Fragrance has long played an important role in personal grooming. Long ago, when daily bathing wasn’t common, dabs of fragrance here and there helped a person smell more pleasing. Nowadays, we still use fragrances — in the form of perfumes, deodorants, lotions, hair products, soaps and cosmetics — to please, attract and entice.Perfume consists mostly of chemicals called volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. We smell fragrance chemicals because they become airborne due to their volatility. While some may enjoy the wafting fragrance of a well-perfumed person passing by, the chemicals may irritate others, especially in tight spaces, like an elevator. Perfume can be a trigger for asthmatics and migraine and sinus headache sufferers, for example. And children, since they are closer to the ground, are more likely to inhale VOCs as they fall through the air.
Some VOCs, such as formaldehyde, ethanol and d-limonene, cause eye, nose and throat irritation, difficulty breathing, allergy symptoms and headaches. Formaldehyde is considered a probable carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
But fragrances aren’t only inhaled — exposure occurs through skin contact, especially since we apply perfume and beauty products to the skin directly. Contact dermatitis, an allergic reaction in the skin, is on the rise. A 1996 Danish study on perfume and eczema, a kind of dermatitis, concluded that the number of eczema patients with perfume allergy doubled between 1979 and 1989. And, according to the American Academy of Dermatology, fragrance is the number one cause of allergic cosmetic reactions.
Perfumes and fragrances can consist of hundreds of chemicals. Testing of Calvin Klein’s Eternity by an independent lab, commissioned by Environmental Health Network (EHN), revealed that the perfume contained over 800 compounds.
Among the chemicals of concern in Eternity perfume was diethyl phthalate (DEP), an irritant and suspected hormone disrupter that is absorbed through the skin and can accumulate in human fat tissue. The lab, Scientific Instrument Services, found that DEP made up just over 10% of the perfume.
What is a Plasticizer Doing in My Perfume?
DEP and other phthalates, which are plasticizers used to soften vinyl plastic, are among the most common fragrance ingredients in perfumes and cosmetics. Phthalates are added to cosmetics and perfumes for multiple reasons. For example, their oily texture helps lubricate other substances in a formula. Phthalates also help lotions penetrate and soften the skin. They’ve become essential to scented products, however, because phthalates help fragrances last longer, according the American Chemistry Council.
Some health advocates and some researchers are becoming wary of phthalates, though. Phthalates are suspected carcinogens and hormone disruptors that are increasingly being linked to reproductive disorders. Some disturbing trends in human male reproductive health mirror the effects of phthalate exposure in animals. And one study has associated phthalates from hair care products and cosmetics with early puberty in Puerto Rican girls.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found that phthalate levels in the American adult population are much higher than previously believed. Dibutyl phthalate, or DBP, was found in the urine of all 286 people tested. Most disturbing about the CDC study was that women of childbearing age had the highest levels of phthalates. Since phthalates are particularly dangerous to fetuses, this is of great concern.
In a follow-up to the original CDC report, researchers found evidence of phthalate exposures in a small group of children were even higher than in the adults already studied. Both CDC and Beauty Secrets, a report by the Environmental Working Group, implicate beauty products as a primary exposure route of phthalates for women of childbearing age.
Phthalates have not been linked in a cause-and-effect relationship to human health problems, but the evidence in animal studies is beginning to show there is cause for concern. Manufacturers claim that their products do not contain high enough levels of any phthalate to cause harm. But phthalates are used widely in soft vinyl toys, plastics, food packaging, plumbing, to solvents and finishes, industrial lubricants, wiring, carpeting and flooring, and many more items. This means that we can be exposed to phthalates multiple times every day.
What Manufacturers Hide from You
It’s not so simple to avoid phthalates by switching cosmetics, as it turns out. That’s because they are rarely listed on product ingredient labels.
In fact, a recent investigation by the Environmental Working Group, Coming Clean and Health Care Without Harm found that phthalates were found in almost 75 percent of common personal care products tested by an independent lab. Some 72 products including cosmetics, nail polishes and hardeners, lotions, deodorants, hair sprays, shampoos, conditioners and more were tested, with the findings reported in Not Too Pretty: Phthalates, Beauty Products & the FDA.
Yet, out of the 72 products tested, not one listed phthalates as an ingredient on the label. Even the nail polishes, which should include phthalates on ingredient labels under federal law, listed no phthalates. The reason? According to the report, "phthalates are claimed as fragrances or as a part of trade secret formulas, and are exempt from federal labeling requirements".
Federal Regulation Makes No "Scents".
Although perfumes and fragrances can consist of hundreds of chemicals, many of which are untested for toxicity, these products are only minimally regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). (See What Your Nose Should Know for more information on regulation.)
In May 1999, after learning the test results for Eternity, EHN petitioned the FDA to declare Eternity "misbranded," due to the hazardous ingredients it contains. If the FDA rules in favor of EHN, a warning statement would have to appear on the Eternity label, stating, "Warning: The safety of this product has not been determined".
"This is kind of a test case to rewrite the regulations. We’re hoping the FDA will realize that all fragrances should be tested for safety", says Barbara Wilkie, president of the board of EHN. The FDA is currently accepting public comment on the petition. To find out how you can write in with your story of scent sensitivity (related to any perfume), visit EHN’s website.
You can cut down on your exposure to chemicals in synthetic fragrances by following the tips in How to Minimize Exposure to Chemical Fragrances.
