Beauty Hurts... Literally

When women ask me, "How can you get your eyebrows threaded? Doesn't it hurt?" My response is always, "Ladies, beauty hurts," but until recently I did not realize that it was actually true.

I was on the Internet seeking safer cosmetics and found The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. They have an abundance of information on what is really in our cosmetics and beauty products and it is startling to say the least.

An interesting page I stumbled upon was titled Pink-Ribbon Cosmetics. Within this page, they discussed pinkwashing, "a term used to describe companies that position themselves as leaders in the fight against breast cancer while engaging in practices that may be contributing to rising rates of the disease." Given our practice of oncology care, this intrigued me. What I learned was disheartening.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics has requested that certain companies that utilize pink ribbons in their advertising pledge to remove carcinogens, chemicals linked to birth defects, learning disabilities and other harmful ingredients from their cosmetic products. They asked three of the largest cosmetic companies utilizing the pink ribbons in their advertising (Avon, Revlon, and Estee Lauder) to do this and report that these companies have been "unwilling to make this public commitment to eliminate carcinogens and other chemicals of concern from their products."

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics listed several harmful chemicals found in cosmetics (both pink ribbon and not) which they feel are harmful. It is so important that we not only check the labels on the food we consume but also on what we put on our skin, which is our largest organ.

Here are a few of the potentially toxic chemicals they list:

Parabens
• Where: found in lotions, shampoos, and cosmetics
• Issue: endocrine disrupter by mimicking estrogen

Phthalates
• Where: nail polish, synthetic fragrances, plastic packaging
• Issue: Hormone disrupters -- some acting like a weak estrogen in cell culture systems. Linked to early onset puberty in females.

Fragrance
• Where: perfumes and scented cosmetics
• Issue: May include phthalates, synthetic musks, and ethylene oxide. There is no requirement to list this on product labels. (Scary!)

Nonylphenols

• Where: some cleansers
• Issue: have been shown to act as a hormone disrupter.

Sunscreen chemicals

• Where: sunscreen products
• Issue: estrogen behavior, linked to breast cancer cell proliferation

Isobutane

• Where: spray-on hair spray, gel, mousse, shaving cream, and anti-fungal treatments
• Issue: Possible contamination with 1,3-butadiene -- classified as a probable human and mammary carcinogen

Ethoxylated compounds

• Where: Found in a variety of cosmetics. Alternate names: dimethicone, PEG-40, ceteareth-12 and other compounds with the syllables "eth" or "PEG."
• Issue: processed with ethylene oxide, possible contamination with 1,4-diocane

Metals

• Where: cosmetic colorants, sunscreens, or contaminants
• Issue: Metals such as iron, nickel, chromium, zinc, cadmium, mercury, and lead are found at higher than average levels in women diagnosed with breast cancer. Some metals (listed and not listed) have been associated with estrogenic effects on breast cancer cells in lab studies.

Petrolatum

• Where: lip products and lotions
• Issue: possible contamination with polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) endocrine disruptors and carcinogens

Toulene

• Where: some nail products
• Issue: possible benzene contamination which is classified as a known carcinogen

Triclosan

• Where: anti-microbial soap
• Issue: May affect both male and female hormones and thyroid hormones affecting weight and metabolism. They note that more research is needed to evaluate its relationship to breast cancer.

We all want to look beautiful, but at what cost?
Now don't get me wrong, I love my mani/pedi days, however, I use the brand OPI because they have removed several of the harmful chemicals. But writing this blog made me take a deeper look into my cosmetics bag and closets. What I found was disturbing -- almost everything I use has some of these chemicals in them.

Now that I am armed with information, I am going to try to make some educated decisions in limiting my exposure to some of these toxic chemicals. While I realize I can't live in a bubble, I think that if we can limit our exposure to the harmful effects of chemical exposure, we will be better off. It is, however, a challenge because many of these healthier options also come with a heftier price tag. We can only do our best.