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“Modern cosmetics contain a host of dubious ingredients which would be more at home in a test tube than on our faces. These synthetic ingredients are inexpensive, stable and have a long shelf-life. Manufacturers love them, but the results from long-term use could be deadly.” Kim
Erickson, Author |
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Women absorb up to 5 pounds of cosmetic chemicals each year through the permeable layer of skin, products applied lovingly as a result of their daily beauty regime. So, what exactly is contained in these products, and how are they regulated? |
Best Face Forward Creating a flawless complexion with the use of foundations, concealers, blush and mascara could be more trouble than it is worth. Many of these products contain paraben preservatives, which have been identified as hormone disrupters, and increase the body’s natural level of estrogen, which can spur on the growth of cancerous tumours. Members of the formaldehyde family are used in mascaras and make-up removers, have been linked to depression, headaches, fatigue and immune dysfunction. Amines such as DEA, TEA and MEA, found in foundations, face powders and hair colors, can result in hormone disruption, and have been cited as a possible cause of liver and kidney cancer. For a full list of what is included in thousands of popular products, see the Environmental Working Group’s Cosmetics Database . |
| Seeking the Perfect Pout If you consider how much lipstick ends up on the side of your wine glass, you can imagine how much you inadvertently ingest into your body. And while there is a cocktail of chemicals used in modern lipsticks to make them remain moist, long-lasting and help plump up your lips, there is still – unbelievably – lead being used in lipsticks. Independent laboratory tests of 33 brand-name lipsticks, found almost two-thirds of them had detectable levels of lead, and one third of the total exceed the US Food and Drug Administration levels for the safe amount of lead in children’s candy – the measure for safe ingestible levels of lead. Somehow that last statement about a ‘safe’ level of lead in ‘children’s candy’ is a bit disturbing. Is there REALLY a safe level of lead in CHILDREN’S CANDY?? THIS is the measure for safe ingestible levels of lead?? Lead
is a powerful neurotoxin that affects organ function and the central
nervous system, and exposure to lead has been linked with schizophrenia
and dementia. |
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How Do These Dangerous Products Make It Onto The Shelves? Europe has led the world in regulating chemicals in cosmetics, banning more than 1000 toxic ingredients from the manufacturing process of everyday products. By contrast, the United States has banned just eight toxic chemicals from being used. There is a gaping loophole in US legislation that does not require the Food and Drug Administration to review or regulate the contents of these products before sale to the public. The agency also has no power to require safety assessments of such products. Actually, the cosmetics industry took control of that entire industry in 1938 and it is basically self regulated! California, Washington, Oregon, New York and Maryland are in various stages of implementing state-based legislation requiring manufacturers to disclose any ingredients that appear on state or federal lists of chemicals that can cause hormone disruption, cancer or birth defects
Many of these companies abide by the higher EU standard, to enable them to produce their products centrally and export to the world, and many have signed the Campaign for Safer Cosmetics, a pledge to adhere to the higher EU standards of using only ingredients that are not known or suspected of causing cancer, mutation or birth defects. In the UK, there is a loophole in the legislation governing labeling of chemicals in these products that allows the toxins to remain if it is too difficult to replace them with a healthier alternative. But while it may be on the label, it will also be on your skin. And who really knows what all those words mean anyway? Is this paying lip service to the movers and shakers trying to change things? If it takes so long to get labels on products (that most people will not even understand anyway), how long is it going to take to get them to ban these chemicals that are poisoning people one minutia at a time? What Can I Do? As we just said, reading and understanding the labels is a big first step when it comes to making an informed decision on what you will use on your body. But how much is it going to mean to most people anyway? For every product available on the shelf, there is often an alternative that can be sourced which is free of dangerous chemicals. As with all of the products we offer on this site, we have searched long and hard for what we consider to be the best. MiEsssence Organics are produced in Australia. They are 100% synthetic chemical free, guaranteed, and certified to the highest international organic standards. They work, and they are safe for you AND your children. They offer baby, child and adult organic personal care products. Click on the link below to take you to the company 'Down Under'.
There is lots of great information in the links below: Read
this from the US Food and Drug Administration Cancer
Prevention Coalitions’ Consumer Guide to Cosmetics Get
National Geographic’s Green Guide Environmental
contaminants and breast cancer, Dr. Andreas Kortenkamp PhD,
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