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(Article taken from Vegetarian Time, October 2003)
Why does it matter whether your personal care products are made with organic
ingredients or not? Because those that aren't ca be harmful, says Samuel
Epstein, MD, chairman of the Chicago-based Cancer Prevention Coalition and
professor emeritus of environmental and occupational medicine at the University
of Illinois School of Public Health. "Mainstream industry products
are highly dangerous." Epstein says. "Consumers have got
to be fully aware of the fact that mainstream industry products carry a wide
range of ingredients that are carcinogenic or allergenic."
Shampoos, skin creams and other products applied directly to the skin can be
especially troublesome. Any product "absorbed by the skin is directly
absorbed," says Elizabeth Smith, MD, a researcher with the Ovarian Cyst
Education Web site. "In other words, anything absorbed through the
skin may be as high as 10 times the concentration of an oral dose."
That's why you must be careful with products containing synthetic ingredients --
especially on children. "Infants are highly vulnerable to toxic
and carcinogenic effects," says Epstein, citing clinical rodentian studies
done in 1972 and 1986, published in Cancer Research and the Journal of
Carcinogenesis, respectively. Both studies show that an
application of carcinogens in the first few days of life can be 50 - 100 times
more toxic than it is for adults.
Natural products manufacturers say that organic ingredients can perform the
same functions as synthetic ingredients but without the health risks.
Jeffrey Light, Jason Natural Cosmetics' founder and chairman, says his company
uses essential oils such as lavender and lemon to replace synthetic
fragrances. And the company uses aloe vera gel and sea algae to replace
animal-derived lanolin. Jason's toothpastes contain menthol to soothe
sensitive teeth instead of potassium nitrate, a skin irritant, which some other
manufacturers use.
Epstein says consumers should watch for petroleum-based ingredients and harsh
detergents in personal care products because they can damage the skin, making
the absorption of toxic ingredients easier. "Any ingredient ending in
'eth,' like sodium laureth and steareth," he says, "carries very
powerful irritant detergents."
Aubrey Hampton, founder of Aubrey Organics, cautions against personal care
products that are made with urea preservatives, which can cause skin
inflammation. He also cautions against hair sprays that contain
polyvinylpyrrolidone copolymer (PVP/VA), which can cause lung damage as well as
breathing problems.
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