Can’t live without your favourite lippy? Did you know you could live longer without it?
Many of us trust the brands we use, such as Oil of Olay, known to combat the signs of ageing. You wouldn’t associate petrol with the oil in Oil of Olay would you? But it does indeed contain Petroleum. Many of us may think expensive brands may be a safer beat, however YSL’s lipstick for example contains the most amount of lead, the higher the lead content, the higher the risk of cancer. And the longer lasting your lipstick the higher the levels of lead.
Benzyl Alcohol found in many of the creams we use have evidently been found to be harmful to the neuro system and like over 13,000 other cosmetics available to us on the market, it also contains Parabens. Parabens are used to inhibit microbial growth and to extend shelf life of products, but are also known to be toxic, commonly known to cause allergic reactions and skin rashes. Alarmingly further research into Parabens brought up several warnings, such as harmful if inhaled, causes irritation to skin, eyes and the respiratory tract. Methyl paraben found in many cosmetics have hormone-disrupting qualities – mimicking estrogen – and interfere with the body’s endocrine system. Research has also shown they may affect the future fertility of male babies. According to Professor John Sumpter of Brunel University, England, an expert on estrogenic chemicals in the environment, the use of these preservatives might just “play a role in falling sperm counts and rising breast cancer rates”.
The average woman uses 10 personal care product cosmetics daily and men regularly use 6. Scientist says small doses of these chemicals are harmful, but when they’re in everything we use on a daily basis we are then of course exposed to high levels, which are a risk to our health.
The EU have taken these matters more seriously than the US government, banning over 1,000 ingredients from Cosmetics, whereas a mere 10 have been banned in the states.
Because of the current regulations approximately only 20% of the ingredients in the cosmetics we buy have been tested for safety, the FDA doesn’t decide what goes on the shelves, and can’t access the safety of all personal care products, the regulation doesn’t even require them to list all ingredients.
And as alluring as your fragrance may smell, it could also be toxic. The ingredients used to make perfume and aftershave, don’t stop at essential oils and natural spices. The ingredient ‘Fragrance’ often also includes formaldehyde, toluene, methylene chloride, benzaldehyde, petroleum, and phthalates. These chemicals have been linked to a wide range of damaging symptoms, including respiratory problems, nervous system issues, reproductive issues like infertility, and various forms of cancer. Phthalates are also known to be endocrine disruptors. These harmful effects have the most impact on young children and developing fetuses. In fact, pregnant women have been advised to avoid the use of perfume altogether due to these ill effects on unborn children.
“Fragrance” is a common ingredient in air fresheners, cleaning products, lotions, cosmetics, shampoos, and sadly enough, baby products.
Under the guise of trade secrecy laws, companies are not required to inform their health-conscious consumers what ingredients are actually in this empty word fragrance.
Cosmetics companies decide what goes on the shelves. We can also decide which products we purchase and make better informed choices by familiarising ourselves with the ingredients, and the effects of applying them to our skin
Be proactive about researching the chemicals in the products you use. You could save yourself a fortune and your life.
Siobhan Copland
