Are Your Personal Care Products Safe?

Have you ever tried to read the ingredients on your personal care products only to be confused about what all the technical terms mean? Are the products you use safe to be ingested or absorbed into your body? The Environmental Working Group (ewg.org) offers the following tips for consideration when making a personal care product purchase.

Fragrance
This non-specific term appears on many labels but can include harmful or allergy-inducing ingredients. To avoid these, look for labels that instead name specific natural fragrances such as lavender, bergamot, or lemongrass). "Tom's of Maine" products utilize natural fragrances in many of their products.

Sunscreen
Chemicals such as oxybenzone and retinyl palmitate, often found in products with SPF, can cause more harm than good. Opt for products with zinc oxide, titanium dioxide or avobenzone at 3%.

Parabens
Often found in many lotions, this is a big one to avoid. These chemicals (propyl-, isopropyl-, butyl-, methyl, and isobutyl-parabens are associated with endocrine, reproductive and developmental problems. Look for labels marked "paraben free". Brands such as "Alba" and "Burt's Bees" are good paraben free products.

Triclosan and Triclocarban
These antimicrobial pesticides, which often are found in soaps, toothpaste and deodorant, have been linked to liver problems.

As always, try to eliminate or reduce the amount of products you consume with artificial coloring or flavors. Be on the look out for common artificial color ingredients such as FD&C Blue Numbers 1, 2; Green Number 3, Red Number 40, 3; Yellow Number 5,6.