The Dirty Side of the Personal Care Industry
FACTS:
The European Union bans or restricts close to 1,400 ingredients from their personal care products. The US bans or restricts only 9 for safety reasons.
Over 80,000 chemicals have been introduced into the marketplace since WWII. Less than 10% have been tested for human safety.
The FDA does not require any pre-market safety testing on chemicals in cosmetics and body care products, with the exception of color additives.
Women use, on average, 12 personal care products a day, exposing themselves to 168 chemical ingredients per day. Men use six, with an exposure rate of 85 unique chemicals per day. (EWG)
Companies are not required to list the chemical components of fragrances in their products. The EWG cautions that “when you see "fragrance" on a personal care product's label, read it as "hidden chemicals." Just one scent can contain 50 to 300 distinct chemicals, many of which pose known health risks.
Babies are born “pre-polluted”, with over 287 chemicals detected in umbilical cord blood. 180 are known to cause cancer in humans or animals, 217 are toxic to the brain and nervous system, and 208 cause birth defects or abnormal development in animal tests.
Personal care safety is not just a women’s issue! It’s an everybody issue, affecting men, women, children and even newborn babies.
What are personal care products?
Personal care products are legally defined as “anything intended to be rubbed, poured, sprinkled, or sprayed on, introduced into, or otherwise applied to the human body or any part thereof for cleansing and beautifying.”
They include: antibacterial soaps; hand soaps; bar soaps; liquid soaps; facial and body washes; facial and body cleansers; facial masks; exfoliating products; face, foot and body scrubs; body, skin and foot polishes; body, skin and foot buffers; body, skin and foot foams; micro technology items; acne treatment products; shampoos; conditioners; toothpaste; shaving creams or gels; and foot care products.
What is not a personal care product?
Any product that does not require a prescription
WHAT CAN YOU DO:
Do your research: Find out which companies and brands practice clean beauty and create products devoid of harmful, toxic chemicals. Education is power.
Check out Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and EWG’s Skin Deep. These sites do the research for you by providing comprehensive safety ratings on thousands of products and chemical ingredients.
Download EWG’s Healthy Living app, and the Think Dirty-Shop Clean app to check out a product’s safety rating and help you shop cleaner. All you need to do is scan the product barcode into these apps for an overall product safety score and ingredient information.
Print out Beautycounter’s The Never List™. Refer to it often when picking out personal care products.
Ditch synthetic perfumes and scented products.
Look for personal care products marked “fragrance-free” instead of “unscented”. Unscented doesn’t mean fragrance free. The product may actually be filled with fragrance masking chemicals to cover up unwanted chemical scents.
Raise an eyebrow when you see the word “natural” listed on the ingredient panel. Just like in the food industry, ‘natural” is an unregulated term and essentially tells you nothing about the product you are buying.
Try essential oils as a replacement for fragrances.
If you just can’t part with your favorite perfume (guilty as charged), spray it on your clothes, not your body.
Sunscreens are filled with toxic chemicals: Look for mineral (physical) sunscreens which list zinc oxide and titanium oxide as their active ingredients. Avoid sunscreens that rely on chemical filters.
Become a label detective.
Cheat Sheet:
Below are a few of the most common toxic chemicals found in personal care products. All are known to be harmful to human health.
PHTHALATES: Widely known for their use in plastics to make them more flexible, phthalates are found in almost all beauty products that have fragrance. In fact, the word “fragrance” on a label is a good sign that phthalates are present.
Side effects: Phthalates are known endocrine-disruptors, and can wreak havoc on normal hormone function. Studies also show a possible link between phthalates and damage to the male reproductive system.
Commonly found in: shampoos, body lotions, perfume, soaps, and deodorants.
Protect yourself: Look for words on product packaging like “no synthetic fragrance” or even better “phthalate-free.” And try essential oils as a replacement for fragrances.
PARABENS: Manufacturers use parabens as preservatives in a wide variety of body care products as well as in makeup. Although the FDA limits paraben levels in food and beverages, there are no current regulations extending to personal care products.
