Rub-a-Dub-Dub ...The Organic Bath Tub

The Burgeoning Market for Natural and Organic Baby Personal Care

Mothers-to-be have a lot to contend with as they prepare for the big day and the arrival of the new child—from dealing with her physical changes and maintaining a healthy diet and stress-reduced lifestyle to preparing the nest and learning about the latest what-to-and what-not-to-dos. It’s a lot to take in. The expanding list of concerns, such as consuming certain kinds of fish during pregnancy—or feeding her children conventional produce—has inspired many mothers to go “organic.”

Even as this mother embraces and tailors the organic lifestyle to fit her needs, her demands for healthier, cleaner options for her new baby and family become greater. The growth of the organic baby food category, for example, can be attributed to such a mother’s plea. And due to the category’s widespread acceptance and prevalence in the conventional marketplace, the organic baby food category continues to serve as a catalyst for the development of other organic and natural baby products such as body care, as well as products specifically intended for the pregnant woman.

Sales for natural baby body care, which includes hair, oral and skin care products increased 33 percent from $11.8 million to $15.8 million within the natural supermarket and conventional food/drug mass channel (excluding Wal-Mart), according to data from SPINSscan Natural, 52 weeks ending Sept. 9, 2006.

This increase is good news for manufacturers of such products; however, several have noted that the demand for organic and natural baby care products still has a way to go in the United States. “The organic segment is growing but not as fast as it should,” said Natracare’s Susie Hewson. “I suspect retailer resistance and the higher premium for organic body care products are the causes, as is a lack of knowledge among consumers. The absence of full ingredient disclosures and non-organic products describing themselves as ‘natural’ contribute to confusing the consumer, making it difficult for them to choose with any real degree of knowledge.”

European body care manufacturers are regulated by the Pan-European cosmetic regulations, which means European manufacturers must list all ingredients on their products. In the United States, regulations are less stringent, allowing a percentage of additives, fillers and other certain ingredients to be left out on product lists. This issue, and the use of the “natural” label for body care products made with synthetic substances such as parabens and petrochemicals have become hot topics within the organic and natural community.

Long-term, these synthetic ingredients can be toxic to the body, according to research that suggests myriad problems such as cancer, skin sensitivities and developmental deficiencies are the result of prolonged exposure to these chemicals. This is an emerging concern to many new parents who realize that a child’s body can acquire more toxins through skin absorption and inhalation than an adult’s.

“Our skin is the largest organ in the body,” said Melinda Olson, owner of Earth Momma Angel Baby. “It acts as a tough physical barrier to external toxins, but it is also capable of absorbing up to 50 to 60 percent of what is applied to it. It makes sense to use personal care products that support, nourish and heal their skin rather than use products made with potentially toxic preservatives and additives that actually add to the burden of protecting the body from the harsh environment in which we live. This is especially true for pregnant and lactating bodies struggling to filter out environmental toxins while growing or breastfeeding a baby.”

Commercial baby care products can contain large amounts of carcinogenic preservatives, partly because of mass production and an extended shelf life. Chemical preservatives are used frequently because they are easy to obtain and cheap. The largest group of carcinogens that may appear on conventional baby care labels includes dozens of wetting agents or detergents, particularly PEGs, laureths and ceteareths, all of which are contaminated with ethylene oxide and dioxane. Other carcinogens—such as diethanolamine (DEA) and triethanolamine (TEA) (often abbreviated and labeled with other compounds, such as —TEA, sodium lauryl sulfate or cocamide-DEA), interact with nitrites,which may be inadvertently added as preservatives but not shown on ingredient lists, forming carcinogenic nitrosamines that rapidly penetrate the skin. Another group of common preservatives known as parabens has been shown to be weakly estrogenic,and more than 25 commonly used fragrances are known to cause allergic reactions.

Products being scrutinized by smart mothers as potentially harmful to their new babies contain methyl, propyl, butyl and ethyl parabens, petroleum products, synthetic fragrances and colors, propylene glycol, sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate (SLS) and more. In an attempt to address their needs, manufacturers have introduced children’s products that are free of SLSs and parabaens, which are replaced with lesstoxic alternatives or with organic, naturally-occurring ingredients. “I think people have a healthy skepticism of new nanotechnology and nanoparticles now emerging, just as they do with genetically modified organisms,”

Olson said. “We just don’t know the true long-term effect of manipulating naturally occurring materials. Until we do, it makes sense to reconsider products that are naturally preserved with fewer additives, and to read labels to see what isn’t there.”

The natural products industry has produced champions in this arena for decades. Consider that Aubrey Organics has, for years, provided a natural baby and kids shampoo made with a mild coconut-oil-corn oil soap base and naturally scented with vanilla and almond oils. In his book Natural Ingredients Dictionary, company founder Aubrey Hampton lists many of the ingredients used by natural cosmetic manufacturers. This must-have book for all retailers and mothers also lists 10 synthetic cosmetic ingredients to avoid.

