Take a look at the ingredients on your cosmetics, and you will be awestruck by the extensive listing of unpronounceable chemicals. Are you putting ethylparaben, butylparaben, and propylparaben on your skin, the largest organ of your body?
These difficult-to-pronounce ingredients make up a group of chemicals known as parabens, which are preservatives added to cosmetics to prolong their shelf life. Parabens can be found in a wide array of cosmetics, such as body wash, deodorant, and face and body creams – but are they a risk to your health?
The Argument against Parabens: Link with Breast Cancer
Presence of Parabens in Breast Tumor Tissue
Recently, parabens in cosmetics have come under close scrutiny after researchers discovered that parabens correlated with increased breast cancer risk. Published in the Journal of Applied Toxicology, in a study conducted by Dr. Phillippa Darbre of the United Kingdom, 18 tissue samples from 20 different breast tumors revealed parabens present in the breast tissue.
This finding is especially concerning since the chemical make-up of parabens mimics the hormone estrogen. Increased estrogen levels have been linked to breast cancer; thus, it stands to reason that parabens, which mimic this hormone, could potentially have the same carcinogenic effects. Indeed, if a breast cell’s DNA has predisposition for cancer, then parabens could accelerate the growth of malignant cells. A study published by the European Journal of Cancer Prevention came to the conclusion that the use of antiperspirant and underarm shaving had correlations with a diagnosis of breast cancer at an earlier age.
Breasts are a susceptible site for chemical storage
Additionally, as Darbre points out, women are more susceptible to hormone-mimicking chemicals because they have a greater percentage of body fat where these chemicals can be stored. The breast is one of these storage sites.
Darbre also noted that the breast tumor samples where the parabens were found were from the upper outside area of the breast, closest to where deodorants and body cosmetics are applied. Since these products contain parabens, this is cause for alarm. As well as potentially increasing the risk of developing breast cancer, parabens have been linked to birth defects and developmental disorders in children, as well as infertility and endometriosis in women.
The Argument for Parabens: No Conclusive Research
While Darbre’s findings cast a suspicious light on parabens in cosmetics and their association with breast cancer, other researchers state that more studies are needed before a link between the parabens in cosmetics and breast cancer can be ascertained.
Dr. Chris Flower, of the United Kingdom’s Cosmetic Toiletry and Perfumery Association, says that women have nothing to fear when it comes to parabens in their cosmetics and breast cancer. Flower firmly believes that research has shown parabens to be safe substances that rarely penetrate beneath the skin, and if they do, are quickly broken down into a harmless substance by the body.
So why then, was Dr. Darbre able to find parabens in the tissue samples of women with breast cancer, and what does this mean for the cosmetics companies who use parabens? According to Dr. Timothy Moynihan, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, Darbre’s findings mean very little without further study.
As Moynihan points out, Darbre’s study only showed that parabens existed in the tissues of women with breast cancer; it did not prove that parabens caused the breast cancer. Additionally, Darbre’s study did not indicate what the source of the parabens was – whether cosmetics, food, or another environmental pollutant.
Moynihan also cites an earlier study in 2002 that looked at 1,606 women who used underarm deodorants and antiperspirants, evaluating the relationship between this use and breast cancer. This study found no significant increase in breast cancer in the women who used these products.
In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration argues that the low levels of paraben use of cosmetics should not spark concern for breast cancer of health issues.
How to Protect Yourself
While there is conflicting evidence about the role parabens in cosmetics play in breast cancer, there is little doubt that chemicals are harmful to your body. Unfortunately, little has been done to protect women from the potentially harmful chemicals, such as parabens, found in cosmetics.
While the European Union banned over 1,100 chemicals from being used in cosmetics due to their link with cancer and birth defects, the United States has only banned 9 chemicals from being used in cosmetics. However, American women have demanded that cosmetics companies listen to their concerns and the following safety measures have been put into place.
• Safe Cosmetics Act. Several American states such as California have passed the Safe Cosmetics Act, requiring cosmetics companies to disclose ingredients that are listed on federal and state registries of chemicals associated with cancer and birth defects. This will assist women in arming themselves with the knowledge needed to make safe choices about the cosmetics they use on their bodies.
• Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep. The Environmental Working Group is dedicated to exposing potential threats to public health through laboratory research and review of scientific studies. The Skin Deep project has created an extensive database that allows users to search products, ingredients, and cosmetics companies for known toxins.
• Compact for Safe Cosmetics. The following is an abbreviated list of brands that have signed the Compact for Safe Cosmetics, an agreement to produce cosmetics that are free of parabens or other harmful chemicals. Still remember to read the labels, as not every product they make may be wholly safe.
o JASCO Organics
o Kiss My Face
o Perfect Organics
o Aubrey Organics
o Burt’s Bees
o Oracle Organics
o Samantharoma
o Weleda
o Nothing Nasty
o Bella Mira
While these are certainly steps in the right direction, the best way to protect yourself against parabens and other harmful chemicals in cosmetics is to simply avoid them.
In a United Kingdom experiment, two women who admitted to heavy cosmetics use were asked to give urine samples for researchers to measure the presence of parabens. In one woman, researchers found 650mg of parabens per liter of urine – a considerably high reading. This woman was then asked to avoid using any cosmetics that contained parabens and was only allowed the use of organic, natural cosmetics. After eight days of abstaining from paraben-filled cosmetics, researchers again measured her urine and found that the paraben levels had dropped to 21mg per liter.
Obviously, avoiding cosmetics is the surest way to protect yourself against parabens and their potentially harmful effects. However, if avoiding cosmetics is out of the question, please exercise caution when purchasing them, and take the time to learn what products are safe and which ones are harmful.
