7 Toxins to Look Out For in Personal Care Products

Photo: Diego Cervo/Shutterstock.com

Take a quick inventory: how many personal care products do you use per day—items like shampoo, conditioner, hair dye, makeup, lotion, nail polish, perfume and cologne, soaps, sunscreen, and shaving creams?

If you’re like the average American, the short answer is too many.

The average American female uses 12 personal care products with a total of 168 different chemicals in the ingredients. While the average American man may use fewer products, he still remains exposed to about 85 chemicals. As they navigate puberty and the hormonal changes that impact skin, body odor, hair, and other hygiene and beauty concerns, the average American teenager uses 17 personal care products, exposing them to even more chemicals at this crucial junction in life.

Many consumers don’t think twice about what they put on their skin, hair, and nails, believing if it is sold at retail stores, it must be safe. Or, if it’s on the outside of their bodies and they are not ingesting it, there isn’t a problem. Indeed, there is a movement for safer products, but some simply dismiss the concerns, especially since many of these more natural products can come with a hefty price tag, must be purchased from a specialty retailer, or do not seem to work as well as the chemical-laden products consumers are now used to.

The question is, does it really matter how many chemicals are in these products since they just end up on your skin? And what natural products are affordable and actually work as well as those many people have become accustomed to?

Dermal Absorption of Chemicals and Toxins: Why What You Put ON Your Skin Matters

Your skin acts as a barrier to protect your internal organs and tissue from the outside environment, but it is not a shell. It is a semi-permeable membrane, meaning it protects against some things, but it allows other things to enter—including many chemicals, especially those that are fat-soluble. How much is absorbed depends on the integrity of the skin, the location, the properties of the chemical, the concentration, the duration of exposure, and the surface area of skin.

An additional concern is not just that you absorb the chemicals one time, but that most people use these personal care products daily—and even multiple times a day. Repeat use leads to the potential for bioaccumulation of the chemicals, as well as exposure to hundreds of chemicals, all of which may alter the safety profile of these products. Individuals with skin barrier problems, such as those with eczema, psoriasis, acne, rashes, or a cut, may also absorb more than normal. According to the Center for Disease Control, dermal absorption is dependent on the thickness of the stratum corneum, the skin integrity, the concentration of the chemical on the skin, how long the skin is exposed, and the surface area of exposure.

In this blog, I am discussing mainly products that are applied directly, but it is not just dermal exposure that may be of concern. Personal care products that are sprays not only pose a risk for dermal absorption but also a risk of exposure through inhalation.

Common Potentially Toxic Chemicals in Skincare Products

There are many chemicals of concern in common personal care and cosmetic products, many of which are endocrine disruptors. The Endocrine Society has identified nearly 85,000 human-produced chemicals of which at least 1,000 are possible endocrine disruptors. In an expert consensus statement, international experts identified key characteristics of endocrine-disruptors chemicals (EDCs) in order to identify the intrinsic hazards of the chemicals. Many products containing identified EDCs have more than one of these chemicals, adding to the potential body burden of the chemicals, especially when these products are used daily or even multiple times in one day.

You may be familiar with the phrase “endocrine disruptors,” as they have been getting more and more media attention over the past few years. BPA, or bisphenol A, is one of the more well-known chemicals in this category. Many studies have demonstrated a correlation between these chemicals and reproductive health due to their acting similar to estrogen and other hormones, thus influencing many of the endocrine pathways in the body.

Some studies have found an association between endocrine disruptors and breast cancer, although there is not sufficient evidence yet to confirm causation. However, many experts still recommend listing it as a potential carcinogenic. There may also be a relationship between endocrine disruptors and other chronic conditions, including obesity, metabolic diseases, and dysbiosis.

Women have a higher risk of exposure to these endocrine disruptors, likely due to typically using more cosmetics and personal care products. Males also are exposed to these chemicals, even if they do not use many as products. In one study, cologne led to an increase in phthalates in the urine, and sunscreen and hand/body lotion led to an increase in parabens.

The risk of exposure to endocrine disruptors varies with sex and race, likely due to the rates of exposure and personal care products used. A cross-sectional analysis including 10,017 individuals and data on phthalate metabolites from 2005–2014 looked at the relationship between urinary phthalate metabolites and metabolic syndrome (MetS) incidence in men and women of different races. There was a strong correlation between increased urinary phytate levels and MetS incidence with variance in different phytate metabolites in varying populations. For example, higher levels of Di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate increased odds of MetS for white men only, while an inverse relationship was observed between phytate metabolites and MetS prevalence among Black men. Additionally, the highest levels of urinary phytates were observed in Black women and Mexican/Hispanic women. The study concludes that the differential roles phytate exposure plays in the development of MetS need to be further evaluated to understand the long-term health effects of exposure to these chemicals.

