Ladies, before you plant a smooch on your hubby, boyfriend
or one of your kids, where have your lips been. Or at least, what’s on them.
And not just your lips, dear.
The average North American woman uses 10 or more personal care
products every day. From toothpaste and soap to antiperspirant and moisturizer,
personal care products are made from 10,500 chemical ingredients that are as
much a part of our daily routine as sitting down to breakfast. And like most
things that happen before a mug of morning coffee, it’s easy not to think about
them too much. However, researchers and women’s health activists are sounding
the alarm bell about what goes into your makeup.
Increasingly, science is pointing out that exposure to many of
these chemicals—including parabens used to preserve antiperspirants and creams,
and phthalates added to perfumes and nail polish—may harm your health. A 2004 study of breast tumors by Dr. Phillippa
Darbre, from the University of Reading in the U.K., and published in the
Journal of Applied Toxicology, found parabens in each of 20 samples.
Women and girls are particularly susceptible to exposure to certain
chemicals that mimic hormone activity. This led researchers to suspect that
parabens, which mimic estrogen when absorbed through the skin, may play a role
in the development of breast cancer. The researchers suspected the parabens
came from underarm deodorants.
Now banned in the European Union, phthalates are another common
ingredient in personal care products suspected in a variety of health problems
from liver malfunction to low testosterone levels and low sperm counts in men.
In 2002, researchers in Chicago tested 72 brand-name cosmetics and found that
52 contained phthalates, a compound that helps cosmetics stay put without
smudging. Phthalates are also used to make perfumes and soaps. Scientists
suspect the absorption of cosmetics through the skin could explain why young
women in one study had 20 times the level of phthalates in their body compared
to young men. Seventy years ago, the first cosmetics law in the U.S. banned the
use of coal tar dye in mascara after the ingredient was found to cause
blindness.
Today, the accumulation of chemicals found in personal care
products may affect men and women’s offspring. In August 2005, researchers,
including University of Rochester epidemiologist Shanna Swan, published the
first study to examine prenatal exposure to phthalates. The study found that
the development of the genitals of boys whose mothers had high levels of
phthalates in their bodies was less complete compared to those exposed to lower
levels. Swan believes phthalate exposure may be contributing to increasing
rates of male infertility and testicular cancer.
In response to a growing concern about the risks associated with
personal care products, Health Canada now requires personal care product
manufactures to list product ingredients by the end of the year. The department
also maintains a hotlist of already restricted and banned chemicals. The
hotlist was expanded in 2003 from less than 100 to almost 500 after reviewing
some chemicals that are restricted in the E.U.
My question is this, why only 500 banned chemicals when the E.U.
has over 1100 on their list. Are the other 600 chemicals cutting into the
profit margin?
The European Union bans more than 1,100 chemicals from personal
care products because they may cause cancer, birth defects or reproductive
problems. In stark contrast, just nine chemicals are banned from cosmetics in
the United States; Canada follows U.S. standards.
Say what! The United States only bans 9? So what about the other
1091 chemicals? Girls, you better ask yourself, who ya gonna call! And
Ghostbusters won’t help.
According to Madeleine Bird, a researcher at McGill University’s
Centre for Research and Teaching on Women There is no review to ensure the list
of chemicals on the label is accurate on personal care products. Citing a Danish
study on parabens that discovered that contents listed on a product’s label
were different from the makeup of the product, which sometimes had much higher
concentrations. Health activists say harmful chemicals shouldn’t be there,
period.
Formaldehyde, benzene and lead are associated with not only
cancer, but endometriosis, birth defects and developmental disabilities in
children. Coal tars used in hair dye have long been associated with liver
cancer. Petroleum distillates, a suspected human carcinogen banned in the E.U.,
are still in use in North America.
Under the 1999 Environmental Protection Act, Health Canada and
Environment Canada are reviewing more than 23,000 chemicals that were never
tested for safety. NEVER! Makes you wonder about the United States.
Until recently, the contents of personal care products have been a
mystery. While the Canadian government requires food manufacturers to list
ingredients on packaging, cosmetics and personal care products have
historically been exempt. In November 2010, Canada caught up with the United
States and European Union and will require the contents of personal care
products to be labeled by the end of the year. Retail outlets and manufacturers
were given a year’s grace to sell off unlabeled products.
