Synthetic Cosmetic Ingredients to Avoid

Purpose:
Strips grease from the hair by corrosion and makes shampoo spread out and penetrate. It enters the skin very easily and remains in tissues (especially brain, heart and liver tissues) for a relatively long time.

Use:
Found in 90 per cent of all commercial shampoos and in many other health and beauty items, especially skin creams and toothpastes. SLS has been prohibited in bubble baths because it has an adverse affect on skin protection and causes rashes and infection. It is also found in industrial cleaners. Laboratory clinical trials use SLS as an irritant to test the effectiveness of healing agents.

Health effects:
Transported through the bloodstream, SLS/SLES will build up in the heart, liver, lungs, brain and eyes. It will be retained in tissues for a long time and could cause the following effects:

• Cancer - SLS/SLES reacts with other chemicals to form cancer-causing nitrosamines and dioxane;
• Endocrine (hormone) disruption - SLS/SLES can mimic the action of hormones and disrupt the associated mechanisms that control our day-to-day bodily functions; it is known to mimic oestrogen action and interfere with the reproductive system and sexual development;
• Eye damage - SLS is especially readily absorbed into the cells of the eyes (through absorption through the roots of hair, not direct eye contact); it damages their function and development - particularly in children;
• Hair loss - SLS is a harsh enough corrosive agent to attack the hair follicle;
• Increased skin sensitivity - SLS damages the skin's ability to act as a barrier against harmful substances, enhancing allergic responses;
• Dry skin - protective lipids are stripped from the skin's surface by SLS's corrosiveness, and skin becomes less able to retain moisture.

Purpose:
Parabens are petrochemicals used in almost all cosmetics because of their wide-ranging ability to kill bacteria and thus preserve the product.

Health effects:

• Endocrine disruption: parabens can mimic oestrogen action and interfere with sexual development and reproduction.
• Allergic reactions are common.

Purpose:
Anti-bacterial.

Health effects:

• A formaldehyde releaser (see DMDM Hydantoin, below).
• An eye and skin irritant.

Purpose:
To give the shampoos colouring like the herbs they are said to derive from.

Use and health effects:
These are just four of hundreds of synthetic and petrochemical colourants whole certification is unknown and controversial. Most colours used in cosmetics await testing and have not had their safety proved or even studied.

Purpose:
Anti-bacterial.

Health effects:

• Found to cause lung cancer and damage DNA in laboratory tests.
• Contains 17.7 per cent formaldehyde, which is an irritant and carcinogen and causes a toxic reaction in 20 per cent of people exposed to it.

Purpose:
To make shampoo lather in a foam that would otherwise be impossible.

Health effects:
Causes cancer in laboratory animals. Cocamide MEA contains momoethanolamine, which reacts with SLS/SLES to produce the carcinogen nitrosamine.

Purpose:
To create the "natural, botanical" smell that is an important part of the marketed appeal of Herbal Essences but no reflection of its actual ingredients.

Use:
There are an estimated 5,000 fragrance ingredients on the market, 95 per cent of which are created in the laboratory - many from petroleum products. The actual ingredients are not listed to protect secrecy, as fragrances cannot be patented.

Health effects:

• Petroleum-based ingredients can cause cancer, birth defects, central nervous system disorders and allergic reactions.
• Perfumes are the leading cause of allergic reactions from cosmetics use.

Purpose:
To hold moisture in the shampoo and give it a "silky feel".

Use:
Propylene glycol is a petrochemical that is used as a major ingredient in brake fluid and anti-freeze as well as health and beauty products such as baby lotion and mascara.

Health effects:
Although the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has classified propylene glycol as "generally recognised as safe" it has been acknowledged as a neurotoxin and shown to cause dermatitis, liver abnormalities and kidney damage in animal studies. It may also inhibit cell growth and be irritating to the skin.

Purpose:
Facilitates cleaning by binding dirt and traces of heavy metals.

Use:
Included in detergents, agricultural chemical sprays and pharmaceutical products.

Health effects:

• EDTA does not readily biodegrade, so one introduced into the environment it dissolves toxic heavy metals and enables them to enter the food chain. Heavy metals (about 20 exist) are toxic to human health and adversely affect behavioural, physiological and cognitive systems.
• An eye and skin irritant.

Purpose:
To increase shampoo foaming and thickness.

Use:
Included in detergents, agricultural chemical sprays and pharmaceutical products.

Health effects:
Dermatitis, dryness and irritation of the scalp.

Purpose:
To increase viscosity and make products that would otherwise have a watery consistency look thick and "rich" instead.