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Facial cleansers— washes, scrubs, toners, masks, acne treatments, and more—are a fundamental part of a daily skin care regimen for many, but the list of ingredients on the back labels often read like a science experiment. Ingredients in commercial cleansers may include many synthetic chemicals that are classified as toxic substances and risk contaminating water and soil upon disposal.[1]

With eco-conscious consumers everywhere waking up to the fact that what you put on your body is as important as what you put in it, sales of natural and organic personal care products are skyrocketing, with projected revenues of $7.8 billion in the US in 2008.[2]

The high cost of beauty

The average woman uses about 12 body and skin care products a day, each containing about 10 different chemicals, applying a total of 200 chemicals daily to her hair and skin. Only 11 percent of the 10,500 chemicals used in these products have ever been tested for safety. One-third of these chemicals are known to cause cancer.[3] Research shows that skin can absorb as much as 60 percent of whatever is applied to it.[4]

Beauty and the FDA

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for ensuring the safety of personal care products and cosmetics, which it describes as all products "intended to be rubbed, poured, sprinkled, sprayed on, introduced into, or otherwise applied to the human body ... for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering appearance. Included in this definition are moisturizer, makeup, perfume, lipstick, nail polish, shampoo, hairspray, hair coloring, toothpaste, and deodorant, as well as the ingredients included in these products.[5]

Despite the fact that the FDA is charged with ensuring the safety of cosmetic and personal care products, neither the actual products nor ingredients are reviewed or approved by FDA before they're sold to the public. It's up to the manufacturer to ensure that a product is safe, and to theoretically attach a warning label if it isn't. Clear safety guidelines are lacking, and no independent third-party safety testing is required. Submitting product formulations is voluntary, and according to the FDA, only about 35 percent of cosmetic companies do so.[6] While the European Union (EU) approved a cosmetic ingredient listing of over 1,000 prohibited substances, the FDA list only prohibits eight.

Blinding me with science

Skin and body care products are made up of ingredients that fall into four broad categories: the carrier (which makes up most of the product), colorants or dyes, fragrances, and preservatives. The FDA requires that ingredients in food, drugs, and cosmetics be listed in descending order of quantity.[5] Deciphering what's in your cosmetics may make your mind as boggled as Thomas Dolby's. Some of the more toxic facial cleansers (check out this example) have a blinding array of chemical ingredients. Below are a couple of the most common—and most toxic—chemicals found in skin care products, including facial cleansers.

Phthalates

Phthalates are used as plasticizers—they give plastics more flexibility and make them less brittle—and in lotions and beauty products to make them smooth. They're also used to "fix" fragrances and make them last longer, to help products penetrate the skin better, and to prevent nail polish from chipping. A 2002 test of 72 name-brand beauty products found almost three-quarters contained phthalates.[7][8]

Phthalates are linked to endocrine disruption; neurotoxicity and neurodevelopmental disorders; toxicity of the brain, kidneys, liver, and lungs; and birth defects in the male reproductive system.[8][4] Research shows a probable link between phthalates and asthma as well as allergies.[9] Phthalates are just one of the chemicals that the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found polluting the San Francisco Bay. Check out EWG's phthalates cheat sheet for more info.

What to look for: Phthalates don't have to be called out on the label: any facial cleanser that lists "fragrance" in its ingredients can contain phthalates. Choose products with fragrances made from plants and essential oils, and those that spell out what's in their fragrance.[8][4] Avoid products listing Diethyl phthalate (DEP) as an ingredient.[10]

Parabens

Parabens—preservatives that prevent the growth of bacteria—are found in about 75 to 90 percent of cosmetic and personal care products.[11]

Parabens can affect the endocrine system, which produces hormones. Acting like estrogen in the body, they increase the risk of breast cancer, with recent studies finding parabens in breast tumors. Skin exposure is more of a risk than parabens in food, since the digestive system breaks them down. Parabens have been found in breast milk, blood, and body tissues, and can enter a developing fetus. Parabens can also cause contact dermatitis (skin rashes). In addition, after washing off a facial cleanser containing parabens, they're discharged through wastewater systems and end up in waterways, where they also appear to have estrogenic effects on fish. [12] [8][13]

What to look for: Look for facial cleansers that say "paraben free" on the label. Avoid products that list methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben, or butylparaben as ingredients.

