Bri, what you done started girl? Ok to be fair this really isn’t about Bri Hall whose video I will be referencing further down in my post. If you have been under a rock like I have been the last few days then you probably did not hear that many of us are planning a boycott of Eco Styler Gel due to its less than stellar ingredients. To add more context to this, popular youtube vlogger Bri Hall had what she called an allergic reaction to the Eco Gold Gel specifically, and recently made a video sharing her thoughts.
In that video, she also referenced a very detailed video done by “AlopeciaFreewthJass” called Why I Stopped Using Eco Styler Gel. In that video Jass goes through each ingredient detailing all of the harmful chemicals that can be found in the gel itself.
At this point it would make sense to watch the video right? Press play:
My perspective on the whole thing is simple, we all know that the products made by some of our peers– black-owned, and created from the ground up have some of the best ingredients a girl could ask for.
We also know that many of the products on the shelves including, skin care products, makeup, and other beauty products have harmful chemicals in them even when they claim they don’t. This isn’t good, but it also isn’t new #awareness is key!
The Ecostyler brand has been around for years and many of us have supported it since the beginning of our natural journeys. I do think that every brand should be held accountable for “bad ingredients” if they, in fact, have harmful ingredients in their products and women and men have a right to call them out if they notice something wrong or off.
(By the way guys, chemicals do not = bad, so sometimes we can have allergic reactions to all natural products too, you just have to be aware of what our skin and scalp can tolerate)
The most important part is how the brand responds to our concerns! If you use the gel, do not put it on your scalp and the great thing about our community is that you can always find more natural alternatives on the shelf if you suffer from gel irritation or you can make one yourself.
Take these two for instance
Aunt Jackie’s Flaxseed Don’t Shrink Curling Gel 15oz
Aloe Vera Gel is great as well and as I mentioned before you can click this post and learn how to make your own gel.
At the end of the day, we all have to make a conscious decision about all of the things we put on our bodies and in our bodies. Bri’s video easily sparked conversation about women canceling Eco but still wearing acrylics – I mean!
In the world, we live in we each have to decide where on the spectrum we fall with our use of products and the food we eat. Maybe for you, it starts with Eco Styler Gel, for another woman it might just start with meat! – Pick your poison right?
What do you all think? Are you canceling Eco?
Updated:
One of my readers actually shared Eco’s response to the claims from their Instagram, see below:
They stand by their ingredients!
