Jammy Whammy

About-Face.org may sport the catchy line "Don't fall for the media circus!" but unfortunately, they've been duped as well.

The organization seeks to expose the "toxic media environment" which contributes "to a host of girls' and women's ills, including low self-esteem, depression, persistent anxiety over weight and appearance, extremely unhealthy diets and exercise regimens, and eating disorders." In a portion of their website they have sections entitled, "Gallery of Offenders" and "Gallery of Winners." In the Gallery of Offenders, ads for companies such as Diesel, Calvin Klein, Marc Jabos are turned "about-face" and commentary directed at subverting these campaigns is written alongside the original ad. The second section, "Gallery of Winners" addresses only one ad campaign - Dove:

Dove, Unilever's largest beauty brand, challenges the concept of beauty in popular culture in their newest Campaign For Real Beauty. They gathered information from 3,500 women in several developed countries to find correlations between beauty, body image and the media. Thank you Dove. Write Dove's Campaign For Real Beauty and tell them how much you appreciate their efforts: or call them at 1-800-598-5005

If I could insert a buzzer sound here, this is where it would be. Thank Unilever? Are they serious, or is Dove their latest donor? Let's get things straight. Unilever is the British-Dutch global consumer marketing products giant, the largest producer of ice cream and frozen novelties in the U.S. Unilever's brands sold in the U.S. include Breyer's ice cream, Ben&Jerry's ice cream, Klondike ice cream bars and Popsicle products.

Now do you get why DOVE ads are promoting fuller-figured models? It has nothing to do with using their "powers to bring issues regarding natural beauty into the forefront of popular culture by creating a successful campaign celebrating real beauty." No. This, again folks, is all about profit. Could the women at About-Face really have missed this point? I find it a bit disheartening, considering the whole of the website is quite wonderful and positive for girls to explore.

According to Unilever's own website, they proudly boast "More than half of Unilever's revenues come from food. We produce a wide range of everyday household staples such as tea, margarine, mayonnaise, pasta sauces, olive oil, soup, stock cubes and ice cream. Our brands include Lipton, Flora, Becel, Blue Band, Hellmann's, Knorr, Bertolli, Calve, Magnum and Cornetto." Not only do they sell food, but in addition to DOVE sell brands such as Ponds, Axe, Sunsilk, Vaseline, and an array of other brands selling personal products such as soaps, deodorants, etc. and home care products such as detergents and household cleaners.

It is interesting that About-Face lists the book "Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugle Side of the Beauty Industry" on their resources page. The author, Stacy Malkan, is a spokeswoman for the "Campaign for Safe Cosmetics," is the lead consumer coalition in the United States, pushing for federal legislation of the cosmetics industry. On it's opposing side is the $50 billion a year cosmetics industry, led by companies like Procter & Gamble, Revlon, Estee Lauder, L'Oreal, and Unilever. Right now, the status quo is - self-regulation.

Malkan argues that personal care products like shampoo, conditioner, aftershave, lotion and makeup are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration FDA or any other government agency. It is perfectly legal and very common for companies to use ingredients that are known or suspected to be carcinogens, mutagens or reproductive toxins in the their products, she says. The World Health Organization (1964) concluded that 80% of cancers were due to human-produced carcinogens.

Some other facts that may lead you to rethink your health and beauty regimine:
Xenoestrogens are compounds that have estrogenic effects and differ chemically from ancient, naturally occurring estrogenic substances produced by living organisms. Their potential ecological and human health impact of is under study (Korach, 1998) and speculated to be the cause of issues such as breast cancer, breast cysts, ovarian cysts, abnormal paps, endometriosis, premenstrual syndrome, irregular periods and heavy menstrual bleeding, and endocrine disruption causing developmental, reproductive and tumorigenic effects (Smith and Spangler).

Xenoestrogens are found in pesticides, lotions, detergents, plastics, foods and more - for example BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole). This is a common food preservative found in processed foods. Also hormones used to help turkeys, pigs, chickens and cows grow bigger and faster (and produce more meat) include xenoestrogens. Organic meat does not. Other examples, sunscreen that contains 4-MBC, and paraben-containing lotion.

For an extensive list visit: http://www.organicexcellence.com/we-xenoestrogens.php