Not all the chemicals of concern in personal care products are endocrine disruptors, as you will see, but many are. So, when you go shopping for your next personal care product, which ingredients should you be on the lookout for? There are many potentially dangerous chemicals, but some of the more commonly used—and studied—include the following.

Avoiding these chemicals would be a good first step toward healthier personal care products.Toxins in Personal Care Products

Heavy metals: You may already know to avoid heavy metals, such as mercury, aluminum, lead, arsenic, aluminum, lead, and cadmium, but did you know they still show up in cosmetics despite the worldwide understanding of the potential for health problems associated with exposure? The FDA states on their website that they routinely have looked at heavy metals in cosmetics and found small amounts that do not pose a health risk. The FDA allows mercury in cosmetics as a preservative in eye area and lip products that is no more than 65 parts per million and lead at a maximum level of 10 parts per million. There are also limits set in color additives for arsenic, lead, mercury, and chromium. Despite regulations, heavy metals remain an ingredient in many cosmetics, and the accumulation through regular use may cause concern due to bioaccumulation beyond healthy levels.

Mineral oil: This byproduct of crude oil production is commonly used to help bind moisture to the skin. It has the potential to clog pores, and it may be contaminated with other chemicals and toxins. Thus, it ends up on many lists of ingredients to avoid. However, a review study published in 2019 summarizing the safety of use in different forms and applications concluded that, although mineral oils and waxes were absorbed into the stratum corneum, the first layer of skin, only minute amounts were absorbed into deeper layers it may become exposed to systematically. Thus, it may not be as harmful as some of the others on this list, although you may still wish to avoid it, especially if you have any skin conditions that may reduce your skin’s protection capacity and make you more susceptible to absorbing chemicals.

Oxybenzone (also known as Benzophenone-3): This chemical is the main active ingredient in most non-mineral, commercial sunscreens. It is a known carcinogenic and endocrine disruptor with potential impact on reproductive health, thyroid hormone levels, and testosterone levels in men. In a mouse study, long-term exposure to oxybenzone levels similar to that of daily use of sunscreens and cosmetics led to long-term changes to mammary gland function. This effect is likely due to its endocrine disrupting capabilities, including its anti-androgenic, anti-estrogenic, and estrogenic activity. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in May 2019 showed that using four types of sunscreens using organic UV filters such as oxybenzone (two sprays, a lotion, and a cream) resulted in systemic absorption of the chemicals reaching 0.5 ng/mL for all 4 products after using it 4 times on the first day alone. Another potential source for exposure beyond just dermal use that adds to the overall body burden is dermal absorption from clothing. Because the use of oxybenzone is so ubiquitous, this chemical is also found in dust and the air, which may get onto clothing, come into contact with skin, and then be absorbed.

Parabens (methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben): The chemicals that fall into the paraben category are used as a preservative and to suppress microbial growth in many personal care products. You may already be aware to some degree of the potential problem with parabens, as many products now promote they are paraben-free, thanks to the bulk of work (a few of which will be referenced) demonstrating the potential issues with these chemicals. Humans can be exposed to parabens through personal care products and foods, with an estimated total intake of parabens through personal care products of 31–766 µg/kg body weight, and from preservatives in foods of 307–940 ng/kg. Parabens are endocrine disruptors, and they may also have a negative impact on metabolic hormones, contributing to obesity. In one pilot study on 27 women, higher levels of methylparaben in the blood correlated with a higher BMI and adipsin levels (which correlates to adiposity) and lower levels of glucagon, leptin, and PAI-1, energy-balancing hormones. In one epidemiological study, there was a significant inverse association between adiposity measures and biomarkers of paraben concentrations. They found that per 10-fold increase in the methylparaben levels, there was a 0.64 odds ratio for obesity in adults and 0.71 in children.

Parabens have also been found in cord blood with a negative association between paraben levels and testosterone levels, which could lead to developmental risks. There may also be an impact on thyroid hormone levels, at least in pregnant women. A study published in 2020 of 511 women, aged 25-39 years, found that paraben exposure impaired fertility. There is also an increase in the odds risk for birth weight, body length, gestational age at birth and other birth factors with an increase in paraben exposure. Although maternal exposure most likely plays a larger role, paternal exposure may also affect reproduction odds. Parabens also have been shown to negatively impact thyroid stimulating hormone levels by potentially binding to hormone receptors and interfering with the synthesis and secretion of thyroid hormones. Additionally, one preliminary study looking at menopausal women found that increased biomarkers of paraben exposure may be correlated with increased frequency and duration of hot flashes, increased levels of follicle stimulating hormones, and decreased ovarian volume. Lastly, a recent case-control study looking at 711 women with breast cancer and 598 women without breast cancer found that biomarkers of select parabens were positively associated with 30–50% increased risk of breast cancer and that those with the highest levels of parabens had the highest risk of all-cause mortality. As you can see, many studies have demonstrated the potential harm of parabens, so it may be best to choose products that do not contain them.

