The Eco Well podcast

Somehow I still haven't covered oral care on the podcast, so to help fix that, this week's episode features oral care formulation chemist Natalie Hendrix! This episode was a 101 on the topic - hope you enjoy it as much as I did!   Interested in supporting the podcast? Please share, write a review and subscribe! If it's accessible, we also have a Patreon page that you can find at www.patreon.com/th...

This episode is an extension of the cosmetic formulation myth busting fireside chat with Gabriella Baki PhD that happened at the Skincare E-Summit in December! 20 minutes just wasn't enough!    Interested in supporting the podcast? Please share, subscribe and write us a review! If it's accessible, we also have a Patreon page that you can find at www.patreon.com/theecowell

This podcast features Milan Scott, otherwise known as @thecosmescientist in a conversation about diversity and inclusion. From the POV of what's happening in the wider industry, formulations and what's currently available on the market, to current gaps that should be addressed. Interested in supporting the podcast? Please share, write a review and subscribe! If it's accessible, we also have a patr...

This podcast features a conversation about the current state, and future, of indie beauty, in conversation with Kelly Kovack from BeautyMatter, Rob Akridge PhD from OPULUS Beauty Labs, and Akemi Ooka PhD from Independent Beauty Association. This was the closing panel for our So, You Want to Start a Beauty Brand? E-Summit - find the full replay on our blog! Interested in supporting the podcast? Ple...

This episodes features a deep dive conversation into silicones in cosmetics; what are they, why are they so useful, and what are some of the environmental draw backs we're currently contending with. To help me tackle the topic, this week I was joined by Mike Fevola PhD. Hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did! Interested in supporting the podcast? Please share, write a review and subscrib...

This pocast features a 101 on the current state of animal testing in cosmetics featuring toxicologist Barae Jomaa PhD. We cover why animal testing testing started in the first place and what prompted all the animal testing bans we see today, the history of animal testing bans globally, alternative test methods, misconceptions, the REACH vs EC conflict we're seeing today, and lots more!   Intereste...

This week's episode is a 101 on cosmetics formulations; what are the ingredient types that make your products work and why? What's up with surfactant and preservative systems? What's the difference between skin and hair care, what's an emulsion, and what do you need to know about pH? o help me cover the topic, this week featured Ava Perkins, PhD student at the University of Cincinnati in their cos...

This podcast features an acne 101 conversation with dermatologist Dr Mara Evanglista-Huber MD, otherwise known as @dermomtology.  Interested in supporting the podcast? Please subscribe, review and share! If it's accessible, we also have a Patreon page which you can find www.patreon.com/theecowell

This podcast was about false balance; what it is, how to spot it and what the greater issue with it is. What's wrong with public form debates on science? Particularly on topics that have a lot of evidence to support one POV vs a fringe viewpoint. For example, sunscreens aren't the cause of coral bleaching, widely supported by the evidence, vs it is, supported by outlier data. This episode features...

This week's episode is a cosmetic chemists reaction episode, featuring the POV of cosmetic science PhD student Lanesa Mahon @raya.faces and myself. Topic: beauty trends. Trends we reacted to include: microbiome skincare, biotech beauty, menopausal skincare, dermatologist brands, green beauty and more!  Interested in supporting the podcast? Find us on Patreon at www.patreon.com/theecowell

This podcast episode is a 101 on microplastics in beauty. What do we mean when we say "plastic" and "microplastic"? What's the microplastic issue like in beauty? To help me cover the topic, this week I was joined with microplastic researcher, Laura Markley PhD. Enjoy!   Interested in supporting the podcast? Find us on patreon at www.patreon.com/theeecowell

This is a replay of a panel I moderated at the SCC California Suppliers Day, presented by Independent Beauty Association. The conversation was broadly about the impacts of misinformation in beauty, and opportunities for course correction. Panelists included some of my favorite LA based sci-commers; Allison Kent-Gunn @allisonturquoise, Javon Ford @javonford16, Jane Tsui @janethechemist and Valerie...

What is the current state of animal testing in cosmetics? Why has it happened, does it still happen - if so, where and why? And where are we at with alternatives? New podcast alert! Our latest episode featured Dr. Carol Treasure from XCellR8, an animal-free in-vitro safety testing lab. There's so much complexity to this topic, and I think there have been some seriously missed opportunities from th...

