As consumers, we often purchase beauty products from drugstores, dismissing the ingredients written at the back, without questioning what they are or researching what they mean.
However, you should be warier of the content of each item you regularly buy, as half of your personal care products most likely contain at least one ingredient that could be secretly affecting your health.
The Facts
According to the World Health Organization, Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDC) are a foreign substance or mixture of substances that alter one or more functions of the hormonal system and can later cause adverse effect on the health of an intact organism.
These harmful chemicals can be found in practically any product, edible and non-edible. Most cosmetic products found on the shelves contain at least one of these chemicals; among them the most widely found are the following: Parabens, benzophenones, bisphenols and phthalates.
These hard to pronounce names can be categorised as low, moderate to high risk level (featured in scanning apps) and can cause serious damage to your health with long term exposure to the products.
Indeed, most of these toxins can enter your body through your skin with creams and lotions or even by inhaling air particles. Which means that your favourite perfume or nail polish could be the culprit to your mysteriously recurring health issues- Yikes!
Harmful Beauty Products
The saying “killer beauty industry” fits well with the topic as their cosmetics are indeed making you ill, without giving a clear warning - or so they think.
This is a worrying fact that more people and especially women need to be aware of, as they purchase more cosmetics and beauty products than men in general, unknowingly exposing themselves to thousands of hidden toxins.
Unfortunately, anything can be a hormone disruptor; from toothpaste and deodorant to shampoo, skincare, make-up, hair dye and even medication.
These chemicals disturb your endocrinal system, upsetting your hormones, which can lead to anything from small hormonal breakouts to irregular periods or endometriosis, birth defects, illnesses and even cancer. No thanks!
Clever Way to Avoid Them
Thanks to the wonders of technology you can now have access to apps that allow you to scan any beauty product straight from the shelves of your nearby drugstores to check if they contain any unwanted chemicals.
One of these apps is called Yuka, it’s free to use and all you need is a stable WIFI and a barcode to scan on the product of your choice.
Although not every product will show its detailed content, it’s a useful device that helps you shop for products that are kinder to your body and less damaging to your health in the long run.
The final verdict is to shop smartly and use these scanning apps to hunt and avoid these harmful ingredients. After all they could be hiding in popular cosmetic brands such as Nivea or Dove.