Ever think twice about the ingredients in your cosmetics, sunscreens and beauty products? A recently published survey by EWG (Environment Working Group) found that the average American uses 9 products daily that contain 126 questionable ingredients. 25% of women apply 15 or more products daily to their hair, face, skin and lips. Some of these products can and do contain dangerous ingredients that are not overseen by the FDA. In fact, the FDA expects the cosmetic industry to regulate itself. The European Union has already banned hundreds of chemicals from being used in their cosmetics that are still being used in the USA. Here is a short list of the worst.
1. Phthalates – Used to soften plastic products and in some fragrances. Linked to low sperm count in men and early puberty in girls. Problem: they don’t have to be disclosed as an ingredient. A good way to avoid them is to buy unscented products.
2. Parabens – Hormone disrupters that can act as estrogens in the human body. Avoid products with proplyparaben, isopropylparaben, butylparaben and isobutylparaben.
3. Lead Acetate – Found in hair dyes. “Grecian Formula” is one such product for men. Europe and Canada ban its use but the FDA still allows it.
4. Triclosan and Triclocarbon – These are chemicals used to kill bacteria in toothpastes and hand soaps. But studies show they interfere with the thyroid as well as male and female hormones. FDA found that antibacterial soaps with these chemicals were no more effective than washing with non-antibacterial soap. Minnesota, beginning in 2017, banned triclosan from all soap.
5. Retinyl Palmitate and Retinoic Acid – Sunscreens is where you’ll find retinyl palmitate and anti-aging creams will have retinoic acid. Both are easily absorbed by the skin and studies have shown they help the development of cancerous skin lesions of skin exposed to sun. Another troublesome ingredient in most sunscreens is oxybenzone. Its function is to absorb ultraviolet light. According to EWG…”the chemical oxybenzone penetrates the skin, gets into the bloodstream and acts like estrogen in the body…One study linked oxybenzone to endometriosis in older women.”
6. Formaldehyde – A known carcinogen used as a preservative in many cosmetics. EWG study showed that 20% of cosmetics contain some form of formaldehyde. Also hair straighteners can have as much as 10% formaldehyde. Ingredients containing formaldehyde include DMDM hydantoin, imidazolidinyl urea, diazolidinyl urea, quaternium 15 and methylene glycol.
Enjoying the sun and receiving the health benefits must be balanced with the risk of overexposure. Getting a sunburn is never good!! But, remember, our ancestors didn’t hide from the sun. They were continuously exposed to it. Give your body a chance to produce vitamin D. Expose large amounts of skin to sunlight for short periods of time (20 minutes for fair hair, light skin), then cover up or sit in the shade. The face has very thin skin and never really needs much sun, ever. Cover up the face while tanning the rest of your body. Afterward use a safe sunscreen that contains titanium dioxide and/or zinc oxide. Both are filters for UVB and UVA rays.
I cruised the database on ewg.org (Environment Working Group) and found 5 of the healthiest sunscreens. All are graded very safe especially in the case of carcinogens. Badger Sunscreen Cream unscented SPF 30, Aubrey Natural Sun SPF 26 unscented, All Terrain TerraSport Lotion SPF 30, RelevA Organic Skincare Sun-Lite Sunscreen SPF 20 and Butterbean Sunscreen SPF 20 “for little sprouts”. You may be able to find some or all of these products at Nature’s Outlet or the Co-ops here in Roanoke or Floyd. You can easily find them online at Amazon.
Finally, I also take astaxanthin, a potent antioxidant from marine algae. When tidepools go low and algae get overexposed to sunlight they produce this antioxidant to protect themselves from the sun. I take it every day to help protect me from the inside out!!