"Which one?" you might ask, or at least you would if you were taking the classes I am.
I'm talking about the "serving size" information on mass-produced products. I've already looked at it as far as food goes. Many note the disturbing trend of food companies increasing portion sizes over the past decade, without any real attempt to inform consumers of the change. What we have is a situation where the maker of a product, who has a vested interest in its sales and the demand for it, is telling us how much of the product to consume and how quickly.
And while this is an important phenomenon to study, it is notably different from the pattern I'm about to discuss, because our bodies have a natural food intake regulating response built right in. So while we may be buying more food for less, we are still filling up the same stomach. (I know, I know, there are undoubtedly thousands of studies that show that chronic overeating, obesity, diabetes, and the rest of the gambit of diseases we are made more prone to when we consume unnecessarily large amounts of food would suggest that our bodies adapt to such a huge caloric intake by making changes that ultimately result in our perception of hunger and satiety. Just...bear with me.)
For now, the focus of this discussion will be non-food products. Many of the same arguments can be made for food, natural resources, fuel, energy, and the like.
Think about the products that we use in the upkeep of our bodies. They and analogs for them are a firmly ingrained part of our culture. While the amount and tone of advertisements for "beauty products" is a bit sickening, most Americans would agree that at the very minimum, people need to own: toothpaste, shampoo, body soap, and deodorant. However, there is little solid agreement about how much and how often to use these products. Most people, if polled, would likely fall in the range of "brush teeth twice a day, wash hair and body in shower daily, apply deodorant daily or as needed." However, would their actual behavior match their reported responses?
My hope is that most people would actually perform these tasks a lot less! I think we should be skeptical of any company providing a good or service that is culturally thought of as a necessary commodity, and especially about any statement they may make about how much of their product to use.
Even if the recommendations made by the manufacturer are free of conflict of interest and actually reflect the mean results of scientific studies done to determine the average appropriate amount of product to use, this does not take into account the variation of people's bodies and how they will react to a given product. And why in the world would we want to be throwing (or spraying or squirting) our money down the drain for diminished results when we could be much more efficient with our rationing of these products?
Why cover the brush when you can get even coverage of your teeth with just a dab of toothpaste?
Why shampoo twice a day with a handful of chemical goop when you can shampoo less and with less and still attain the appearance you desire?
Why quickly build up a film over your body that will never penetrate the surface of your skin and will instead get washed down the drain with no effect when you could use a smaller amount of shower gel, or maybe go without if you'll just be around the house?
It may be clear that I advocate minimizing the amount of man-made chemicals (xenochemicals=word of the day) that enter my body. However, I also advocate not limiting my ability to realize my potential by failing to adhere to (certain) social norms. I'd invite you to walk that line with me in whatever way is most appropriate for you.
How?! I'll tell you how!
First, determine if you need to use a product at all. Do you really need that mouthwash if your toothpaste has little Scope swirls in it? Do you need an antiperspirant if a deodorant with fewer noxious chemicals in it would suffice? Do you really need a separate conditioner if you can find a shampoo/conditioner combo? This will obviously have an immediate effect on your spending...and your health!
Second, read the recommendations on the container. If you are currently consuming more of that product than is suggested, you should just go ahead and switch to the smaller amount immediately. Seriously. There's no need to rebel against "the Men" (both of which are named Johnson) by paying Them more.
Third, start reducing the amount of a product you use. Go ahead and wash your hair everyday if you want, but try a little less shampoo. Make an effort to make that smaller amount go further by literally spreading it further: after applying shampoo, massage the scalp to distribute product deeper into your hair; bring a comb into the shower and run it through your hair to distribute product down to the tips; and, if your hair is long enough, squeeze some of that soapy water that you combed into your tips back onto the top of your head. Don't let any product leave your body! The same applies for toothpaste. If you are spitting out chunks of unbrushed paste, try using less, and be sure to change your technique up a bit by being aware of exactly how your brushing style distributes the product in your mouth.
Fourth, start reducing the number of times you use a product. With toothbrushing, I wouldn't suggest this step, since teeth are notorious for getting painfully and permanently damaged when not cared for properly. However, maybe it doesn't make sense to wash your face right before bed; maybe washing during your morning shower is plenty. Maybe not shaving your legs is easy to pull off if it's winter and you're always in pants; maybe not shaving your face is the perfect way to celebrate the weekend!
What it really comes down to, though, is two things: being aware and being scientific. Observe your own day-to-day behavior; most of us will be very surprised at some of the eccentricities and oddities we exhibit when our minds are normally on auto-pilot! Approach every occasion of using a product as a miniature experiment. (Honestly, such experiments are a scientist's wildest dream: there are almost no confounding variables when dealing with a single subject, they can be repeated as many times as there are days, all the measures of variables already exist, and there is simply no question concerning objectivity: the nature of the experiment precludes the asking of the question!)
Think, "alright, I'm going to use 80% of my normal product, and I'm going to apply it 50% less frequently. At the end of a week, I will evaluate how my body has reacted to it, both beneficially and adversely, and determine if I can continue to reduce the level of the independent variable until I find that the negative effects begin to outweigh the positive ones."
Or, you know, use whatever words you want for it.
I thought as I showered, "I wonder how humans of old dealt with getting stink and dirt off of themselves. There must be some set of all-natural, non-xenochemical substances that kept people groomed for millennia." Then I remembered that I am living in modern America and that for most human history and in most societies people walked around constantly stewing in their own stench. Drat.
The smell of a human: only the most familiar, comforting, natural, and sexy smell of all time. Let your stink shine!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment