plastic is unavoidable in modern society, and unfortunately the vast majority of the plastic products we use will long outlive us. While we can (and should) recycle a lot of our plastic waste, microplastics (including microbeads) are a form of plastic that is difficult to dispose of thoughtfully.   (Photo credit: Kenny Louie)   What is microplastic? Simply put, microplastic …

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Chemical vs. Natural

It’s probably no surprise to anyone that, as a science geek, it irks me when I see scientifically incorrect things in popular media (I have been known to yell at the TV during Mythbusters). But what really upsets me is when advertisers and marketing gurus try to use scientific terms and absurd claims to bamboozle people into buying their products. …

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