| You may believe that all skin care creams and lotions | | | | freshener, shampoo etc. These are mostly petroleum |
| are safe to use because they are applied externally, | | | | based and cause allergic reactions, skin irritations and |
| and that you need only concern yourself, as far as | | | | are deadly to pet birds.o mineral oil: a hydrocarbon |
| safety goes, with foods and medicines that you take | | | | obtained from petroleum, this ingredient is a cheap |
| internally. The fact is, the skin absorbs ingredients in | | | | substitute for the quality oils found in truly natural |
| skin care products directly, faster than taking them | | | | products. It is, however, allergenic, photo toxic, dries skin |
| internally because they bypass the digestive process. | | | | and clogs pores. |
| All of these ingredients end up in your blood stream. | | | | Just to let you know, we found all of the above listed |
| Watch out for advertisers slick advertising and | | | | in many products that claim to be 'natural'. We found |
| buzzwords. Products labelled natural or hypoallergenic | | | | them in health food stores as well as drug stores and |
| aren't necessarily either of those things. Every day | | | | department stores. They include leading brands of hair |
| cosmetic companies are developing new products | | | | products, skin and body care creams and lotions. |
| they claim are more natural, healthy or more effective. | | | | Many off-the-shelf products in stores have misleading |
| When Revlon's director of public relations, Dan Moriarty | | | | labels, with words like 'aromatherapy' and 'natural' |
| was asked about Revlon's New Age Natural cosmetic | | | | freely used. Then, when you check the ingredients, at |
| lines he says, "the base formulas are the same as our | | | | least one or more harmful synthetic ingredients are |
| conventional formulas." | | | | listed alongside natural ones (if there are any natural |
| Many new and improved formulas are just old | | | | ingredients at all). And just because the manufacturer |
| formulas repackaged to appeal to today's consumer. | | | | adds a drop or two of essential oils into the mix does |
| This tactic ups the price but not the quality. Consumers | | | | not make it natural or an aromatherapy product! |
| are not protected. Even if you read the labels there's | | | | Why do large and brand name cosmetics |
| no guarantee they will help you understand what's | | | | manufacturers use potentially harmful synthetic |
| actually in the product. | | | | ingredients rather than natural ones? |
| Allergies, premature aging and cancer are just a few | | | | Here are the reasons:o shelf life: Preservatives are |
| of the harmful effects of cosmetic ingredients used by | | | | needed to prevent creams and lotions from going 'bad', |
| large manufacturers. | | | | that is, from spoiling with mold and bacteria. Without |
| What are the possible harmful effects of synthetic | | | | preservatives, creams and lotions spoil within as little as |
| ingredients in cosmetics? | | | | a few weeks. Not good if you are going to put the |
| Here are some:o allergenic: synthetic fragrances are | | | | product in a store where it might sit for many months! |
| the leading cause of allergic reactions to cosmetics.o | | | | There are many good natural preservatives available |
| dries skin and clogs pores: mineral oil dries skin and | | | | that extend the shelf life up to 2 years and sometimes |
| clog pores. It is often used to cut the cost of creams.o | | | | even longer. But that is not good enough for large |
| toxic: parabens such as propylparaben are used as a | | | | distribution centers and store chains. They demand a |
| cheap preservative.o irritant: propylene glycol is an | | | | shelf life of at least 3 years which is standard in this |
| irritant used as a cheap water retentive agent but a | | | | industry. The easiest (and least costly) way is to use |
| known skin irritant.o carcinogenic: sodium laureth sulfate | | | | synthetic preservatives.o cost: No matter how you |
| can combine with other chemicals creating | | | | look at it, when it comes to lowering cost, synthetic |
| carcinogens. | | | | ingredients win hands down over natural ingredients |
| What are the most common synthetic, harmful | | | | every time! To compete and to maximize profits, all |
| ingredients found in skin and body care products? | | | | costs in the manufacturing and marketing process |
| Here is a list of some of the most harmful and what | | | | must be kept to a minimum. This is especially so for |
| they are there for: (look for them on labels)o parabens: | | | | large brand name manufacturers that have very high |
| methyl, propyl, butyl and ethyl parabens are used as | | | | overhead, employee, packaging and marketing |
| chemical preservatives. In addition to being toxic, these | | | | expenses. So what you get in that expensive jar of |
| chemicals have recently been shown to have | | | | eye cream costs less than the jar it's in, less than the |
| estrogenic effects; of growing concern in relation to | | | | box the jar comes in, less than the advertising cost to |
| women's risk of breast cancer.o sulfates: SLS, or | | | | promote it, you get the picture!o consumer appeal: |
| sodium laureth sulfate is used as an emulsifier which | | | | Powerful synthetic fragrances (listed on labels as |
| helps to create the foam in cleaners like shampoo. It is | | | | 'fragrance' or 'parfum' are added to make products |
| corrosive, an irritant and can cause hair loss, skin | | | | smell better or smell like perfume. They contain as |
| rashes and cause premature aging of the skin.o | | | | many as 200 different ingredients to make up the |
| dimethicone: this is a silicone emollient (used to soften | | | | strong artificial scent of strawberries, apples etc. They |
| dry skin). However, they coat the skin, trapping | | | | also have the added benefit of costing less than |
| anything beneath it, and do not allow the skin to | | | | fragrances from natural sources and (very important |
| breathe, leading to skin irritation.o Triethanolamine | | | | here!) masking the chemical smells of other synthetic |
| (TEA): with Diethanolamine (DEA) in the group, they | | | | ingredients in the cream. Scents from natural sources |
| are used as preservatives. They react with nitrites | | | | are subtle (less noticeable) and can be very costly. |
| (found in many preservatives) to form nitrosamines. | | | | Synthetic colors are used for their variety of shades |
| These are carcinogenic and can be readily absorbed | | | | and brightness (as well as being less costly). Bright pink, |
| through the skin.o PEG compounds: propylene glycol, | | | | strawberry flavored body creams are more appealing |
| polyethylene glycol and ethylene glycol are used to | | | | to many consumers than a pale yellow natural cream |
| retain moisture in the skin. They are petroleum | | | | with only a hint of strawberry from natural sources. |
| derivatives that can cause allergies.o fragrance, | | | | Next time you are going to buy a product that you are |
| parfum: these are standard generic terms in the | | | | going to put on your skin, do yourself a favor (and the |
| cosmetics industry that stand for a mixture of | | | | environment a favor at the same time) and get a |
| chemicals (hundreds!), a concoction of ingredients to | | | | product that is all natural. You're worth it! |
| create just the right scent for a cream, lotion, air | | | | |