Side effects: Reactions include skin allergies and irritation. They are also known hormone disruptors and there is concern that parabens may be linked to breast cancer.
Commonly found in: facial cleansers and creams, body moisturizers, hair care products, and makeup.
Protect yourself: Look for paraben free products. Manufacturers may try to trick you into thinking a product is safe by using the word “natural” on a label, even when toxic chemicals like parabens are present. That word is not FDA regulated for skincare products (or food products for that matter) so essentially it has no meaning.
TRICLOSAN: Manufacturers use triclosan and triclocarbon as antibacterial agents. The American Medical Association and The Center for Disease Control and Prevention have raised concerns regarding the overuse of antibacterial products and the rise of antibiotic resistant bacteria. Both authorities also advise that washing well with simple soap and water can be as effective as using antibacterial products.
Side effects: Possible skin irritation. May disrupt thyroid and reproductive hormone function.
Commonly found in: hand sanitizers, liquid hand soap, bar soap, dishwashing detergent, deodorant, and toothpaste.
Protect yourself: Limit your use of antibacterial or antimicrobial products. Look for products labeled “no triclosan”, especially toothpaste which is easily ingested. Use natural or alcohol-based hand sanitizers without fragrance when soap and water is not available.
FORMALDEHYDE: Manufacturers use Formaldehyde as a preservative in cosmetics.
Side effects: Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen and has also been linked to skin irritations and allergic reactions .
Commonly found in: hair products, including shampoo and hair straightening treatments such as Keratin, baby shampoo and body wash, eye shadows, nail polish and nail polish remover.
Protect yourself: shop clean brands, read labels, and avoid hair straightening systems that use formaldehyde.
SODIUM LAURYL SULFATE(SLS) / SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE (SLES): Manufacturers use SLS and SLES as an emulsifying and foaming agent in personal care and cleaning products.
Side effects: SLS and SLES are known skin and eye irritants.
Commonly found in: shampoo, body wash, face wash, and toothpaste.
Protect yourself: shop clean brands, read labels, and avoid products SLS and SLES, as well as sulfuric acid monododecyl ester sodium salt, sodium salt, hydrogen sulfate, dodecyl alcohol, sodium dodecyl sulfate, and sodium monododecyl sulfate which are all just other names for SLS.
FRAGRANCE: “The word ''fragrance”, “perfume”, ''parfum” and “scent “on a product label represents a mystery mixture of various chemicals and ingredients. (EWG).” The FDA does not require fragrance and flavor ingredients to be listed individually on cosmetic labels because fragrance falls under the protective label of “trade secrets”, a throw-back to the perfume industry days.
Side effects: Fragrance chemicals are linked to allergies, dermatitis, respiratory distress, reproductive problems and even cancer.
Commonly found in: Anything scented. Be wary of labels that say “unscented”. Unscented doesn’t mean fragrance free. The product may actually be filled with fragrance "masking chemicals to cover up unpleasant chemical scents.
Protect yourself: shop clean brands, read labels, and avoid scented and flavored products, as well as those that say unscented. Look for fragrance free products.
Be a Label Detective:
Reading labels is a must when it comes to personal care products. Buzzy, healthy sounding words like “organic”, “eco”, “green” “non-toxic”, “natural” and “botanical” are all unregulated terms and do not mean the protect is clean.
UNDERSTANDING THE TERM ORGANIC ON PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS:
“100 percent organic” means a product must contain only organically produced ingredients. Manufacturers can add the USDA Organic Seal to their packaging.
“Organic” means a product must contain at least 95 percent organically produced ingredients. Manufacturers can add the USDA Organic Seal to their packaging.
“Made with organic ingredients” means a product contains at least 70 percent organic ingredients. Translation: There could be a slew of toxic synthetic chemicals (30% worth) in there too. Products can not display the USDA Organic Seal.
When in doubt, consult the Environmental Working Group and Campaign for Safe Cosmetics websites and empower yourself to make better, healthier, safer product choices for you and your family. When you buy clean products, you vote with your wallet for regulation reform, transparent labeling and safer products.