Saturday, November 29, 2008

Skin Care: Chemical based or Organic Products?

By Jemma Rivera

Exposing your skin to chemicals is not only hazardous but unnecessary. Many people in the construction business found that their livers were damaged when they handled lumber that had been treated. Of course, the wood was not consumed, the workers only touched it. This prolonged and repeated action of touching the lumber that was coated with arsenic played havoc with their bodies. Your body's largest organ is your skin. Knowing this we have to ask ourselves this question - "Are we really safe when we repeatedly use chemical based skin care products?"

Did you know that eye makeup has mercury added to it at the rate of up to 65 parts per million? Mercury in canned fish is heavily scrutinised, but no one seems at all concerned about the threat posed by mercury in eye make-up. This deadly metal is easily absorbed through the skin and can accumulate in one's body.

You should avoid bronopol if possible. This is an ingredient found in mascara. When this ingredient was tested on lab animals, it caused blindness and eventually resulted in death. It will take a very high concentration of bronopol to be affected by side effects such as these, but what about the woman who uses the same brand of mascara for decades?

Preservatives in many different lotions and hair care products release formaldehyde. Ingredients like imidazolidinyl urea and DMDM hydantoin can irritate the respiratory system, cause skin reactions, asthma, allergies and sometimes trigger heart palpitations.

Exposure to formaldehyde has varying effects such as chest pains, headaches, dizziness, immune dysfunction and even cancer. Be wary of trade names that include aminoform, formid, and uritone. There are others to be concerned about, but this is a beginning.

Other chemicals absorbed by the skin include coal tar derivatives. Ingredients such as 1-Naphthol and 2-Naphthol are named in this group. If these ingredients are ingested orally, only 2 teaspoonfuls are fatal.

Ingredients such as Vitamin E and C are usually added to make up in order to block the toxic effects of nitrosamines which can come in the forms of, monethanolamine (MEA), lauryl sarcosine, laureth sulphate and cocoyl sarcosine. Before purchasing makeup that promotes the addition of these vitamins, please read the rest of the ingredients. The job that these vitamins have may well not be in providing something extra but in blocking the effects of carcinogenic substances that the products contain.

Makeup often contains ingredients that act as emulsifiers, moisture retainers and solvents. These ingredients also are part of the products such as antifreeze and brake fluid! One of these ingredients is propylene glycol. Due to the toxicity of this substance, the EPA states that workers must wear skin protection when working with this product. Safety Data Sheets also give the warning that if propylene glycol is absorbed through the skin, then one may suffer from abnormalities in the liver, brain and kidneys. Despite all of its ill effects, it still remains an ingredient in makeup and some stick deodorants.

Cosmetics, skin care products and lotions are applied on a daily basis. Before purchasing a product, wisely read the ingredients on the label. The parts per million of certain toxic ingredients may be very small, but if you use a product over many years, there will be a slow and steady build-up in your body. Mysterious illnesses can often be traced back to something that a patient thought had no consequences. One good option is to go organic. This would be the kindest thing you could ever do not only for your skin, which is the largest organ of your body, but for all your other body organs too. Be sure that you begin to monitor what you put on your skin before you apply it. - 15343

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