Don’t Poison Your Face

We are aware of the presence of harmful chemicals in the water that we drink and the food that we eat. They are also in our personal hygiene and household products, furniture, cars, the air we breathe, and basically everywhere around us. While it is impossible to completely avoid exposure to harmful chemicals and contaminants, we can at least try to minimize exposure. The personal hygiene and cosmetics industries are areas of consumer products that are especially concerning due to the lack of governmental regulation and oversight.

Are the Ingredients in Personal Care Products Safe?

On the Environmental Working Group (EWG) website it states that “since 2009, 595 cosmetics manufacturers have reported using 88 chemicals in more than 73,000 products that have been linked to cancer, birth defects, or reproductive harm¹.”

The individual amount of a unique chemical compound, present in a single product, and used by one person, may pose little to no risk. However, most products are made with a combination of different potentially harmful chemicals and most people use several products daily, causing a compounding and cumulative effect on that person’s health that it’s hard to measure and impossible to pinpoint to a single chemical.

This effect is exponentiated and aggravated by the potential environmental contamination that the washout of these products causes, exemplified by the damaging of coral reefs from sunscreens. In short, long-term exposure and compounded and cumulative effects are rarely considered when evaluating the safety of a unique chemical compound, which makes safety regulations often inefficacious, and their widespread use even more concerning.

Average Daily Use of Personal Care Products

A 2023 survey commissioned by the EWG revealed that the average US adult uses 12 personal care products a day and that these products “could be made with 112 unique chemical ingredients, including some that may pose health risks².”

The categories of products included in this survey included²:

• Body care: shower gel, soap, body moisturizer, deodorant, etc.
• Hair care: shampoo, hair softener, hair gel, hairspray, beard care, etc.
• Skin care: sunscreen, face cream, eye cream, etc.
• Cosmetics: concealer, mascara, eyeliner, lipstick, etc.
• Baby care: baby powder, scented wipes, baby oil, etc.

Here is a summary of the results²:

• Overall, the use of these products has increased.
• Men’s product use almost doubled, from six products used daily in 2004 to 11 in 2023. This puts men’s use of products close to women’s, which went from 12 to 13 products daily.
• Women’s average daily product use by category: six for body care, three for skin care, two for cosmetics, one for hair care, and one for baby care.
• Men’s average daily product use by category: six products daily for body care, one for skin care, one cosmetic, two for hair care, and one product for baby care.

One of the scariest findings was that about 10% of adults use more than 25 products every day²!

On the good side, the EWG also found that, in general, these products contain fewer unique chemicals compared to products in 2004, which makes overall chemical exposure lower. However, due to the lack of regulation on the safety of personal care products, the average US consumer is still exposed to chemicals that can be linked to cancer, and create harm to the endocrine and reproductive system, among other health concerns².

But who regulates whether a chemical used in your personal care product is safe or not? Or how to guarantee proper labeling of a skincare or cosmetic product you are using? Good question.

Here is the answer:

US law does not require cosmetic products and ingredients, other than color additives, to have FDA approval before they go on the market³!

FDA Regulation – Prohibited & Restricted Ingredients in Cosmetics

If you consult the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website, it says that⁴:

“It’s against the law for a cosmetic to contain any ingredient that makes the product harmful when consumers use it according to directions on the label… this is true whether or not there is a regulation that specifically prohibits or restricts the use of the ingredient in cosmetics.” This means that it is up to the manufacturer to determine which chemical to use in their formulations, what amount, and how to use, since the FDA specifies that “cosmetics must have any directions for use or warning statements needed to make sure people use the products safely⁴.”