“We have to take our health extremely seriously. We have nothing if we don’t have our health,” advises actor, author, philanthropist and entrepreneur Hill Harper. Like with most things, many Americans with good health take it for granted. It is not until a health warning or scare happens that we are jolted with the awareness that I must do better to take care of me. Harper got a shot of that awareness in 2010 when he was diagnosis with thyroid cancer. Yes, the big C. It was a blow to Harper but not one that he was unfamiliar with since his father, grandfather and uncle all died of some form of cancer and Harper didn’t want to be the fourth. He took the necessary treatment actions and doctor’s advice and now his cancer journey is behind him but not far from his memory. It has awakened him to not take his own health for granted but also to empower others to follow his lead with a new movement that promotes awareness and access to health and wellness. He is inviting people to “Be The Architect of Your Life.”

Harper’s cancer bout was really a blessing in that it opened his eyes to a scam that has gone in America that many are unaware. It’s the scam of the skincare industry that is poisoning and robbing people all at the same time. Go to your bathroom and look at the label on your skincare products. There are a lot of chemical words that contain formaldehyde, phenacetin, benzene, mineral oils, propylene glycol, ethylene oxide, arsenic, chromium and more that you may not have an idea of what they are or do. They are carcinogens aka cancer-causing chemicals. Before you say my products don’t have that, wait, because carcinogens are in most skincare products and it is not against the law.

Harper got an extensive education on carcinogens and more as it relates to cancer while serving on President Barack Obama’s Cancer Panel. In case you don’t recall, President Obama and Harper’s friendship goes way back to their law school days at Harvard. Harper is a heavy brother graduating magna cum laude from Brown University, cum laude with a Juris Doctorate degree from Harvard Law School and he holds a master's degree with honors from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. President Obama knew putting his friend on the cancer panel was not just a good choice, but also a smart one. It was while on this panel that Harper learned of the skincare industry’s scam game. Skincare companies are owned by drug manufactures that are poisoning people. This means that many are falling victim to the hype that certain skincare products will make them beautiful but instead are slowly poisoning them while the drug companies become even richer selling you their drugs that made you sick in the first place. It’s an ongoing problem that Harper could no longer ignore.

His first step at addressing this issue was arming himself with more education on the subject matter. The more knowledge he gained, the more he understood how good health correlated with healthy skin. A good example of that is taking a close look at the liver and its functionality. The liver, one of the body’s major organs, has the sole responsibility of digesting, absorbing and processing the food we eat. It is what Harper calls our cleansing source. Over time due to the foods we eat, the chemicals we put on our face, environment and some other unhealthy factors the liver can become inefficient. It becomes too weighed down with all the unhealthy stuff we ingest and absorb and eventually becomes a fatty liver. Extra fat on anything does the same thing, slows you down. And in the case of body function that slows down results in weight gained, high blood, heart disease, and other alignments and diseases. All that can be adjusted if we would simply take care better care of the temples that God gave us, our bodies.

Harper made changes in his own health routine by changing out his harmful skincare products to ones that were chemical free. The effects of the change were amazing. His skin was smoother and silky. His body more hydrated. He felt great. But he realize for the average consumer purchasing the products free of all the harmful chemicals was not cost effective as Harper was spending $40 here on like an ounce of lotion and $50 there on two ounces of this. He had to do something to help others so he co-founded a new company, The Architect & Co.

The idea behind The Architect & Co brand is to create a series of premium and healthy personal care products at an affordable price to make all healthier individuals. Harper is starting first with the launch of a his and her skin and hair care line called H2L and JUA Essentials, respectively. Made strictly from baobab oil, natural oils, and plant extracts, Harper made sure that the products were free of harsh chemicals. Beyond that, the products are being sold at a very fair price. Don’t believe me. Men can get the H2L Natural Men’s Care Premium Hair & Body Kit that includes Nourishing Body Wash, 2-in-1 Shampoo & Conditioning Cleanse, After-Shower Hydrating Oil Spray, and Invigorating Body Lotion for $55. Women can purchase the JUA Natural Premium Hair & Body Care Collection that includes Nourishing Body Wash, Smoothing Shampoo, Restoring Conditioner, After-Shower Hydrating Oil Spray and Invigorating Body Lotion for $65. But wait the prices for these kits can be reduced even more when signing up for a subscription. Men can pay two monthly payments of $24 and $24 per month for refills making the kit $48. Men can also take advantage of the shave kit that is $45 without a subscription and $38 with a subscription (monthly payments are $19). While women make two monthly payments of $29 and then pay $29 a month for refills making the kit $58. Refills come to your doorsteps every 2 months and cancelation of a subscription is possible at any time.

“This is not a get rich quick thing. This is me putting out affordable products,” said Harper. “The goal is not trying to extract much profit. The goal is to try to create a sustainable business that provides jobs, that creates quality products and makes the world a little bit of a better place.”

There is an even broader picture to this health and wellness movement Harper has started. It is his belief that with better skincare and overall health that it could make a person more confident and therefore have a higher sense of self-esteem. This in turn could lead to better people living in better companies. Harper explains the concept further. “It all starts with self-esteem,” he says. “Many of our particular community have certain self-esteem crisis where we feel like we have to throw bling on. We got to do this and we got to over sale that. So, basically impress people that don’t really care about us.” He continued, “I want people to be impressed with themselves.”

“I want people to feel good about who they are. I want people to know you are the architect of your life,” said a passionate Harper. He believes when people start to become impressed by themselves with new self-esteem and confidence more opportunities will be created within the community. “All of us have an intuition or idea of what we want to do but most of us sit on it due to fear it won’t work.” Harper believes the greater self-esteem and confidence one has that they will go out and be more entrepreneurial and successful. “People need to believe they are worthy of success” and he thinks that can be accomplish through a healthy self-image.

This sense of giving and empowering people is something that is deeply rooted in not just Harper but his entire family lineage. He told me of mother’s father who was a pharmacist and how he witnessed him dispense medicine to those in community who could not afford it. And then about his grandfather on his dad’s side that was an OBGYN that birthed babies during segregation. “I come from a family of service and folks who serve,” said Harper. “There are all sorts of different ways to make a positive impact and that’s what my goal has been in whatever I do.”

Besides making an impact on the health and wellness of Americans, he is making significant contributions into the life of one special little boy, his adopted son Pierce. The new dad gushed as he spoke about how it is his son teaching him versa him teaching his son. “He is the greatest joy of my life,” said the proud papa about the eighteen month old that has taken a liking to music and art.

Pierce keeps Harper’s hands full along with his other endeavors. Harper can currently be seen in the new film All Eyez On Me and as host of HLN’s How It Really Happened with Hill Harper and this fall catch him on ABC’s new show, The Good Doctor. He will continue charting blueprints on his course to make life choices that are best for his health and wellness for he is the architect of his life and he wants to encourage you to take control and be the architect of your life as well. Find out more about The Architect & Co online at bethearhitect.com.