I should warn you -- I'm in a bit of a mood. This might be short just because I don't know how long I can hold off the grumpy.
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One thing that drives me a little mad (yeah, I know. More of a short putt than a drive) is the way that natural is used in marketing. "All natural" ingredients in food, "natural minerals" in make-up, "natural" cleaners... and now, I notice, a company that doesn't need advertising via this blog is pushing a "natural" deodorant.
It bugs me that people get sucked in by that stuff, really: natural equated with pure, wholesome, healthy, or whatever other touchy-feely sentiment you want to add in there. Well, boys and girls, I know a couple of things about nature, and I can tell you that natural isn't always a good thing.
Do you want to know something that could easily be advertised as natural? Cyanide. It's natural. You can find its precursor in members of the Cherry family, amongst other plants. And those highly-touted "natural mineral" formulations currently in fashion for high-end make-up? Well, the word natural in there doesn't mean a bloody thing. Asbestos is a natural mineral, for pity's sake, and I certainly don't want to put THAT on my face. And even something as natural as milk, if it isn't treated properly, can cause you a whole lot of dead.
I guess what I'm saying is that a person shouldn't buy into the buzz words. Yes, look for healthy products. Yes, do -- but do your research, too. Look for words that are actually regulated in advertising, not just words that make you feel all fuzzy and warm. Be smart, not sucked in.
And ferwhomever'ssake, don't assume that natural is the same as benign. The world just doesn't work that way, folks.
It'd be pretty boring if it did.
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