For a list of phthalate-free personal care products and cosmetics, visit Not Too Pretty. You can also find out if products you currently use contain phthalates on Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep Searchable Product Guide website. Take a stance and write to the company that makes your favorite cosmetics and ask them to formulate it without phthalates. Alternative ingredients do exist and are already in use.
Some VOCs, such as formaldehyde, ethanol and d-limonene, cause eye, nose and throat irritation, difficulty breathing, allergy symptoms and headaches. Formaldehyde is considered a probable carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
But fragrances aren’t only inhaled — exposure occurs through skin contact, especially since we apply perfume and beauty products to the skin directly. Contact dermatitis, an allergic reaction in the skin, is on the rise. A 1996 Danish study on perfume and eczema, a kind of dermatitis, concluded that the number of eczema patients with perfume allergy doubled between 1979 and 1989. And, according to the American Academy of Dermatology, fragrance is the number one cause of allergic cosmetic reactions.
Perfumes and fragrances can consist of hundreds of chemicals. Testing of Calvin Klein’s Eternity by an independent lab, commissioned by Environmental Health Network (EHN), revealed that the perfume contained over 800 compounds.
Among the chemicals of concern in Eternity perfume was diethyl phthalate (DEP), an irritant and suspected hormone disrupter that is absorbed through the skin and can accumulate in human fat tissue. The lab, Scientific Instrument Services, found that DEP made up just over 10% of the perfume.
What is a Plasticizer Doing in My Perfume?
DEP and other phthalates, which are plasticizers used to soften vinyl plastic, are among the most common fragrance ingredients in perfumes and cosmetics. Phthalates are added to cosmetics and perfumes for multiple reasons. For example, their oily texture helps lubricate other substances in a formula. Phthalates also help lotions penetrate and soften the skin. They’ve become essential to scented products, however, because phthalates help fragrances last longer, according the American Chemistry Council.
Some health advocates and some researchers are becoming wary of phthalates, though. Phthalates are suspected carcinogens and hormone disruptors that are increasingly being linked to reproductive disorders. Some disturbing trends in human male reproductive health mirror the effects of phthalate exposure in animals. And one study has associated phthalates from hair care products and cosmetics with early puberty in Puerto Rican girls.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found that phthalate levels in the American adult population are much higher than previously believed. Dibutyl phthalate, or DBP, was found in the urine of all 286 people tested. Most disturbing about the CDC study was that women of childbearing age had the highest levels of phthalates. Since phthalates are particularly dangerous to fetuses, this is of great concern.
In a follow-up to the original CDC report, researchers found evidence of phthalate exposures in a small group of children were even higher than in the adults already studied. Both CDC and Beauty Secrets, a report by the Environmental Working Group, implicate beauty products as a primary exposure route of phthalates for women of childbearing age.
Phthalates have not been linked in a cause-and-effect relationship to human health problems, but the evidence in animal studies is beginning to show there is cause for concern. Manufacturers claim that their products do not contain high enough levels of any phthalate to cause harm. But phthalates are used widely in soft vinyl toys, plastics, food packaging, plumbing, to solvents and finishes, industrial lubricants, wiring, carpeting and flooring, and many more items. This means that we can be exposed to phthalates multiple times every day.
What Manufacturers Hide from You
It’s not so simple to avoid phthalates by switching cosmetics, as it turns out. That’s because they are rarely listed on product ingredient labels.
In fact, a recent investigation by the Environmental Working Group, Coming Clean and Health Care Without Harm found that phthalates were found in almost 75 percent of common personal care products tested by an independent lab. Some 72 products including cosmetics, nail polishes and hardeners, lotions, deodorants, hair sprays, shampoos, conditioners and more were tested, with the findings reported in Not Too Pretty: Phthalates, Beauty Products & the FDA.
Yet, out of the 72 products tested, not one listed phthalates as an ingredient on the label. Even the nail polishes, which should include phthalates on ingredient labels under federal law, listed no phthalates. The reason? According to the report, "phthalates are claimed as fragrances or as a part of trade secret formulas, and are exempt from federal labeling requirements".
Federal Regulation Makes No "Scents".
Although perfumes and fragrances can consist of hundreds of chemicals, many of which are untested for toxicity, these products are only minimally regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). (See What Your Nose Should Know for more information on regulation.)
In May 1999, after learning the test results for Eternity, EHN petitioned the FDA to declare Eternity "misbranded," due to the hazardous ingredients it contains. If the FDA rules in favor of EHN, a warning statement would have to appear on the Eternity label, stating, "Warning: The safety of this product has not been determined".
"This is kind of a test case to rewrite the regulations. We’re hoping the FDA will realize that all fragrances should be tested for safety", says Barbara Wilkie, president of the board of EHN. The FDA is currently accepting public comment on the petition. To find out how you can write in with your story of scent sensitivity (related to any perfume), visit EHN’s website.
You can cut down on your exposure to chemicals in synthetic fragrances by following the tips in How to Minimize Exposure to Chemical Fragrances.
For a list of phthalate-free personal care products and cosmetics, visit Not Too Pretty. You can also find out if products you currently use contain phthalates on Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep Searchable Product Guide website. Take a stance and write to the company that makes your favorite cosmetics and ask them to formulate it without phthalates. Alternative ingredients do exist and are already in use.
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