I am happy to announce that I am part of the Tom’s of Maine Goodness Circle.
When I was asked to become a member of the Goodness Circle I was thrilled. As a mom I am very concerned about the every day products that my family uses. Slowly but surely I am replacing every day items with ones that are better for them and/or better for our environment.
I am actually very shocked to see how many ingredients are used to make simple things like hand soap and toothpaste. Seriously? Do you need to use ingredients that no one can pronounce, let alone understand what they are, in simple products like soap and toothpaste?
It concerns me a lot how much chemicals and man made ingredients go into the making of things like personal care to the foods that we eat. Do we truly know what effect it has on our bodies and to our environment? Perhaps this is why there are so many illnesses and people getting sick then there was 2o or 30 years ago. I think there should be a shift in how things are made and we should all get back to our roots. A hundred, even 50 years ago, people were not using products made with Sodium C14-160 olefin sulfonate, Poloxamer 124 and Polyquaternium-7 (these are actual ingredients I found in hand soap).
Tom’s of Maine products are made no artificial ingredients, no artificial colors, no artificial preservatives, no artificial flavors, no animal ingredients and no synthetic fragrances.
Unlike other companies, Tom’s of Maine not only lists the ingredients found in their products but also the purpose the ingredient serves and where they get the ingredients from. That way if you have a question about what an ingredient is and why it’s needed in the product you are using you can quickly and easily look it up on the Tom’s of Maine site.
For example – do you know what Calendula Glycerite is and what it is used for? Calendula Glycerite is used to give a soothing feeling. It comes from Marigold flowers. Another example would be Sodium Cocate. This is used for cleansing and it comes from coconuts.
With those two examples I used above I would never know what those ingredients were, why they were needed and where they came from without looking them up on the Tom’s of Maine website. I think all companies should take their lead and set up similar pages. Maybe the reason why they don’t is because they don’t want you knowing the truth about their ingredients? How about that “food for thought?”
Tom’s of Maine has been around for 40+ years. They offer oral care products, deodorants and soaps.
The company started back in 1968 (the year I was born!) when Tom Chappell and his wife Kate left the hustle and bustle of Philadelphia where Tom worked for an insurance company, to the more relaxed, laid back lifestyle of rural Kennebunk, Maine.
In effort to simplify their lives the couple sought out natural, unadulterated products and unprocessed foods. They were unable to find what they were looking for so they decided to make their own products and sell the to the public. With a $5,000 loan from a friend and idea of creating products that were no harmful to the environment or the people who used them, Tom’s of Maine was born.
Their first product was non-phosphate laundry detergent and personal care products. Their first natural toothpaste came out in 1075 and their first deodorant in 1976.
The company has grown so much over the years. In 2006 they became part of the Colgate-Palmolive Company. Even though they are part of a larger company now their original philosophy is still in tact. They still care about the ingredients they use in their products and the impact they have on the environment. They still very much believe in effective natural, sustainable and responsible products and solutions.
In addition to making more natural products, Tom’s of Maine also cares about our environment. They use as little packaging as possible. They even work with TerraCycle. TerraCycle takes empty Tom’s of Maine bottles and boxes and recycles and repurposes them to keep them out of landfills and the ocean. You can learn more about it here – http://www.terracycle.com/en-US/brigades/tom-s-of-maine-natural-care-brigade.
The reason why I joined the Goodness Circle is because I care about the products that my family uses. I also care about the environment. One day I hope to be fully green. I consider myself “light green” at the moment because there are still products I need to weed out of our lives, so it’s still a work in progress. I am committed to seeing it through and one day fully free my family from harmful products, unnatural products and things that will have a negative impact on the environment.
Next month I’ll be hosting a Twitter party for Tom’s of Maine (I hope to see you there!) and bring you more information about the company and products over the next several months.
If you would like to learn more about Tom’s of Maine and the products they offer visit www.TomsofMaine.com. You can also check them out on Facebook, Twitter and even their blog.
Do you use Tom’s of Maine products? Do you have a favorite? Feel free to share your thoughts. I always love to hear from my readers.
Kimberly
*I will be receiving free product samples to review in addition to compensation however the opinions expressed are entirely my own and not influenced in any way.