What’s in your products?
Q:
How do I know if a product is safe?
A: To find safety information on specific products,
check out EWG's
Skin Deep, the
online database of nearly 25,000 personal care products.
You can search the database for specific brands or
ingredients, or for product types, like nail polish, to
see how brands within that product class compare. Skin
Deep will also tell you if a company has signed the
Compact for Safe
Cosmetics. We recommend supporting Compact
signers over non-signers when possible because
Compact-signing companies have made a meaningful
commitment to create safer products. www.cosmeticsdatabase.com
Q. What are phthalates? Where are they found?
A. Phthalates (pronounced THA-lates) are plasticizing
chemicals that are probable human reproductive or
developmental toxins and endocrine disruptors.
Phthalates cause reproductive birth defects in
laboratory animals, particularly males.
Two phthalates often used in cosmetics (dibutyl and
diethylhexyl) have been banned in the European Union.
Unfortunately, phthalates are still found in some nail
polishes and hair sprays, and are commonly hidden on
ingredient labels under the term “fragrance.” We
recommend that consumers steer clear of products with
fragrance, especially pregnant women, babies, and
pubescent young adults.
For more information,
please read the
Breast Cancer Fund’s reports, "A
Little Prettier" (2008) and "Not
Too Pretty" (2002).
5 Ugly Truths Behind the Myth of Cosmetic Safety
1. Toxic chemicals are in our beauty products — and in
our bodies.
Every day we use multiple personal care products – from
shampoo to deodorant, lotion to make-up – that contain
toxic chemical ingredients that are absorbed through the
skin, inhaled or ingested. Some of these chemicals are
linked to cancer, birth defects, learning disabilities
and other health problems that are epidemic in our
society.
2. Small exposures can add up to harm.
The cosmetics industry says it’s safe to put toxic
chemicals into personal care products because the amount
in each product is too small to matter. But none of us
uses just one product a day – and small amounts of
toxins can add up to harm. Chemicals linked to cancer
and birth defects do not belong in personal care
products, period.
3. The government should be protecting us, but it’s not.
Major loopholes in federal law prevent the government
from requiring safety testing or approving the safety of
cosmetics and body care products. In the United States,
the cosmetics industry – not the government – is in
charge of product safety
4. You can’t believe industry safety claims.
Manufacturers say their products are safe. But what do
those claims really mean? They may mean the company has
tested its products, but only to ensure the ingredients
don’t cause rashes, swelling or other acute reactions.
Companies are not required to test their products for
long-term negative health effects, such as cancer or the
inability to have a healthy child. One-third of personal
care products contain at least one chemical linked to
cancer, according to the Skin Deep report by the
Environmental Working Group, a partner in the Campaign
for Safe Cosmetics.
5. The $50 billion U.S. cosmetics industry routinely
opposes laws that would protect consumers and the
environment.
The Personal Care Products Council lobbies against laws
that would control pollution at cosmetics manufacturing
plants, require recycled content in packaging or add
more consumer safety information on labels. The industry
says it doesn’t need laws because it can voluntarily
regulate itself.
The Truth Can Also Be Beautiful
Many companies are already making safer products, and
are striving to make even safer products in the future.
Hundreds of cosmetics manufacturers have signed the
Compact for Safe Cosmetics, a pledge to remove hazardous
chemicals and replace them with safer alternatives.
Unfortunately, not one of the major brands found in most
drug stores – such as Revlon, L’Oreal, Estee Lauder or
Proctor & Gamble – have signed the pledge.
The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics,
www.safecosmetics.org