“I don’t want to go shopping for my body products or my cosmetics,
with a chemical dictionary telling me this one’s okay, this one’s not. I want
to be able to walk in and buy it off the shelf with the understanding that it’s
safe,” states Carol Secter, a board member of Breast Cancer Action Montreal.
Women in California won a recent victory with the passage of the
Safe Cosmetics Act, which takes effect later this year. The law compels
manufacturers to disclose product ingredients if they are on state or federal
lists of chemicals associated with cancer and birth defects.
Deciding which products are safest can be a time-consuming task.
Designed to make those decisions easier, the Environmental Working Group’s Skin
Deep report created a searchable database of personal care products and
ingredients. The Working Group’s information looks at American brands and
formulas, most of which are sold in Canada.
The group created fact sheets that identify which chemicals and
which companies to avoid. Revlon, Estée Lauder, Avon, L’Oreal and Johnson &
Johnson are ranked in the group’s top 20 of concern. Chanel cosmetics are not
tested on animals, but the group gives them the number two rating of brands to
avoid, citing a lack of safety data available for the ingredients used.
In 2006, The Body Shop announced it would phase out the use of
phthalates from its products and packaging, but the company still uses
parabens, which are not among the 37 top ingredients of top concern on Skin
Deep’s list. With its custom shopping list feature, Skin Deep provides
consumers with information to enable them to choose the safest products. The
website offers suggestions on where to find that elusive non-toxic lipstick or
deodorant and lists over 300 companies that either don’t use harmful chemicals
or have pledged to eliminate ingredients related to cancer, birth anomalies or
hormonal disruption within three years.
Companies like The Body Shop, Burt’s Bees and Afterglow Cosmetics
have signed on. However, the industry’s major players such as Avon, Estee
Lauder, L’Oreal, Revlon and Proctor and Gamble, are notably absent. According
to the Environmental Working Group cosmetics report, hair colour, nail polish
and nail treatments contain some of the most toxic chemicals. One product in
particular, OPI natural nail strengthener, received the highest hazard rating
of all 14,100 products in the database. The company’s nail polish and nail
treatments contain toluene, formalde-hyde and dibutyl phthalate—three of the
top ingredients of concern.
What’s on the Ingredient List?
If personal care ingredients are not listed, you can request
content information from the manufacturer. Check the Environmental Working
Group’s Campaign for Safe Cosmetics report Skin Deep to get details on specific
ingredients and to find safer products. Hot listed ingredients in Canada may be
subject to limitations in their concentration or can still turn up in products
categorized as drugs, like antiperspirant and anti-dandruff shampoos.
These are some ingredients to avoid: LEAD ACETATE Found in some
hair dye, and cleansers, lead acetate is hotlisted in Canada and banned in the
E.U. Lead acetate is a reproductive and developmental toxin.
FORMALDEHYDE Found in some nail products, antibacterial soaps and
foundations, formaldehyde is a carcinogen restricted in Canada.
TOLUENE Found in some nail polish and hardeners. It is suspected
of being a reproductive or developmental toxin. One form, Toluene-2,4-diamine,
is prohibited in Canada.
PARABENS A class of preservatives commonly found in moisturizers,
deodorants and many personal care products. Methlyparaben, butlyparaben,
isobutylparaben and propylbaraben are classed as endocrine disruptors in Skin
Deep.
PETROLEUM DISTILLATES Found in mascara, perfume, lipstick and
foundation, petroleum distillates are a suspected carcinogen.
COAL TAR Found in dark hair dyes and antidandruff shampoo, coal
tars are carcinogenic and permitted in hair dyes in Canada when accompanied by
a warning.
DIBUTYL PHTHALATE Found in nail products. All phthalates are
banned in the E.U., but not restricted in Canada. Dibutyl phthalate is an
endocrine disruptor and suspected to reproductive toxin.
So what have we found out? That Canada bans fewer chemicals than
the European Union, and that the United States bans even fewer chemicals than
Canada. Or that it’s okay to put these dangerous chemicals in products as long
as it’s listed on the label or a warning is on the label. Girls, you need to
start buying safer cosmetics and personal care products.
Online Resources:
The Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep
Report: www.ewg.org/reports/skindeep2
Campaign for Safe Cosmetics: www.safecosmetics.org
Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist: www.hc-sc.gc.ca/cps-spc/person/cosmet/hotlist-liste_e.html
Sources:
Environmental Working Group Campaign for Safe Cosmetics
The Ugly Side
of the Beauty Industry by Misha Warbanski
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