Long before most of us were scrutinizing food labels, cutting back on sugary treats, and adding quinoa to everything, Wendy Nagle was a conspicuous provider of healthy meals.

 

By Caitlin Brown

 

Long before most of us were scrutinizing food labels, cutting back on sugary treats, and adding quinoa to everything, Wendy Nagle was a conspicuous provider of healthy meals. After Brendan, one of her four children, was diagnosed with diabetes at age 9, she set about learning everything she could about healthy eating.

 

Nagle became so passionate about healthy living that she’s made a career out of it, first as a health coach and, just recently, as a consultant for the all- natural beauty product company, Beautycounter.

 

Health is the common thread in all she does and her goal is to help others make better lifestyle choices.

 

“The most valuable asset we have is our health, if you don’t have that, what do you have?”

 

Sometimes what we don’t know will hurt us, says Nagle. Knowing what we put in our bodies and what we use on our bodies allows us to be better to ourselves. “Most of us think we know how to be healthy, but we’ve only really scratched the surface. Most of us don’t know how to read the labels on the products we buy. We don’t know what’s in them … and we are putting these things in/on our bodies,” she stresses.

 

Most women use, on average, 12 beauty products a day, every day and night, notes Nagle. It may seem hard to imagine that products that have become part of our regimen can be potentially dangerous, but they can. The last year the federal government passed a law regulating cosmetics safety was 1938. That means 80% of cosmetic ingredients have never been tested for safety. The U.S. currently bans or restricts only 11 ingredients from cosmetics. Beautycounter bans or restricts more than 1,500. On the list are formaldehyde, which is found in shampoo, body wash, and bubble bath, and parabens, which are in shampoo, face cleaner, body wash, body lotion, and foundation.

 

Empowering others by informing them is Nagle’s philosophy and very much in line with Beautycounter’s fundamentals, which is why she has chosen to represent them. She hosts events at her home to let people test out the bath and body products: moisturizers, oils, cleansers, shampoos and conditioners, scrubs, and more. They’re all beautifully packaged and designed for both sexes.

 

Beautycounter’s social mission is inseparable from its brand: educating families about the need for safer chemicals and products. By working with trusted, successful non-profits organizations (Environmental Working Group, The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and Healthy Child/Healthy World), they hope to bring much needed change to the beauty industry and the market in general.

 

For more information on Beautycounter products and to test out the line, contact Wendy Nagle at wendyn.beautycounter.com or 319-9680.

 

To find out on what’s in the products you use, visit www.ewg.org.