Following my cancer diagnosis in 2011, I started to pay a lot more attention to the personal care and cosmetic products I was using. Today’s post looks at the dirty dozen ingredients to avoid in cosmetics. Plus, you’ll find tips on how to reduce your exposure, and some examples of clean cosmetic brands.
This post was originally published in October 2019 as Dirty dozen ingredients to avoid in cosmetics
Beauty is an ugly business
North Americans spend hundreds of billions of dollars each year on cosmetic and skin-care products. Unfortunately, the beauty industry is largely unregulated and many manufacturers use cheap and dangerous ingredients.
Many of these products—even some that are branded as “natural”—contain harmful chemicals, known as the dirty dozen.
Dirty dozen ingredients to avoid
Experts have tagged the ingredients listed below as the “dirty dozen”. Outlined below is a summary of what you should know about each of these ingredients. For more information, the David Suzuki Foundation website is a great resource.
BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole) and BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene)
BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole) and BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene) are synthetic antioxidants used as preservatives. They can cause allergic reactions and are possible human carcinogens. They can also interfere with hormone function, resulting in adverse reproduction effects.
Coal tar dyes: p-phenylenadiamine and colours listed as CI + 5-digit number
Coal tar dyes: p-phenylenadiamine and colours listed as CI + 5-digit number add colour to products and are prevalent in hair dyes. They have the potential to cause cancer. They may also contain heavy metals or be combined with aluminum substrate, making them possibly toxic to the brain.
DEA-related ingredients (diethanolamine)
DEA-related ingredients (diethanolamine) are used to make cosmetics creamy or sudsy. They can cause mild to moderate skin and eye irritation. High doses have been linked to liver cancer and pre-cancerous changes in skin and thyroid.
Dibutyl phthalate
Dibutyl phthalate is a plasticizer that prevents nail polish from becoming brittle. It can enhance the capacity of other chemicals to cause genetic mutations. It is also an endocrine disruptor and can interfere with hormone function.
Formaldehyde-releasing preservatives
Formaldehyde-releasing preservatives slowly and continuously release small amounts of formaldehyde—a known human carcinogen.
Parabens
Parabens are the most widely used preservative in cosmetics. Used in 75-90% of cosmetics, they mimic estrogen and have been detected in human breast cancer tissues. They can also interfere with male reproductive functions.
Parfum (aka fragrance)
Parfum (aka fragrance) is actually a catch-all representing 3000 chemicals used in nearly every type of personal care product. Most have not been tested for toxicity. They can trigger allergies, migraines and asthma symptoms. Some have been associated with cancer.
PEG compounds (polyethylene glycols)
These petroleum-based compounds are widely used as thickeners, solvents, softeners and moisture-carriers. They may be contaminated with known carcinogens during manufacturing. They can cause irritation and systemic toxicity if used on broken skin.
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Petrolatum
Petrolatum is a mineral oil jelly used as a barrier to lock moisture in the skin and in hair products to make hair shine. It is a potential carcinogen, and can cause skin irritation and allergies.
Siloxanes
Siloxanes are silicone-based compounds used in cosmetics to soften, smooth and moisten. They are toxic, persistent and have shown potential to accumulate in aquatic organisms. They act as endocrine disruptors, interfering with hormone function.
Sodium laureth sulfate
Sodium laureth sulfate is a detergent used to make products bubble and foam. It may be contaminated with ethylene oxide (a known human carcinogen) during manufacturing. It can also irritate skin and eyes.
Triclosan
Finally, triclosan is an antibacterial agent mainly used in antiperspirants, deodorants, cleansers and hand sanitizers. It can pass through skin and is suspected of interfering with hormone function. It may also contribute to antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
How to reduce your exposure
Thanks to lack of regulation, it falls on consumers to look out for their own interests. Here are a few tips to help you.
- Use fewer products. Many of the cosmetic products we use are unnecessary. Over the years, I’ve used coconut oil to replace several products I used to buy. Check out this post to learn more about the uses for this one simple product.
- Read labels and know what is in the products you are buying.
- Do your homework. Here are a few resources you can use to see how your favourite products rate.
- EWG’s Skin Deep website.
