If you peruse the beauty aisles of natural food stores or take a stroll through Sephora’s natural/green section, you’ll see “No Parabens” plastered on most labels of natural cosmetics and skin care products. That is, if you’re someone who’s in the market for natural beauty products. If for no other reason than the persistent presence of “no parabens”, by now you know that you should probably stay away from them though you may not know precisely why. On the other hand, if you’re someone who’s an Oil of Olay disciple (my mom was and, for quite some time, so was I) or you like to walk down the aisles of your local drugstore, Target, of even all of the other sections in Sephora, then I’m sure that you probably aren’t aware of parabens or the fact that a small group of people think they’re really really bad. How would you know? It’s not exactly a topic covered on the local news or in our local papers. And, you’d probably have to do a pretty specific google search to learn about them.
Now, I’m not judging. As I always say, “you don’t know what you don’t know”. If no one ever spoke to you as a child, you wouldn’t have a good grasp of the English language. Again, you don’t know what you don’t know or what you’re not taught. I only wish the local news, or even Sanjay Gupta, would do a better job of covering such topics. And here’s why…
(as quoted from “What are the dangers of parabens in skin care?” – LIVESTRONG.COM – because they did such a good job explaining and why re-create the wheel?)
Parabens are synthetic preservatives used in foods, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and personal care products such as deodorants, moisturizers and shampoos. Common parabens include methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben and butylparaben. Parabens allow skin care products to survive for months or even years in your medicine cabinet; however, they also enter your body through your skin when you use these products. According to Mercola.com, the body can absorb as much as five pounds of cosmetic chemicals every year. Parabens can mimic hormones in the body and disrupt functions of the endocrine system.
Breast Cancer
Colby College’s Clean Makeup website reports that parabens can mimic estrogen and disrupt the body’s hormone system. Cornell University reports that a high lifelong exposure to estrogen can increase breast cancer risk. Estrogen, and synthetic chemicals that act like estrogen, play a role in stimulating the division of breast cells and affect other hormones that stimulate breast cell division. Your body does not easily break down synthetic estrogen, and it can accumulate in fat cells, including breast tissue. In 2004, a study by the University of Reading in the United Kingdom found concentrations of parabens, particularly methylparaben, in human breast tumors. The study examined only the presence of parabens in the tumors but did not determine that they were the cause of the tumors.
Early Puberty
The ability of parabens to mimic other hormones makes them endocrine disruptors, substances that adversely affect the endocrine system. The endocrine system releases hormones into the bloodstream and is involved in a number of functions related to reproduction, waste elimination, digestion and metabolism. Endocrine disruptors such as parabens can lead to early puberty in adolescent girls and boys, as reported by the New York Times. Endocrinologists have observed the average age of puberty decreasing in the past several decades and have seen girls as young as eight exhibit breast development and pubic hair growth. Endocrine disrupters can also lead to testicular enlargement and breast development in young boys.
Decreased Sperm Levels
Parabens can also adversely affect the male reproductive system. In a study by the Tokyo Metropolitan Research Laboratory of Public Health, researchers administered parabens to three-week-old rats. After four weeks, researchers examined the rats and found their sperm production significantly decreased in relation to the amount of parabens they had received. The rats who received the highest dose of parabens, which was consistent with the daily acceptable intake of parabens in Europe and Japan, showed a significant decrease in sperm concentration.
Hey, I stalked you on twitter moms and found you here! So happy I did! I love your blog. You have a new fan! My little girl is only 3 now, but I’ll be looking for your products soon enough!
Tracy:
I’m glad you stalked me and so happy to hear that you like the blog. Our mission is to educate moms on what’s in health and beauty products and why we should start being more discerning about what our girls use. Pass this on to other moms you know. One mom at a time, right? I’ll catch up with you on twittermoms.
This was a very informative post. I liked the research results you used. Using the topics of parabens possibly linked with breast cancer and parabens affecting the male reproductive system makes it an interesting topic to discuss. I am always in the market for better beauty products and it’s good to hear about ingredients to avoid and the reason why.