Monday, May 7, 2012

The growing list of dangerous ingredients


 


Your dressing table or bathroom cabinet could be one of the most dangerous corners of your home!  Lurking within these areas, where perhaps all of your favourite beauty products are kept, is a complete stockpile of toxicity. 


The growing list of dangerous ingredients that manufacturers add to their products is turning the most 'innocent-looking' shampoos, moisturisers and so-called ‘skin nourishing’ products into cocktails of toxins that build up to cause cancer or reproductive damage over years of sustained use.  Modern cosmetics and make-up also contain a host of toxic ingredients, which would be more at home in a test tube than in our bodies!  Some of the worst offenders are often the most expensive skin care products.


Isn't it therefore time you seriously thought about what you’re actually putting on your skin, hair and nails?  The skin is your largest organ in the body.  What you put on it can be absorbed in tiny amounts to reach the blood vessels below the skin and travel around the body to be stored in body fat, to cause hormonal or metabolic imbalances, or even trigger the growth of cancerous cells.
Like most people, you probably assume that the ingredients found in these products have been thoroughly tested for safety, after all, we have regulations in place for the water we drink, the food we eat and the air we breathe.  Unfortunately this is not the case.   The skin care and cosmetics industry is big business; it is this hugely profitable industry that regulates the safety of its own products.  That doesn't seem right, does it?
Out of the products tested over recent years, the WORST offenders are those containing the cancer-causing ingredients coal tar, alpha hydroxy acids and beta hydroxy acids, and those containing the hormone-disrupting ingredient, 'phthalate'.

Which Ingredients Should You AVOID If Possible?
This list contains the more widely known chemicals and additives in modern body products. There are thousands more in use.  Many of the chemicals listed below are suspected or known carcinogens, toxins, hormone disruptors, poisons and contaminates.  Why not check out your favourite moisturiser, to see what chemical horrors lurk deep within?

·         Acetone - Found in nail polish remover.
·         Acetaldehyde - Found in many nail care products.
·        Alkyl-phenol Ethoxylades - Found in shampoo and bubble bath.

·        Alpha Hydroxy Acids (AHA) & Beta Hydroxy Acids (BHA) - Found in anti-ageing facial creams, lotions such as moisturisers and sunscreens.   