Coal tar colorants

Coal tar colorants are commonly used in personal care products, hair dyes, and food, and are certified by the FDA. Coal tar is a byproduct of the distillation of bituminous coal and is harmful to the environment, is a known carcinogen in animals, and can cause skin rashes and hives. If the color's name is preceded by FD&C, it's certified for use in food, drugs, and cosmetics; if it's D&C, it can't be used in food; External D&C and it's only for external use in drugs and cosmetics, and can't be used around the eyes or inside the mouth.[14][15]

What to look for: Look for safe, natural colorants including annatto, beet powder, beta carotene, caramel, cochineal, grapeskin, and henna. Especially hazardous coal tar colorants to avoid include azo dyes, Ext. D&C Violet #2, nitro dyes, quinoline (including D&C Yellow #10 and #11), triphenylmethane dyes (including FD&C Green #1, #2, and #3, and FD&C Blue #1), and xanthenes (including FD&C Red #3, D&C Red #2, and #19, and D&C Orange).[14]

Green claims

• What's the big ''O'' really mean? Soap and other personal care or cosmetic products are sometimes chock full of advertising claims that can be hard to sort out and verify. One such murky area is the term “organic.” While the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) maintains clearcut standards for organic food, the same can’t be said for body care products. The industry is in turmoil trying to agree upon a set of standards. Some companies use the USDA certified organic food standard, which requires 95 percent of the ingredients to be organic. Others use the less stringent California state standard for organic cosmetic products, which requires at least 70 percent organically produced ingredients.[16] And still others label their products organic without meeting any external criterion. In the meantime, a nonprofit standard-setting group called NSF International has released a draft set of rules for organic personal care products and a group of 30 cosmetic companies recently devised its own set of specifications called Organic and Sustainable Industry Standards (OASIS).[17] How it all washes out remains to be seen.
• Watching out for the critters. While you're contemplating green attributes, you may also wish to join the cruelty-free movement by looking for products with the Leaping Bunny Logo or the Certified Vegan Logo. You can rest assured that no bunnies (or monkeys or cats, for that matter) were harmed in the making of these non-animal-tested products. Just keep in mind: a company may claim it doesn't employ animal testing for its products, but without third-party verification, it’s hard to know whether these statements are, in fact, completely true.

Setting the standard: industry and grassroots efforts

Several industry and grassroots efforts have emerged to address the lack of safety standards in cosmetics and personal care products.[18]

• Natural Seal for Personal Care Products On May 1, 2008, the Natural Products Association announced a new certification program that defines "natural" and includes an easily-identified seal. Advisers to the association include Aubrey Organics, Burt’s Bees, Badger Balm, California Baby, Farmaesthetics, Trilogy Fragrances, and Weleda.[19][20]
• Skin Deep, a project of the Environmental Working Group (EWG), provides consumers with a comprehensive database of cosmetic products and their ingredients.[21] Note that the site doesn't differentiate between food-grade versus cosmetic-grade, and organic versus non-organic ingredients, however, and some of the ingredients it cites for health effects are essential oils. Nevertheless it's a very useful tool.[4]
• The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics urges manufacturers of cosmetics and personal care products to sign the Compact for Safe Cosmetics pledge and assess the environmental and health impacts of their products, making changes as needed.[22] To date, more than 900 companies worldwide have signed the compact.[23]

Big box stores make big cosmetic changes

Big box stores like Target and Wal-mart are jumping on the natural and organic body and skin care bandwagon. Target announced in March of 2008 that it will carry Alba, Avalon Organics, Burt’s Bees, Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps, Giovanni Organic Cosmetics, Jason Natural Products, Juice Organics, Kiss My Face and Weleda cosmetics in all 1,591 of its US stores.[24]

Even CVS Caremark, the largest US retail pharmacy chain, announced in May of 2008 that it's replacing chemicals in it's store-brand products that are linked to health problems and substituting safer ingredients, making it the first large drugstore chain in the US to institute a cosmetics safety policy.[25]

Glossary

• endocrine glands: Organs that secrete hormones directly into our bloodstreams, including the thyroid, adrenal, and pituitary glands.[26]

External links

• American Center for Dermatology
• Campaign for Safe Cosmetics
• New York Times - Natural, Organic Beauty
• Restroom Critic - Cancer In Your Bathroom?
• The Green Guide - Dirty Dozen SSC: The Dirty Dozen Ingredients In Personal Care Products