There are over 80,000 chemicals currently used in consumer products, with little to no testing done on the vast majority of them. Until it's certain that a product does not cause harm, we feel that people should use alternatives that are known to be truly safe."
- The Naked Truth Project
My interest in natural remedies/beauty concoctions began when I was a teenager suffering with terrible skin problems. Despite the fact that I ate well and washed my face dutifully (like I was told to do by every popular skin care company), I still broke out all the time. I would save up my allowance money to buy new-fangled things - creams, lotions, toners, strips - and none of it mattered. Exhausted, I asked my naturalist-extraordinaire mother for some advice. I finally turned my skin over to her care.
She said something to me then, when I was 17, that has always stayed with me: "If you can't eat it, do not use it on your skin." Interesting thought, huh? When you consider that many substances applied to the skin (or the lips, or around the eyes) absorb into the bloodstream, it makes sense.
Since then, I've been much more careful about what I apply topically to my body, whether that be chapstick, lotion, deodorant, or eyeliner (And even though shampoo and condition rinse out, I'm still wary of what I use). Of course, dermal absorption depends on several factors - what part of the body, concentration of chemicals in the substance, length of exposure -- but I think it always pays to be safe.
So, as a 17 year old, I re-fitted my skin care regimen and couldn't have been happier. As a senior in college, I *finally* officially gave up using antiperspirants and went on a search for a good deodorant (one without aluminum, parabens, and petroleum-based proplyene glycol). After a year and a half of deodorants which gave me rashes, dry skin, or flat-out failed me in times of need, I found one that I like (NutriBiotic's "Lavender")!! It's been a long, hard road, so this is a momentous occasion for me!
In light of this happy discovery, I decided to do some more research about different chemicals found in popular beauty products. I compiled a long list for myself (and friends), and thought that the PJ community might like to be privy to this information as well! The list is longggggggggg, but it's terribly interesting! Well, at least I find it terribly interesting...
I've separated things into categories by their chemical uses.
"Fragrances"
Fragrances means synthetic fragrances - otherwise, the label would say 'essential oils.'
Potential harmful ingredients: The word "fragrance" can indicate up to 4,000 unlisted ingredients. Complains to the FDA have included vomiting, violent coughing, dizziness, rashes, skin discoloration, headaches, etc.
Detergents
NDELA (nitrosodiethanolamine) formed with TEA, DEA, MEA, sodium lauryl sulfate
Potential harmful ingredients: On FDA list of suspected carcinogens. Has potential to cause dermatitis, flu-like and asthmatic conditions, severe eye damage, and severe upper digestive tract damage if ingested.
P.S. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, which is found in MANY commercial shampoos (not to mention soaps, toothpastes, detergents) is the same compound used in engine degreasers, car wash soaps, and floor cleaners. Of course, it's used in much lower concentrations, but still - I prefer my products to be bit less abrasive. Why do we use it in popular beauty products? Because it's cheap and creates a "nice lather," which we have internalized to mean "clean." I personally think it's too drying... and unnecessary.
SLS-FREE PRODUCT LINES: Giovanni hair care, Weleda toothpastes, Avalon Organics, the Nature's Gate Organic line, Dr. Bronners, Sun Dog, and Jason products.
THESE HAVE SLS: Tom's of Maine, Earth Science, Kiss My Face, Dessert Essence, Pure and Basic, Nature's Gate, Shikai and King Fisher (+ tons of others)
Petroleum Products
Paraffin, mineral oil
Potential harmful ingredients: On FDA list of suspected carcinogens. Paraffin may cause adverse reactions in people sensitive to petrochemicals.
Bleaching Agent
Hydroquinone
Potential harmful ingredients: On FDA list of suspected carcinogens.
Drying Agents
Phenols
Potential harmful ingredients: On FDA list of suspected carcinogens. May also cause skin eruptions, peeling, swelling, pimples, hives, burning, numbness, cold sweats.
Surfactants
PEG-8 (polyethylene glycol)
Potential harmful ingredients: On FDA list of suspected carcinogens.
Humectants
Propylene glycol, glycerin, sorbitol, butylene glycol
Potential harmful ingredients: Except for PEG-8, most glycols, natural or synthetic, are considered safe. Natural glycols are usually labeled as natural glycerin/vegetable glycerin; unspecified glcyols are listed as glycerol/glycerin. FDA studies indicate that polyethylene glycol may be highly allergenic.
Emollients
Mineral oil, lanolin, silicones (such as dimethicone), fatty acids (such as stearic and isostearic acid), fatty alcohols (such as cetyl alcohol, stearyl alcohol, myristyl alcohol), esters (such as isopropyl myristate, spermaceti, octyl palmitate, butyl steartate, isopropyl isostearate), and triglycerides (such as vegetable oils).
Potential harmful ingredients: Mineral oil is a suspected carcinogen and also can interfere with vitamin absorption in the body. It is more harmful when ingested or rubbed on the skin than when inhaled.
