Just kidding. But it got you to read, didn’t it? Exactly my point. Have you ever noticed how you can use a product for months or even years sans problem, then wake up one morning and read an article about how a preservative (coloring agent, emollient, whatever) in it is probably slowly poisoning you? It’s one of my pet peeves about health-based media. They latch onto a study or two and turn whatever ingredient it is into some kind of cosmetic “untouchable”, and next thing you know, your grandma is freaking out and throwing away all her perfume. (Or maybe that’s just me). Here, I’ll be talking about some of the current ingredients everybody’s gone phobic over. Guys, this applies to you too, as these alleged poisons are also lurking in your face wash/deodorant/toothpaste/whatever.
First, a note: Animals are very different from humans, which is one of the reasons that animal testing of ingredients has fallen under such scrutiny lately. I certainly don’t agree with it. That being said, if your mascara gave a rat a tumor, you might not want to keep it around your eyes.*
Diethanolamine (DEA) + Triethanolamine (TEA): This scary-sounding one has been shown to induce tumors in test mice and inhibit fetal development in mouse brains, and cause eye and nose irritation. It’s mainly used as a lubricant in cosmetic products.
Parabens- Parabens have shown to affect the reproductive health of test animals, and high concentrations of parabens have been found in human breast tumors. The study that has found said concentrations is a little iffy, from what I’ve heard, but never hurts to be safe.
Sodium Laurel/Laureth Sulfate- This one seems, to me, to be a true example of the health media getting crazaaay. Sodium Laurel/Laureth Sulfate is a foaming agent in many cleansers. If you google it, you’ll see about a thousand people saying, “Guess what, guys? It’s also in your FLOOR CLEANER!” To which I reply, “Know what else is in my floor cleaner? Orange extract. Guess I should stop eating oranges too, as they are obviously evil.” SLS is said to be too “harsh” and “stripping” but it’s not associated with any health issues besides eye irritation, so if you’re using it and not having any problem, go you.
Synthetic anything- Have you ever heard of the “naturalistic fallacy”? A fallacy is a deceptive, misleading, or false belief. The naturalistic fallacy goes something like this. “If it’s natural, it’s good for you. If it’s not natural, it’s bad for you.” Have you ever heard ladies with acrylic nails rejecting some food or beauty product because it’s got “synthetic ingredients”? Not only is this silly, it’s pretty dangerous too. For example, penicillin isn’t “natural” but it’s pretty helpful to us as a species. Likewise, talc exists as is in nature, but talc powder has linked with cancer in several studies. Lesson learned: take each ingredient on a case-by-case basis, and don’t grant products a blanket pass just because they’re marketed as “natural”. Synthetic ingredients, if they are safe, can actually be a godsend for people with allergies or sensitivities. Personally, it’s easy for me to get carried away with the whole natural products thing (because I love them) so I try to keep the above information in mind.
*Ironically, most of the ingredients that have been shown to be carcinogenic to test animals are still being used by the cosmetic companies that paid so much money to run the tests in the first place. This begs the question, why bother even testing the stuff for potential side effects if you’re just going to use it anyway? If you give a mouse a tumor… you’ll be lawsuit free?
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