Many women are realizing that making healthier choices in their lives needs to extend beyond just what they eat and their exercise habits. They are beginning to see that healthy choices can be and should be made in as many areas of their lives as possible. One of the most crucial areas is in what we put on our skin. In some cases, what we put on our skin can directly counter the efforts we make to eat well and be more active. This is why being educated about what's in our skincare and beauty products is so important.

In the article Reasons Not to Buy Drugstore Cosmetics, I talked about why drugstore cosmetics are a bad idea for healthy skin. In this article, I'll give you the number one healthy alternative to drugstore cosmetics that will provide the same beautiful looks but without the risky sacrifices.

The best natural alternative to drugstore makeup is mineral makeup. There are a number of reasons I feel this way, which I will begin to detail below.

1. Mineral makeup will not cause reactions and skin irritation.
Many women these days have very sensitive skin and as we get older, our sensitivity tends to increase. Because of this, even makeup a woman used to be able to wear can begin to break her out. Mineral makeup, especially when it doesn't contain the skin irritant bismuth oxychloride, can be worn by even the woman with rosacea and excema. It is an excellent choice for women with sensitive skin because it doesn't contain any of the known skin irritants and in fact contains very few ingredients, all of which are “inert” and non-reactive. This means there's nothing in it that will cause your skin to "react". A really good, pure mineral makeup brand will be free of mineral oil, talc, preservatives, parabens, chemical dyes, and fragrance as well.

2. Mineral makeup provides excellent coverage without feeling caked on.
Because of the composition of the minerals, the feel of mineral foundation is very light and smooth. It is very "buildable" but still allows the skin to breathe. What this means is that you can layer as much as you need to to provide the coverage that you want. No matter how much you layer though, your skin wont feel bogged down and heavy.

3. Mineral makeup is free of potential cancer-causing ingredients.
Talc, common chemical preservatives, parabens, artificial fragrances, and chemical dyes have all been linked to cancer. These are all common ingredients in the makeup that you'll find in drug and department stores. A good, pure mineral makeup line will NOT have these additional ingredients. A good mineral makeup line will only include minerals – no fillers and no potentially health-risking additives.

In the next article, I will give a few more of the skincare benefits of mineral makeup. Be sure to check back for it!

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Leah Patterson is the owner of an all-natural, mineral cosmetics line (that does NOT contain bismuth oxychloride), Etniq Mineral Cosmetics, in addition to being the Wellness Editor here at Bellaonline!