·         Aluminum - Found in antiperspirant deodorants and antiseptics.
·         Ammonium Glycolate - Found in body products.
·        Ammonium Persulfate - Found in hair color and bleaching kit sensitiser.  
·         Aspartame - Found in some body products, such as shaving gel.
·        Benzyl/Benzene - Used in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, shower gels, shampoos, bubble bath.
·         BHT - Found in body products.
·         Bronopol - Found in body products.
·         Carboxymethylcellulose - Used in cosmetics.
·        Coal Tar Dyes (includes FD&C, D&C Blue 1, Green 3, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Yellow 11, Red 33, etc.) - Found in bubble bath, hair dye, bath oil/salts/soak, body spray, moisturiser, lip gloss, polish remover, nail polish lipstick, styling gel/lotion, bar soap, after sun products, cologne, nail treatment, dandruff shampoo, cosmetics and toothpaste.
·        Collagen – Found in body and skin products (derived from animal skins and chicken feet).
·        Coumarin - Used in the manufacturing of deodorants, shampoos, skin fresheners and perfumes.
·        DEA (diethanolamine), MEA (monoethanolamine), & TEA (methanolamine) - Usually listed on the label as Cocamide DEA -CETYL phosphates or MEA, Lauramide DEA, Stearamide MEA, Linoleamide Tea, Myristamide DEA, Triethanolamine DEA, Oleamide DEA, TEA-Lauryl Sulfate etc.  These are almost always in skin cream, cosmetics, bubble bath, shaving gel, hairsprays, sunscreens, conditioner, lotions.and products that foam, including bubble baths, body washes, shampoos, soaps and facial cleansers.
·         DEET – Found in insect repellent.    
·       Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) - Found in nail polish.  Banned in Europe, still used in US.
·         Dioforms - Found in tooth whitening products.
·         Elastin - Found in facial creams and body lotions.
·         Ethylacrylate - Found in some mascaras.
·         Fluoride - Found in toothpastes.
·        Formaldehyde - Found in nail care products, baby shampoo, bubble bath, deodorants, perfume, cologne, hair dye, mouthwash, toothpaste, hair spray.
·        Fragrances (Synthetic) – Found in perfumes/fragrances, shampoos, most deodorants, sunscreens, skin care, body care and baby products. 
·         Glycolic Acid - Found in creams, lotions, cosmetics.
·         Hydroabietyl Alcohol - Found in styling gel/lotions.
·         Hydroquinone - Found in skin lightening products and hair dyes.
·         Hydroxymethylcellulose - Used in cosmetics.
·        Imidazolidinyl urea and DM hydantoine (Germall Plus, Germall II and Germal 115) - Common in nearly all skin, body and hair care products, antiperspirants and nail polish.  
·     Isoproponal/Isopropyl Alcohol - Found in some body products, mouthwash,  toothpaste, cleansers, hair colour rinses, body rubs, hand lotions,  fragrances, hair dyes, massage oils, hand creams, after shave lotions, perfumes and many other cosmetic products. 
·         Kajoic Acid - Used in skin lightening products.
·         Lacquer - Found in mascara.
·         Lanolin - Found in body products.
·         Lye - Found in bars of soap.
·         Magnesium Stearate - Used in talcum powder.
·         Methylisothiazoline or MIT - Found in shampoo.
·         Methyl Methacrylate - Found in nail polish.
·        Mineral Oil - Found in blush, baby oil which is 100% mineral oil, lotions, foundation and creams.
·        NDEA - Often used in cosmetics to adjust the pH, and used with many fatty acids to convert acid to salt (stearate), which then becomes the base for a cleanser.
·       Nitrosamines and Padimate-O (PABA) - Found in cosmetics and sunscreens.
·       Parabens (methyl, propyl-, butyl- , Isobutyl- and ethyl-) - Widely used in beauty and body products.
·         Paraffin - Found in cosmetics.
·        Petroleum (Petrolatum), Petrolatum and Paraffin Gel (petroleum jelly) - Found in lotions, skin creams, and body jelly.
·        Phthalates - Found in perfume, hair spray, deodorant, nail polish, hair gel, mousse, body and hand lotion.  Usually not listed on label, banned in Europe but still used in the US.
·        Polypropylene - Found in lipstick, mascara, baby soap, eye shadow.  
·         Polyquaternium-7 - Found in body products.
·        Propylene Glycol - Found in shaving gel, moisturising lotions, shampoo, conditioners, deodorant, most forms of make-up, hair products, after-shave, mouthwashes and toothpaste.
·         PVP/VA Copolymere - Used in shampoos and conditioners.
·         Quaternium-7, 15, 31, 60 etc. - Found in body products.
·         Sodium Chloride - Found in shampoo as a thickener.
·        Sodium Hydroxymethylglycinate - Found in facial moisturizer, facial cleanser, facial treatments, skin fading and lightening products, anti-aging products, eye makeup remover, concealer, makeup remover, around eye cream, acne treatment, shampoo, conditioner, styling lotion and gel, styling mousse and foam, hair spray, hair relaxer, tanning oil and sunscreen, after tanning products, body cleanser and wash, body exfoliants, body firming lotion, baby soap, baby lotion, baby wipes, baby bubble bath, pain and wound products, hand sanitiser.
·        SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulphate) & SLES (Sodium Laureth Sulphate) - May be labelled natural or even organic and found in toothpaste, soap, cosmetics, shampoo, body wash, bubble bath, facial cleansers, hair conditioners.
·        Stearalkonium Chloride - Used in hair conditioners and in skin creams.
·    Talc - Found in blush, condoms, baby powder, feminine powders, deodorant, foot and body powders.
·         Toluene - Found in nail polish and cleaning products.
·      Triclosan - Found in a lot of antimicrobial soap, antibacterial soap, deodorants, cosmetics, lotions, creams, and even toothpaste products, it can react with chlorine in the tap water to create Chloroform.  A safe, non-toxic alternative that has many applications is Grapefruit Seed Extract.
·         Zinc Stearate - Found in blush and powder foundation.

What You Should Do?
  • Check your shampoos, toothpaste, liquid soaps, body gels, and other skin products. Check all your cosmetic products for these dangerous ingredients and avoid any further skin contact with them.
  • If you have children, make sure they are not using shampoos and toothpaste containing them.  Children under 6 are especially vulnerable to improper eye development. Also, most importantly, check sun block products.  
  • If you have infants, check your baby wipes and baby lotions and find natural alternative products that are safe for children.
  • Cut down on the products that you and your family use.  Replace products with safer, natural 'non-synthetic' alternatives.
  • Make your own simple cosmetic creams by using a mix of essential oils and a base oil or cream, which can be applied to your face, body or in the bath.  Perhaps you could create a skin freshener by combining rose petals, boiling water and cider vinegar.  A simple face mask can also be made from mixing together cucumber, honey, rosewater and ground almonds.

The good news is that a growing number of genuine beauty companies are now making 'organic' beauty products that avoid the use of the toxic chemicals that are linked to health issues.  However, there is currently no legal definition for ‘organic’ beauty products, so, for the time being, it’s best to look out for the ‘Soil Association’ symbol or ‘Ecocert’ to guarantee that the product meets the strictest standards for organic purity and integrity. 

Much of the concern is about the ‘cocktail effect’ of the chemicals in the different products that we use.  Many women use over 20 different skin and cosmetic products a day, bombarding themselves with hundreds of chemicals, never mind those also found in household cleaning products etc.  From now on, think carefully about what you’re actually putting onto your body ... is that expensive new moisturiser really worth taking the risk?


By Liz Barrington, Natural Body Healing

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