- Think Dirty app. The app has a feature where you can scan the barcode on your product to see a colour-coded list of ingredients. It’s pretty cool.
- Skin Safe Products helps you to identify and avoid specific ingredients that may be unsafe or that you may be sensitive to.
- Stick with brands you trust. Here are a few that I have grown to trust over the years:
- Live Clean
- Kiss My Face
- Soap Works
- Lush
- Curly Hair Solutions
- North American Hemp Co.
- Burt’s Bees
- Desert Essence
- And, locally we have Molloy’s where everything is made in-store from natural ingredients.
Are you concerned about the ingredients in your cosmetic and skin care products? Tell me your thoughts below.
You don’t realize how much chemicals is in every day staples! I use EWG too, ever since Charlotte came along, it’s been a priority for me!
It is surprising, and even more surprising that this stuff isn’t regulated.
I am slowly changing the products that I’m using. It’s really hard to change my base makeup, though, because I have a birthmark on my face (hate it) so I have to get something on the thick side that stays all day. I have recently downloaded an app from EWG to help me make better choices in other areas, though. Thanks for bringing this back to my attention, Michelle. 🌞
Thanks Lisa. It is definitely hard to switch when you find products that work for you.
I buy soap bars for my hair and body which are made from natural ingredients.
It’s frightening what chemicals are in our beauty products and that they are allowed!
I agree. I look for products with the fewest ingredients possible.
I will admit that aside from looking for vegan, cruelty-free and as eco-friendly as possible, I don’t really know what’s in the products I use. I have greatly reduced what I do use now but I need to educate myself better. This is so helpful; thanks!
I think reducing is a great place to start. It’s surprising how many products we use that we don’t really need.
I think it’s important to acknowledge that every ingredient whether synthetic or natural is a toxic chemical. It all comes down to level of exposure. There is a ton of misinformation and chemophobia/fear mongering out there that can be very confusing. Beauty product manufacturers are just as guilty as NGOs in propagating such misinformation. Just because something is natural doesn’t mean it is appropriate to smother over our bodies. Naturals are complex mixtures of chemical structures and many naturals are allergens. Being organic or not doesn’t make it any less allergenic/toxic. My advice is to YES avoid known ingredients that are more toxic or allergenic (the industry and governments should regulate this), but also avoid products that market themselves as natural and safer without seeing if they do clinical work (human testing NOT animal testing) to determine safety. Most of all don’t buy into all the hype. A simple moisturizer and cleanser is pretty much all you need. Don’t use the same products/eat the same food all the time. Diversify. There are heavy metals in some fish like tuna. If you eat tuna once awhile it’s never going to be a problem. If you eat it everyday then it could be. Sorry, Michelle, for getting on my soap box, but this is a topic that has frustrated me a lot. And for disclosure I have worked in R&D in the Beauty and personal care industry for over 25 years. Ive seen bad actors across the industry. Beware anyone promising “chemical-free”. There is no such thing. I’m no longer in this industry but appreciate that my experience will have provided me with certain biases. But I hope it also provides me with some insights as well.
Thanks for your insights Monty. There is a lot of misinformation out there. It is definitely not my intention to fearmonger, but all greenwashing and natural labels really get to me.
You’re right when you say this should be regulated but, in the absence of regulation, it falls to consumers to educate themselves.
I totally agree that we really don’t need many of these products. My bathroom shelves and drawers are a lot less cluttered these days as I buy fewer products.
I think that if we apply the “reduce” principle and minimize what we use we go along way in protecting both our health and our environment. This is a common point we both made and an important takeaway that is truly actionable.
You may also want to include https://www.skinsafeproducts.com as a resource for your research. The challenge with EWG – Skin Safe is that their product ratings favor ingredients with no data (which is very risky). SkinSafe is trying to take a more scientific approach that recognizes that data is needed to understand safety. I’m not associated with this site at all but I have worked with some of the companies and developed some of the products that are listed so again please accept my disclaimer. I’m just providing the resource so you can do your own research and assessment.
Thanks for sharing that Monty. I have added a link to this site to my post.
I used to ignore the ingredients section of all the cosmetics I buy. But recently, I’ve become aware of all the harmful stuff in some of it. Thanks for this list 🙂
It’s actually scary that even things labelled natural have some of these ingredients.