Emulsifiers
Glyceryl stearates, carbomer 934, ethers like steareth 2, laureth 4, beeswax, sorbitan stearate, ceteraryl alcohol, polysorbate 60 & 80
Potential harmful ingredients: Polysorbate 80 is a known carcinogen.
Preservatives
Parabens such as methyl, propyl, butyl, quarternium-15, imidazolidinyl urea
Potential harmful ingredients: All preservatives are potential allergens.
P.S. Many of you probably know that there's great controversy surrounding Parabens, compounds known for their fungicidal and bacterical properties, about whether or not they contribute to breast cancer. The jury is definitely still out, but some studies have found high levels of parabens in breast tumors. One UK study found high concentrations of parabens in 18 out of 20 samples of breast tumors! They are suspected endocrine disruptors, and they have been found to mimic estrogen in laboratory experiments. Nothing has been confirmed as of now, but I don't think there's any harm in being careful with this kind of stuff. I always think about how many things have been deemed "safe" in the past, only for us to find out it later how toxic it was. When there are safe alternatives available, take 'em!!
Antioxidants
BHA, BHT, tocopherol (vitamin E)
Potential harmful ingredients: Animal studies show that BHT is a suspected human carcinogen and that BHT and BHA may cause metabolic stress, damage to liver, baldness, and fetal abnormalities. Physicians report that BHA AND BHT may cause adverse reactions in people with sensitivities to petrochemical derivatives.
Others
Alcohol, formaldehyde, propyl alcohol, toluene 2, 4 diamine, EDTA (ethylenediamine tetra acetic acid)
Potential harmful ingredients: All of these ingredients are suspected carcinogens. EDTA may also cause numbness/tingling in fingers, lightheadedness, dizziness, vertigo, sneezing, nasal congestion, headaches, and skin irritation.
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A few additional notes:
Hair color is known to be a dangerous beauty product. Most popular hair color contains coal tar dyes (which have been shown to cause cancer in lab animals), lead acetate (a brain and nervous system toxin) peroxide and phenylenediamine, a petrochemical known to cause allergic skin reactions and long-term eczema. Ammonia is often found in hair dyes and is dangerous when both when inhaled (during application) and absorbed through the scalp after. Try Henna instead. And if you want to lighten your hair, apply a bit of fresh lemon juice on strands of hair and hang out in the sun. I've done it and it worked! I've also done a "darkening" hair rinse with water and rosemary needles.
Do (Good) Deodorants and not Antiperspirants: Antiperspirants contain parabens, aluminum (most I've seen on the shelf today - that includes Secret, Dove, Teen Spirit, etc - contain anywhere from 12% - 22% aluminum as the "active ingredient"! -- and Aluminum has been linked to Alzheimer's, brain disorders, and is a possible risk factor in breast cancer), and some even contain formaldehyde. I think we've been trained to think that sweating is bad - but it's such an important bodily function and it shouldn't be prevented! It is a major means for toxin removal from the body and one of our body's heat-regulating systems.
The problem with deodorants and antiperspirants that contain aluminum is not just the aluminum itself, but how it works to reduce sweat. Aluminum compounds or aluminum salts, such as aluminum oxide (Al2O3), are key ingredients in almost every antiperspirant. They are powerful astringents that close pores, stopping sweat and odor from escaping the body. Antiperspirants may leave the outside of the body smelling fresh and clean – but inside, the toxins that would have escaped the body in the sweat have nowhere to go. For this reason, antiperspirants have been linked to problems with the sweat glands and lymph glands in and around the underarms.
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Some Great Links!
+ Good article in Durango Herald a few weeks ago about toxic products.
+ Here's another good article (this one is from the Seattle Times) that was just run 2 weeks ago, complete with a list of Ingredients to Watch For.
+ The Naked Truth Project is a phenomenal website devoted to non-toxic living. Look in the Consumer Products Guide and look up ingredients and see what it means for your health and home!
****My Personal Favorite*****
This is a FANTASTIC website. The The Environmental Working Group runs a search engine called The Skin Project, which is an INCREDIBLE RESOURCE! You can search for a product, ingredient, or company, and the EWG gives it a "Hazard Score," which identifies why it got the rating (1-10 on the hazard list) it did. EWG's database is filled with literally thousands of personal care products, each with its own safety rating based on dozens of toxicity and regulatory databases.
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So, when it all comes down to it - we don't just influence our health and well-being by what we EAT - we can also be making good (or bad) choices through the use of our personal care products. In a rosier world, we'd be able to only use products free of these toxic chemicals - or we'd all have the time to make our own concoctions! (Which is sweet - and I have some scalp/skin care recipes if anyone is interested :) I hope this interests at least a few of you! Otherwise, I will feel sheepish for posting something so absurdly long...
I used the following sources in this ridiculously long post: Natural Medicine Journal, Absolute Beauty (book by Pratima Raichur), Skin Deep resource list, Web MD, recent articles in the Durango Herald and the Seattle Times, The Naked Truth Project, the Environmental Working Group, and some conversations with my Ma and Pa :) |