Are Conventional Candles Poisoning You?
What's better than snuggling up on your couch reading a great book on a Saturday afternoon? Don't get me wrong! I'm all about spending time being active outdoors, but now and then I need some "quality me time." And that’s usually a home spa day, a massage, a meditation class, listening to a podcast, trying new recipes or just reading or watching something I like.
Aside from deciding on my beverage, which in the spring happens to be a bone broth or a Rishi mushroom coffee, I always light a candle and sometimes burn some sage. It's my mini wellness ritual, and the candle portion is a must-have.
From my research online and through talking to people, I noticed that there are lots of (independent or big-store brand) candle makers that use soy or a mix of soy, paraffin and synthetic waxes to make their candles. So, I set out to learn more about these types of waxes to fully understand what would be the best type of candle for my health. The moment I started learning about the nasty chemicals and fragrances that are a part of most candles on the market (yes, even the ones that claim to be natural, exclusive and luxurious), I was stunned. I immediately proceeded to look for a “better-for-you” type of candle. I wasn't finding many brands that produced an honest product with clean ingredients. And if they did, the candles were ridiculously expensive and wouldn't burn for a long time.
Here are the five things you should know before you buy another candle for yourself, your family or someone else:
1. Conventional candles pollute the air in your house with petroleum waste products.
Conventional scented candles you can get at the mall or even from an artisan candle maker contain paraffin, which is a petroleum waste product. Not to mention, that paraffin needs to go through a couple of different chemical processes before it's ready to use. That's chemicals on top of more chemicals. So, when you burn your favorite scented candle, the paraffin evaporates into the air you breath. Those chemical compounds contribute to watery eyes, sneezing, congestion, headaches and more!
2. Soy candles with essential oils are NOT the answer.
“So, what?” you say, “my candles are soy and scented with natural essential oils.” Trust me; I get it, you want a pretty candle that still smells amazing. Essential oils are indeed better than synthetic perfumes used in most candles, but the soy wax portion is where you need to be very careful. In addition to what we already discussed (chemically processed paraffin), soy wax contains pesticides. More than 90% of soy is genetically modified! GM soy crops are heavily sprayed with toxic pesticides, causing harm to both the harvesters and the soil. So if you are buying soy candles, chances are you are supporting the production of GMO’s–which devastate our environment and our health.
3. Fragrances are poison for your body.
The word "fragrance" on a candle label is essentially a code word for more dangerous chemicals lurking to get into your lungs, on your skin. Many of these chemicals are linked to allergies, hormone disruptions and most of them are NOT tested or regulated in any way. Smaller candle manufacturers purchase fragrance and don't know what chemical compounds are actually in it, as that information is not disclosed to them. Fragrance secrecy is legal due to a giant loophole in the Federal Fair Packaging and Labeling Act of 1973, which requires companies to list cosmetics ingredients on the product labels but explicitly exempts fragrance.
So, do you still want that scented soy wax candle in a pretty jar? I hope I was able to convince you or at least expose you to more information about how to pick better products. You also may be happy to know that I'm starting to work on my own pure beeswax candle line that I hope to have ready for sale later in 2019!