A deep dive into claims with claims expert, Craig Weiss of Consumer Product Testing. What do the claims you see on labels actually mean? What's a strong claim and what's just puffery? And how can you as a consumer more effectively read labels? This podcast explored all this and more!    Interested in supporting the podcast? Find us on Patreon at www.patreon.com/theecowell

This podcast features a 101 episode on toxicology, featuring toxicologist Dr Pushpa Rao. With all the noise and confusion about product safety out in the zeitgeist, I thought this was an important topic to cover. We covered the basics of what toxicology is, how it's applied to cosmetics, fundamental toxicology themes like hazard and risk, safety substantiation, misconceptions, and more! Interested...

There have been so many class action lawsuits in beauty over the last few years. What does it all mean? Are products on the market unsafe? Have these lawsuits become a cost of business in the USA? Are they making products safer? To help me unpack the topic, this weeks episode featured Avril Love, counsel at K&L Gates. Enjoy! Interested in supporting the podcast? Find us at Patreon at www.patreon.c...

This episode featured hair scientist, Dr Crystal Porter from Mane Insights, in a deep dive into curly hair. We dove into the nitty gritty of the structure of curly hair, and the science behind keeping it in good shape. Hope you enjoy the episode as much as I did! Quick edit - in this episode, Crystal mentioned "consumer scientist." She meant "citizen scientist" :). Interested in supporting the pod...

This episode features a deep dive into state law, featuring Dr. Simone Swafford, regulatory consultant at Vogue Regulatory. What's happening at the state level in terms of cosmetic regulations, and how does that impact both industry as well as consumers? We specifically dive into how misinformation is driving some of the recent legislative developments. Big thanks to Essential Labs for sponsoring...

This week's episode featured Bart Maxon - cosmetic scientist, creator of 20 patents, and recent recipient of the SCC Merit Award. Important to this conversation, he's achieved all of this as a 4'6" achondroplasia dwarf who's had several spinal surgeries, operating in an industry where accessibility has been an ongoing improvement for those with disabilities. I'm really inspired by Bart's story. Fr...

This episode featured the closing panel from Michelle @labmuffinbeautyscience and my Sunscreen E-Summit, which happened a few weeks ago.  On the topic of Challenges and Opportunities for the Suncare Sector. In conversation with Meredith Petillo, Senior Director of Technical & Regulatory Services at IBA, Stan Krus, Senior Technology Manager Sun Care at BASF, Carl D'Ruiz,  Head of Personal Care and...

This episode was about beauty science communication, from the perspectives of Michelle @ labmuffinbeautyscience and me. What is sci-comm, why is it important, what are some of the challenges, and importantly, why are there so few sci-commers able to make sci-com a full-time, long-lasting endeavor? In this episode, Michelle and I announce the social enterprise we've been working on together: Beauty...

New podcast! This week, we tried something a little different with a Toxicologist Reacts episode, featuring Tony Simion, Ph. D. Industry veteran and adjunct professor. You guys sent in media headlines and posts, and we responded. Disclaimer, before I go on here; all the views expressed in this post and podcast are all in our honestly held opinions. I hope by the end of this episode, it's clear who...

This week's episode took a look at MoCRA - What's happening? What do we know? How is going to impact industry, and also consumers? There has been a lot of noise about MoCRA, what does it all mean? To help me do this topic justice, for this podcast I was joined by Kerry Tassopoulos, Of Counsel and a corporate, regulatory and compliance attorney with Platt Cheema Richmond PLLC. Interested in support...

This episode featured the closing panel for our Sustainable Beauty E-Summit that happened back in January on Sustainability Challenges and Opportunities for the Cosmetics Sector. We came at the  topic of sustainability challenges and opportunities from a wide scope of expertise. Featuring Akemi Ooka, Ph. D., Head of Global Supply Chain and Sustainability Resources at the Independent Beauty Associa...

This week, we covered the topic of corporate sustainability management and reporting through the lens of… is this actually going to help combat climate change? From measuring greenhouse gases to carbon offsetting, is current corporate sustainability and policy pointing us in the right direction? Or is there potential for it to do more harm than good? Joining me for this conversation is Dr. Mark Tr...