Topical Escape - Ditch the Toxins, Ditch the Weight
What would you say if I speculated that your weight challenges had nothing to do with your diet?
While the reality is that it’s not that simplistic (nothing surrounding health really is), there is some truth to the idea that the stuff you’re putting on your body could be affecting your weight, health and metabolism as much as the stuff you’re putting in your body.
The majority of the personal care products on the market, you know the big name brand ones lining the shelves of supermarkets and drugstores, the exact ones we slather onto our skin, into our hair and over our lips and faces contain a whole plethora of hormone-disrupting, cancer causing, and health disturbing substances. Yikes!
In Canada and the US, the personal care industry has a long way to go when it comes to cleaning up the ingredients allowed in personal care products. Personal care and cosmetic industries are self-regulated so government agencies like the FDA and Health Canada aren’t stepping in to determine what’s safe and what’s not enabling big corporations to conduct their own independent research and studies.
These companies argue that it’s the “dose that makes the poison”, meaning that the microscopic dose of the questionable ingredient going into the product isn’t enough to cause any major harm.
But think of it this way. When you expose yourself to aluminum in the deodorant you’re using and you’re cooking in aluminum pots and using other products that contain aluminum, the overall build up compounds and is cumulative...and can be toxic.
So many of the allowable ingredients in personal care products have carcinogenic compounds or hormone disrupting ingredients that when absorbed into your bloodstream through your skin, settle into your tissues and mimic hormone-like functions that can result in fat storage, estrogen dominance (hello hot flashes!) and have been linked to cancer, immunotoxicity, neurotoxicity, allergies and skin irritations.
So what’s your best defense?
ALWAYS READ THE PRODUCT LABEL.
Being informed is your best course of action. Avoid purchasing products that contain any of the top ten toxic ingredients listed below.
Top Ten Toxic Ingredients
Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES)
A petroleum based ingredient that acts as a foaming agent and can be contaminated with 1,4-Dioxane, a probable carcinogen and eye and respiratory tract irritant.
Parabens
The most commonly used preservatives in cosmetics and are found in a number of personal care products including, shampoo, moisturizer, shaving cream, cleansing gels, personal lubricant, deodorant and toothpaste.
Parabens are also antibiotics and prevent bacteria from growing. They are terrible for our skin microbiome.
Artificial Musks
Watch out for fragrance, parfum or musk in the ingredient list of personal care products. That means there could be 100’s of other chemicals.
Petrolatum
Commonly known as petroleum jelly, a virtually odourless and tasteless gel that’s been associated with cancer, skin irritations and allergies.
Petrolatum can be found in skin creams, wax depilatories, eyebrow pencils, eyeshadow, lipsticks, conditioner and blush.
BHA and BHT
Butylated hydroxyanisole and butylated hydroxytoluene are synthetic antioxidants that are used as preservatives in products like lipstick, eyeshadow, concealer and moisturizer.
Studies show that these chemicals are carcinogenic, endocrine disrupting and allergenic.
Phthalates
Man made chemicals that are used as plasticizers and preservatives for fragrance. Listed as fragrance or perfume (parfum) on a label, phthalates are found in many cosmetic and personal care products including scented items and nail products.
Coal Tar-Derived Colour
Coal tar-derived colours including P-phenylenediamine are often used in permanent hair dyes with higher concentration in the darker shades. This chemical is associated with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, multiple myeloma, acute leukemia, bladder cancer, contact dermatitis and acute facial edema.
Silicone Chemicals
Also known as siloxanes, they are detrimental to the environment and have raised concerns for their effects on human health.
They’re used in a variety of hair products as well as eye and face makeup, manicuring preparations, skin creams and oils and foot powders and sprays.
Formaldehyde Releasing Agents
Chemicals that release formaldehyde can be found in hair care products, hair colouring, and nail products.
Triclosan
A synthetic anti-bacterial/anti-fungal agent that has been linked to superbugs and is toxic to the environment.
Triclosan is used in a wide variety of personal care products including shaving creams, conditioners, deodorants, liquid soaps, hand soaps, facial cleansers and disinfectants and is often marketed as “antibacterial” or contains the name “Microban”.
You can implement some simple strategies to avoid inhaling, absorbing and ingesting these harmful chemicals with a little conscious effort.
Be an avid label reader. Download the Think Dirty app or Skin Deep by the Environment Working Group (EWG)
DIY it and make your own
Avoidance
Choose mineral based makeup
Choose fruit pigmented makeup. Heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium) are abundant in cosmetics.
Purchase from a known clean beauty retailer
It’s up to you as a consumer to take charge of your health, be informed and avoid products that contain these harmful chemicals. It’s in the interest of your best health.