The challenge that manufacturers face with products labeled as natural or organic is the ability to preserve products that are made from water and fresh, natural ingredients—to formulate their products without using artificial means to preserve, stabilize, emulsify or color them.

Preservatives are substances that help maintain the stability of a product by creating an inhospitable environment for bacterial growth. Ancient civilizations, for example, used botanical ingredients such as cedar, clove, frankincense or myrrh as preservatives. Gentler preservatives that may appear in natural baby products include botanical resins, essential oils, herbal extracts or honey. According to Olson, there also appears to be a renewed interest in using antioxidants—such as green tea, rhodiola, rooibos and sea buckthorn—topically in personal care products, as well as natural additives like vitamins A, C, E and pantothenic acid (vitamin B5).

Many personal care companies are extending their product lines to incorporate natural products for babies and children. Canus recently unveiled the L’il Goat’s Milk line of infant skin care utilizing the moisturizing properties of goat’s milk and containing no harsh astringents or alcohol in its products. According to the company, goat’s milk has a unique protein structure that enables higher absorption of the milk’s natural emollients. Baby Avalon Organics’ Moisturizing Organic Oil is made with omega-rich organic borage, flax and olive oils, and is useful in infant baby massage.

Some other natural ingredients, such as essential oils and herbs, that are popular in organic baby body care products include:

• Tea tree for first aid and as a bug repellent;
• Lavender for first aid, burns, sunburn and antibacterial;
• Eucalyptus, as a decongestant;
• Chamomile for calming;
• Citrus (orange, grapefruit, mandarin, tangerine), as a mood-enhancer that can calm over-stimulated children; and 
• Rose for calming.

Retailers can always do a better job of promoting organic baby body care to moms and first-time moms-to-be by creating a link between organic nutrition and organic body care. Education is key; provide leaflets, conduct in-store demos to help create brand trial, cross merchandise and display organic baby food and organic baby care together. “There is a price barrier, but by presenting the baby food and baby body care issues together, it can help to create a link between quality and value that seeks to explain why an organic product is not cheap,” Hewson said. “Highlight the cost and the benefits, where the benefits are well understood to be better skin care for a child with greater concern for fragile baby systems easily assaulted by harsh chemicals and toxic preservatives.”

Gillian Christie, founder of public relations firm Christie Communications, offered some suggestions for retailers on how to promote the trend of organic in natural baby care by encompassing the larger picture of raising a child naturally. “The organic trend is definitely growing, as evidenced by the sales figures, but also a growing concern is addressing our toxic environment such as pesticides in the parks; growth hormones and GMOs in food; bad lighting in the schools; mercury in the vaccines and mind and mood altering psyche drugs administered to children as young as 2 years old,” Christie said. “Retailers can and must address these issues with vigor, truth and education.”

She suggested several promotional ideas for retailers:

1. Hold “Mommy and Me” workshops where moms with babies can come and get educated weekly on a new aspect of healthy kids, from water purification and cooking organically to the value of goat’s milk vs cow’s milk, etc.

2. Have an in-store “Feature Bulletin Board” where moms from their communities can post pictures of their healthy babies, their favorite activities and recipes; cross link this to the store’s Web site.

3. Have an “Ask the Baby Expert” page on the store’s Web site and get a local organic pediatrician to answer questions.

4. Host a sample day where moms can bring their babies to try new products and let the babies choose their favorites— have it sponsored by the manufacturers.

5. Have the local moms sponsor a foster child in their community or, on a larger scale, foster a child in a global orphanage or though Vitamin Angels.

Remember the Mother-to-be

It’s more than just the joy of motherhood—it also brings with it exhaustion and physical challenges. Fortunately, companies are now offering ways to address the needs of the pregnant mother by providing products that comfort, soothe and ease the symptoms that arrive before or after birth.

New mothers and mothers-to-be relish the few moments during the day that they have to themselves. Herbal tea, a quiet nook and soothing music; a warm bath filled with dead sea salt or essential oils such as lavender or eucalyptus; a foot rub; a back massage or a loofa scrub; and burning aromatherapy candles before bedtime can help satiate the burden of pregnancy and new motherhood. Capture a new mom’s attention by cross-merchandising or creating a new mother section where prenatal vitamins and teas co-mingle with a selection of organic, high-quality personal care items such as shampoos and conditioners, lotions, lip balms, loofas, bath salts and soaks, aromatherapy candles and sprays. Another idea is to stock specialty items that will help ease the challenges of breastfeeding or postpartum recovery, such as Natracare’s New Mother line of nursing pads and maternity pads.

Another big challenge for a new mother with very little time is finding a store where she can purchase all the items that she needs at once, instead of traveling from a natural products marketplace to a health food store. Make your store a one-stop destination where she can purchase her own personal care items, as well as items she needs to care for her new child on a daily basis: chlorine free diapers; alcohol-free, all natural wipes; a variety of rash ointments that are free of synthetic chemicals; and organic baby food.

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