Generally, when we walk into beauty stores, we are used to certain separations between products: skincare versus makeup, women’s versus men’s, body care versus face, etc. But lately, there is a new category popping up: the clean products category. We want to take some time to talk about what it means, if it’s really worth the hype, and why we are part of it. Enter: the Good Good Clean Products Series. The second article in our clean products series will focus on three more ingredients to avoid, and why we should avoid them.
‘Clean’ products are ones that lack certain ingredients deemed toxic or dangerous to the body. Some of these toxic ingredients include parabens, formaldehyde, phthalates, lead, and benzenes, just to name a few. These names, of course, mean nothing to people if they don’t know what they are and what they are capable of doing to the body. This specific post will focus on parabens and phthalates.
Formaldehyde
Formaldehyde is another preservative. According to the National Institute of Health’s National Cancer Institute, it is classified as a human carcinogen, and high levels of formaldehyde exposure have been linked to Leukemia and other rare forms of cancer.
Lead
Lead, probably the most familiar toxic ingredient in this list, is an element naturally found in the earth. However, this does not mean it is good to expose oneself to it. The FDA says that over 99% of cosmetic lip products and externally applied cosmetics on the U.S. market contain lead at levels below 10 ppm. Although this is a small amount of lead, lead poisoning is an accumulative process, meaning it depends on how much lead you are exposed to over time. According to the Mayo Clinic, lead poisoning is much more common and dangerous among children under six, but it still can cause a plethora of issues among adults, including high blood pressure, joint and muscle pain, difficulties with memory or concentration, headaches, mood disorders, and fertility issues such as reduced sperm count and abnormal sperm, miscarriage, stillbirth or premature birth in pregnant women.
Benzenes
Benzene is the last toxic ingredient we will talk about today. It is used in many products like deodorant, and sunscreen, and it is especially detected in aerosol forms of these products. Even very minimal exposure can lead to health issues, like dizziness and other short-term health symptoms. Additionally, it can cause lots of long-term health issues like a decrease in red blood cells, fertility issues, and an increased risk for certain cancers such as leukemia.