The popular rappers Public Enemy said it first, and now a Richmond hairstylist has adopted a choice phrase for beauty consumers: Don't believe the hype.

Don't believe the slogans and ad jingles for shampoos and conditioners guaranteeing volume, shine and control; don't believe the well-paid model when she tells you how a skin cream has changed her life, says Peter Jovan, a Richmond hairstylist.

Calling themselves the Human Safe Network and encouraging their audiences to use "human safe" (non-toxic) beauty products, Jovan and his wife Janica will hold seminars for stylists and the public across the country, beginning with Calgary and Toronto dates in September.

'I was never into the environmental thing,' says Jovan. "I always thought the most important thing is to look after people and their health."

When his father took ill this spring, Jovan did some research into herbal remedies in the hope they could help him to recover. His finds would affect his business and his life.

He found that hidden in the same products that promise beauty and rejuvenation - including hair salon supplies - lie chemicals that can harm hair and skin.

The main culprits, he says, are propylene glycol and sodium laurel sulfate. Propylene glycol is used not only in hair care products but in greater proportions in industrial anti-freeze. Anyone who takes regular bubble baths is also soaking in sodium laurel sulfate, a chemical found in engine grease remover, says Jovan.

"The skin is a living, breathing organ. By applying many of these products, you’re contaminating the hair directly," he says.

The Jovans will tour with Judy Vance, a friend and researcher