Toxic
and banned ingredients in hundreds of common cosmetics & perfumes
Because
of minimal regulation by the United States Food and Drug Administration
(FDA), many cosmetics often contain toxic and carcinogenic ingredients.
The FDA does not regulate cosmetics, defined as any "product that improves
appearance, verses drugs and that diagnose, relieve, or cure disease"(Winter, 1994).
So it is
up to us as the consumers to read labels carefully and only
use products that are propyl-, methyl-, ethyl-, butyl-, etc. free.
Why
do these harmful chemicals continue to be included in many skin and body
care products?
Because of outdated laws from the 1930's, a strong trade organization:
the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association (CTFA), and lobbyists
favorable to the cosmetics industry who support the status quo.
The major reason - is profit.
Many chemicals are by-products of the oil and gas industries.
Standard Oil sponsored some of the early research
articles that concluded that isopropyl alcohol is a safe additive in cosmetics and medicines. So it's a financial benefit for these companies to make an additional profit on their waste products after refining their oil. How would you like to be paid for your garbage?
'
"The contamination of our world is not alone a matter
of mass spraying. Indeed, for most of us this is of less importance than
the innumerable small-scale exposures to which we are subjected day by
day, year after year. Like the constant dripping of water that in tum
wears away the hardest stone, this birth to death contact with dangerous
chemicals may in the end prove disastrous. Each of these recurrent exposures, no matter how slight contributes to the progressive buildup of chemicals in our bodies and so to cumulative poisoning....
Lulled by the soft sell and the hidden persuader, the average citizen
is seldom aware of the deadly materials with which he is surrounding himself; indeed, he may not realize he is using them at all."
Rachel Carson
(Silent Spring, 1962)
see
our References
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