Toxins in Personal Care Products
From Green Wiki
[edit] [www.mygreenchoices.co.za]
[edit] Toxins In Your Personal Care Products
The beauty industry is a multi-billion dollar industry that, until now, has had little other than ‘cruelty to animals’ to worry about as a minor obstacle to their marketing campaigns. The safety of beauty products has largely been taken for granted – who would wittingly poison their customers?
The low-down on what you put on your face and body:
• many beauty products are not well regulated • many use varying mixtures of synthetically produced chemicals • many of these synthetic chemicals have not been approved by regulation authorities, but find their way into products and onto shelves through loopholes in regulations • as much as a third of personal care products contain at least 1 chemical linked to cancer • mineral oil and petroleum are the basic ingredients in many cosmetic products – these have their origins in fossil fuels
Organic products should be certified, but if they are not, another good way to assess their validity is to look out for a list of natural ingredients. True organic personal care products do not contain preservatives – so there should be absolutely no sign of methyl or propylparabens.
Top 4 chemicals to avoid and why:
Sodium laureth sulphate - banned in Europe and Central America• It’s used because it makes things foam
• It’s found in toothpaste, shampoo, body and shower gels etc • It’s a suspected carcinogen linked to kidney and liver damage, nervous system disruption, eczema and dermatitis
Parabens (methyl, propyl, butyl & ethyl) – banned in Japan and Sweden and under review in the UK
• It’s used as a preservative or germicide • It’s found in conditioners, hair gels, nail creams, foundations, mascara, facial masks, skin creams, deodorants, sunscreen and hair colouring • It’s a hormone disrupter – mimics natural estrogens that lead to cancer; linked to breast cancer, skin rashes
Formaldehyde family Diazolidinyl urea, 3-diol Imidazolidinyl urea, DMDM Hydantoin, Quaternium-15, Nitorpropane-1, Formalin, Methanal, Methyl aldehyde, Methylene oxide etc. banned in Europe
• It’s used because it’s a disinfectant, fungicide, germicide, defoamer and preservative • It’s found in shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, liquid hand wash, skin lotions, bubble bath, hair care products, antiperspirants, nail polishes, talcs, mouthwash etc • It can cause allergic reactions, dermatitis, headaches; it irritates mucous membranes, is linked to joint and chest pain, fatigue, dizziness and immune dysfunction
Phthalates – banned in Europe
• It’s used because it makes plastic soft • It’s found in nail polish, hair-straighteners and sprays, body lotions and deodorants • It’s a carcinogen linked to birth defects, lowered sperm counts, damage to reproductive organs, lung, liver and kidney cancer
It’s up to you – learn to read the label, and be careful of products claiming that they’re organic when they are not!