Phenols: Phenol is a category that includes others on this list, including benzophenone-3 (oxybenzone) and BPA. There have been studies that looked at phenols as a category, often along with parabens. In one study on pregnant women, higher levels of propylparaben and bisphenol A corresponded with higher serum total, ono-HDL and LDL cholesterol levels. Another study found that higher levels of phenols and phthalate metabolites are associated with infertility, and the chemical mixtures of which exposure occurs will impact the fertility risk. For example, the most impactful infertility-rated mixture was the combination of four di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and bisphenol. The study concluded that the compounding effects of multiple pollutants should be considered when examining the association between environmental factors and female infertility and that further studies are needed. In other studies on pregnant women, parabens and phenols, including BPA and triclosan, correlated with increased inflammation and oxidative stress. Only triclosan was associated with inflammation, while oxybenzone and parabens actually related to lower inflammation levels. Dichlorophenols, benzophenone-3, triclosan, and some parabens were associated with increases in 8-OHdG and 8-isoprostane (urinary oxidative stress biomarkers). Urinary measures of phenols yielded inconclusive results.

Sodium lauryl sulfates (SLS): This is another ingredient known well enough for companies to promote when it is not used and has the potential to be corrosive and irritating. A similar but milder ingredient is sodium lauryl sulfate. These both produce really sudsy soaps. One systematic review found that those with recurrent aphthous stomatitis, or canker sores or mouth ulcers, did better in SLS-free dental care products, with reductions in the number of ulcers, duration of ulcers, ulcer pain, and number of episodes. SLS may also stimulate the production of free radicals. According to one study on hepatocyte cultures of Van fish, super-oxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase levels were all increased upon exposure to SLS, indicating increased oxidative stress. Some people are more sensitive to SLS than others, so you may need to make a decision based on your own experience as well.

Triclosan: One of the more commonly used antibacterial agents in personal care products, triclosan is an ingredient to avoid. In the Florence Statement on Triclosan and Triclocarban, more than 200 scientists and medical professionals came together to declare the potential for triclosan and triclocarban to be endocrine disruptors with the potential to bioaccumulate. According to a meta-analysis of the effects of triclosan on birth weight, women with increased gestational exposure to triclosan were more likely to experience a reduced infant birth weight.  Triclosan may also negatively impact the gut microbiota. In one mouse study, mice treated with 10-80 ppm of triclosan for 3 weeks demonstrated low-grade colonic inflammation, reduced diversity of the gut microbiota ,and decreased abundance of beneficial gut bacteria. Moreover, another mouse study found that exposure to triclosan induced alterations to the gut microbiota, along with eosinophilic infiltration and goblet cell hyperplasia, all symptoms that correlate with atopic asthma. The same study found that TCS and environmental aeroallergens increase Th-2 cytokines responses. Lastly, a case-control study published in 2019 looking at the relationship between urinary triclosan concentrations and pro-inflammatory cytokines in maternal plasma during pregnancy found that each interquartile range increase in urinary triclosan concentrations was associated with increases in CRP, IL-10, and TNF. These compounds are antimicrobial, so the reason for this may not be due to their endocrine-disrupting characteristics but instead due to their impact on the body’s microbiome. In 2017, the FDA banned these chemicals in nonprescription antiseptic products along with over 20 other antimicrobial ingredients, so you may not find it in many of your products. However, the ban did not include toothpaste, washes, and some other products, so you may still find it present in these types of products.

The list above is not comprehensive, but it does include the ingredients with some of the most research to back up the potential risk of their use—which is why some of them are already coming off the market. Additional ingredients to avoid include phthalates, BPA, BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene), PEG (polyethylene glycols), DEA (diethanolamine), and formaldehyde. Certain fragrances and synthetic colors may also be worth avoiding.

Frequent use may also play a role in the risk. In one study, children with atopic dermatitis who frequently used emollients had higher exposure levels to phthalates and parabens, either due to increased use or due to impairment in the skin barrier leading to higher absorption.

Final Words

You can also go to the Environmental Working Group’s website and look at the toxicity and safety of thousands of sunscreen and skin care products, including possibly some of your favorites. This resource can help you to be a more informed consumer without having to do too much research on your own. If you have a skin disorder or some health concern that may make you more susceptible to chemicals and even some of the safer ingredients in personal care products, be sure to discuss the use of these products with your doctor or another healthcare provider.

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