Do you know what's in your skincare?

How often do you look at the ingredients in your personal care products & think, 'What is all of this stuff?'

Let's take a look at a few of the most commonly seen ingredients that may be in your, body soaps, shampoos, hand & body lotions, candles and toothpaste.

I'm sure most of you have seen or at least heard of Sodium Lauryl Sulfate or Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate, also known as (SLS or SLES). Both are detergents & Surfactants added to many personal care products, including toothpaste because of their cleansing & emulsifying properties. They are irritants and are the main cause of dry itchy skin.

Detergents are made from petroleum products that have the same origins in fossil fuels and consist mainly of surfactant, foaming agents and alcohols, and since some of these chemicals have a non-pleasing odor, detergents are usually heavily scented with cheap, synthetic fragrances. Detergents can harm the environment. They are toxic to fish & wildlife and many petroleum based ingredients in cosmetics contain potentially harmful carcinogenic impurities such as formaldehyde, 1,4 dioxane and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. These will not be listed in the ingredients because these impurities just happen to arise as a result of processing and are readily absorbed by the body & potentially harmful to your health.

Here's one that I find amusing, the facial bar that advertises its 'Hypo-Allergenic Formula' that has been dermatologist tested & approved, yet the primary ingredient is a chemical that causes the most allergic reactions in people of all chemicals found in any cosmetic today, (TEA-triethanolamine).
TEA-triethanolamine contains nitrosamides, which is a carcinogen (causes cancer) and causes facial dermatitis and contact dermatitis. How's that for false advertisement?

Also, for those of you that suffer frequent canker sores like I do, your toothpaste may be to blame. (SLES) has been shown to increase the frequency of these sores among people with frequent recurring sores.

Next on the list are parabens. Parabens are synthetically produced by mixing Para-Hydroxybenzoic Acid with certain Alcohols and are rapidly absorbed antimicrobial preservatives found in thousands of personal care items. The most commonly used parabens in cosmetics are methylparaben, propylparaben and butylparaben. Often there will be more than one paraben used in a product to provide preservation against a broad range of microorganisms. So what is the big deal about parabens you ask? Parabens can act similarly to estrogen & recently, they have been found to be present in breast cancer tumors. This doesn't mean that parabens actually cause cancer, however, their presence in the tumors is disturbing enough. More research needs to be done, but I feel that if you can avoid paraben by using products that do not contain them, then by all means you should use them.

Propylene Glycol & Ethylene Glycol are both toxic chemicals added to personal care & toiletries because of their ability to attract and maintain moisture. According to the safety data sheets of industrial chemical manufactures, high levels of these chemicals are known to cause serious & potentially irreversible health conditions such as liver & heart damage and damage to the central nervous system if sufficient is absorbed by the body. However, the chemical industry wants us to believe that small quantities or low level exposure is "Safe". You make your own mind up about putting a toxic chemical on your skin every day. Look at what happened with the cigarette manufactures, they denied health risks associated with toxic chemicals for years.

Here are some products that glycols are used to make:
• antifreeze
• de-icing solutions for cars, airplanes & boats
• solvents for paint companies
• photographic developing solutions
• hydraulic brake fluids
• your personal care & toiletries

Now, which one of these items listed doesn't seem to belong?

Lead. Exposure to lead is known to cause harm to the nervous system, this is also why I stress that I use lead-free cotton wicks in my soy candles. Yes, lead has been banned in the U.S. but believe me, it is still around. Lead acetate can be found in certain "Red" colored lipsticks, if you must know, L'Oreal colour riche lipstick in true red has been found to have a lead content of 0.65 ppm and Covergirl's Incrediful lipcolor in maximum red had a concentration of 0.56 ppm. Men's hair dye and some haircare products also tested positive for traces of lead. The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics tested lipsticks from different companies, and you can obtain a copy of that list of lead-free lipsticks at http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/lead-free-lipsticks-470402.

And last but not least are pthalates. Pthalates are industrial chemicals used in plastic softeners to give flexiblity to rubber, plastic or resin and are also used in solvents. they can be absorbed through the skin, inhaled as fumes and ingested when they contaminate food. Pthalates are used to give fragrances more staying power and are found in hairsprays, deodorants, nail polish & perfumes that you may be using every day. Studies have shown that pthalates can damage the liver, kidneys, lungs and reproductive system. You would be surprised which leaders in the industry use pthalates in their products, Pantene ProV healthy hold spray, Aqua Net hairspray, Arrid & Degree deodorants and many fragrances including Poison by Christian Dior & Coty's Healing Garden as well as Sally Hansen and Maybelline nail polish.

For the record, whether they have been proven harmful or not, I do not use any of the above in any of my products, a potential risk is still too much risk for me. It only makes sense to use natural products.