In honor of Earth Day (April 22nd, 2016), I needed to remind our visitors of those substances in personal care products that are recognized to harm the environment. Turns out that chemicals in standard sunscreens, shampoos, and body washes can hang in our waterways and soil for a long period around, and many of them harm seafood and wildlife. I understand that you, like me, want to do all you can to preserve our world for generations to come. Check your ingredient list for these things, and if they’re seen by you, shop for more eco-friendly choice.
We have a Handy set of places to look for safer makeup products. A lot of today’s exfoliating face and body washes use polyethylene-a plastic material substance-to create scrubbing beads. Unfortunately, unlike organic and natural products that use sea salts and other 100 % natural ingredients to exfoliate, these products provide you with the illusion of natural exfoliation while polluting our rivers and lakes. According to a scientific survey, the tiny bits of plastic found in cosmetic products are gathering in Lake Erie, Lake Superior, and more, and are believed one of the newest & most concerning environmental dangers. Find them not only in your body and face washes You’ll, but in toothpaste also, sunscreen, lip gloss, eyeliner, shampoo, deodorant, and soaps.
They aren’t only used for exfoliating the skin. They can make products feel creamy on your skin also, and help fill in wrinkles. Estimates are that one face cleaner tube contains 350,000 beads. The problem with these beads is that not only are they polluting our waterways, also, they are being consumed by fish and other wildlife-which harms the pets’ digestive tracts.
Worse, when animals eat them, that means we may eventually finish up eating them, too. These are popular preservatives often used in moisturizers and makeup. Not only is it suspected hormone disruptors, they are both linked to potential environmental harm. BHA is listed as a chemical of potential concern by the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic, because of its propensity to bioaccumulate and because it’s harmful to aquatic organisms. Studies have found that it causes genetic mutations in amphibians. BHT also offers a moderate to high potential for bioaccumulation in aquatic types.
One of the plasticizing chemicals called “phthalates,” DBP is found in nail polishes to prevent them from becoming brittle often. In addition to being a potential hormone disruptor, it’s very toxic to aquatic life. It accumulates in the environment and has been associated with problems in fish, including changed behavior, genetics, growth, and development. Used in most antibacterial products like hand cleansers and sanitizers, deodorants, and laundry detergent, triclosan is linked to a rise in antibiotic resistant organisms, that have increased the risk that infections can be deadly. Furthermore, when triclosan is washed down the sink, it can transform the biochemistry of amphibians, seafood, and aquatic vegetation.
The European Union classifies this component as having the potential to cause long-term adverse effects in the aquatic environment. It doesn’t degrade quickly, will accumulate in the surroundings, and reacts with other chemicals in waterways to form dioxins, that are toxic. You may already know that fragrances are one of the most “sensitizing” elements in cosmetics, which means they frequently lead to reactions and irritation.
- Liquid Lipsticks
- 2 Tbsp. coconut essential oil
- Dr. Bronner’s Body Wash
- Advising on makeup choices and application
- Home Fix for Dark Spots using Vitamin E Oil
- Massage your face daily to Tighten Loose Sagging Skin on Face
- Encourage use of lanolin-based creams for dark clients with dry skin
They are made of a sticktail of chemicals and manufacturers aren’t required to reveal them under “trade secret” laws and regulations. Artificial fragrances are added to perfumes commonly, shampoos, soaps, cleansers, creams, moisturizers, sunscreens, and more. According to a 2005 study, these elements are proving harmful to the sea environment. Wastewater treatment plant life doesn’t break them down, which means they slip into the oceans and streams via sewage release.
Fragrance chemicals persist in the surroundings, and collect in the cells of fish and other invertebrates. Studies have reported that chemical substance sunscreens like oxybenzone are harmful to coral and are contributing to the decrease of reefs throughout the world. Used in anti-aging products, creams, lotions, makeup, hair maintenance systems, and more, siloxanes (like cyclomethicone and cyclotetrasiloxane) are seeping into our environment. In 2005, Norwegian Institute for Air Research and the Swedish Environmental Research Institute reported that high degrees of siloxanes were found in samples extracted from several locations in the Nordic countries. Detectable levels were found within fish also, raising security alarm about the bioaccumulation of these chemicals.
Further studies discovered that siloxanes accumulated in aquatic life in Nordic lakes and in Lake Erie in Canada and Lake Pepin in the U.S., higher up in the food string even, raising risks of individuals consuming them. Studies also have shown that siloxanes that people apply to our bodies can volatilize-which means they can become released into the air as well as contaminate our waterways.
In 2015, the American Chemical Society reported that scientists got to find traces of the compounds in soil, vegetation, phytoplankton, and krill all the way down in Antarctica. Do you try to limit your impact on the surroundings by purchasing eco-friendly personal care products? Please, share any tips you might have. A. Downs, et al., “Toxicopathological Ramifications of the Sunscreen UV Filter, Oxybenzone (Benzophenone-3), on Coral Planulae and Cultured Primary Cells and its own Environmental Contamination in Hawaii and the U.S.