When it comes to spending on personal hygiene products…
What ingredients should you avoid? Why it is important to steer clear of them? What products are licensed naturopathic doctors recommending instead?
There are hundreds of personal care products on the market today that can lead to toxic overload and potentially make you sick. Concern has been mounting for decades over the chronic exposure to chemicals in our personal care products. These are often products we use every day or even several times a day! Many of these toxins are accumulated and do not get eliminated from the body, making small exposures a big deal over time. It’s truly a body burden and every choice you make counts.
I realize this is horribly inconvenient and may not be what you want to hear. Yet, I feel it’s important for you to know what ingredients to avoid, why it is important to steer clear of them, and what products licensed naturopathic doctors recommend instead.
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has compiled an electronic database of ingredient labels for more than 60,000 name brand products and cross linked it with 60 toxicity or regulatory databases in order to learn about the safety of ingredients.
They found one in five of all products contain chemicals linked to cancer, 80% contain ingredients that commonly contain hazardous impurities, and 56% contain penetration enhancers that help deliver ingredients deeper into the skin.
The EWG analysis also revealed that more than 500 products sold in the U.S. since 2008 contain ingredients banned from cosmetics in Japan, Canada, or the European Union.
And equally alarming, the report stated that lead, formaldehyde, and placenta are among the ingredients used by the industry and sold to consumers. Apparently the regulation in this industry is lacking[2]. :o
We all face decisions in every area of life to exposure or limit exposure to toxins and maintain a healthy, balanced lifestyle. I completely understand that it can be hard to navigate options for products like cookware, sunscreen, cleaning supplies, toothpaste, and personal hygiene products and I’m here to help.
How do you know which products are healthiest to choose?
A key component to disease prevention in today’s toxic world is knowing exactly what choices matter and opting for personal hygiene and other products that still get the job done but without the added issues that come from unsafe chemicals.
Know What Chemicals to Avoid! Note: This is not an exhaustive list of what to avoid, but it is a place to begin.
Aluminum Aluminum salts, used to control sweat, are most commonly found in antiperspirants, while aluminum containing raw elements are used in cosmetics as pigment and thickening agents. These compounds block your underarm sweat ducts and diminish body odor by preventing bacteria that feed on sweat and cause the smell, cool idea but better to stay looking cool another way. Aluminum is neurotoxic and has been potential association in development or presence of breast cancer[4,5] and Alzheimer’s disease[3].
Formaldehyde
Found in shampoos, lotions, and eye shadows among other personal care products. According to the Working Group on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans with more than 46 billion pounds produced worldwide annually, most of which is widely used in the construction, textile, furniture, medical, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries, formaldehyde heavily impacts the everyday consumer. Newer evidence supports an association between formaldehyde exposure and multiple adverse health effects and is increasingly being accepted by International Agency for Research on Cancer that formaldehyde is indeed a human carcinogen.
Fragrance
The term “fragrance” can actually refer to thousands of different chemicals, synthetic fragrances, and additives.
According to the Environmental Working Group Skin Deep Database, fragrance mixes have been associated with allergies, dermatitis, respiratory distress, and potential effects on the reproductive system. They can be most commonly found in many products such as perfume, cologne, conditioner, shampoo, body wash and moisturizers. While “fragrance” could be something to avoid, it may also be something natural like an essential oil…so, unless a product actually lists what exactly the fragrance is, it is best to avoid it so you are not exposed to unwanted chemicals.
The term was created to protect a company’s secret formulas, but really isn’t it the consumer that gets hurt in the long run?
Parabens
Parabens prevent the growth of bacteria and mold in cosmetic products. They can be found in makeup, body wash, shampoo, conditioner, face wash, and deodorants. While this may sound like a good thing, parabens do more than keep bacteria out :/ Unfortunately, they can mimic the hormone estrogen and are easily absorbed through human skin according to a study published in the International Journal of Molecular Science[6]. The best way to avoid parabens is to look for labels on products that say “paraben free.”
Sulfates
I’ll discuss sulfates further in a future article on household cleaning products, but it is equally important to address sulfates in personal hygiene products and makeup. The major concern is their potential to interact and combine with other chemicals to form nitrosamines, a known carcinogen. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) are also known skin irritants, so if you have dandruff, dermatitis, canker sores, or other irritated tissues or skin, it could be due to sulfates. Sulfates are found in shampoo, shaving cream, facial and body wash, mascara, and acne treatment blends. Think foaming products!
Synthetic Colors
If you see the letters FD&C or D&C and a COLOR noted with a NUMBER (Eg. FD&C Blue 1), put the product down and find another way!!! These are likely human carcinogens, skin irritants, and have been linked to ADHD in children. Research suggests artificial food coloring concerns extend to children’s behavior that is not limited to children diagnosed with ADHD and seem to affect children regardless of whether or not they have ADHD[7]. Hmmmm…not good, right? Sounds like this is indeed more of a public health problem than an ADHD problem!
Know what products are safe!
Be sure to check out the EWG’s Skin Deep Database and Healthy Living App to research toxic chemicals that could be in your care products.
Everyday more companies are going natural and now offer better alternatives with growing consumer awareness and demand. Taking the guesswork out of your product search… Using the healthy living application you can search products on your mobile device while shopping, taking the guesswork out and empowering your decision for new purchases.
No one brand has ALL safe products (ugh!) so it’s best to run each product through the Healthy Living App search engine to see if the product you see stands up to your standards!
If you want more specific recommendations, reach out to our team and we can share with you some ideas about which products we like to use and where you can find them easily.
A few of our favorite and trusted brands are listed below:
Be Green Bath and Body Natural Deodorant
Biossance Squalane + Bamboo Deodorant
Qet Botanicals Dry Putty Deodorant
Soap for Goodness Sake
Shampoo and Body Bar
Spring Garden Shampoo and Wash
Skinny and Company Shampoo Bar
DeVita Natural Skin Care
Solar Protective Moisturizer
SPF 30+ Skinny Rejuvenating Facial Oil
Juice Beauty Antioxidant Serum
Devita Optimal Rejuvenation
Devita Chamomile Cleansing Cream
Biossance Squalane + Antioxidant Cleansing Oil
Sophi Nail Polish Piggy Paint
Badger Shave Soap
Badger Aftershave Moisturizing Oil and Aftershave Tonic
I look forward to empowering your health. The choices you make matter!
References:
- Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2009). Available
online at https://www.cdc.gov/exposurereport/pdf/fourthreport.pdf. - Skin Deep Product & Ingredient Database. Environmental Working Group (EWG) (2007). Available online at
https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/site/about.php. - Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease 2011;23(4):56798. doi: 10.3233/JAD2010101494. Aluminum and Alzheimer’s disease: after a century of
controversy, is there a plausible link. - Darbre PD. Aluminium, antiperspirants and breast cancer. Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry 2005; 99(9):1912–1919.
- Darbre PD, Mannello F, Exley C. Aluminium and breast cancer: Sources of exposure, tissue measurements and mechanisms of toxicological
actions on breast biology.Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry 2013; 128:257261. - Interference of Paraben Compounds with Estrogen Metabolism by Inhibition of 17βHydroxysteroid Dehydrogenases. International Journal of
Molecular Science. 2017 Sep; 18(9): 2007. Published online 2017 Sep 19. doi: [10.3390/ijms18092007] - Artificial Food Colors and AttentionDeficit/Hyperactivity Symptoms: Conclusions to Dye for. Neurotherapeutics. 2012 Jul; 9(3): 599–609.
Published online 2012 Aug 3. doi: [10.1007/s133110120133x]