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Skin Care Safety

Risks of Skin Care Products

Dear Jean,

My husband is a cancer survivor, his was chemically induced. Anything we put on our skin is absorbed in our system. I don't

think we were meant to put a ton of chemicals on our skin.

This is all so hard to know who to believe, even Kevin Trudeau states in his book "Cures they don't want you to know about" talks about this sort of thing.

I just want to be safe, rather than sorry. If it means my health over a wrinkle, I would rather have my health.

It would be nice, if your website would also include what you felt was safer. I am not a chemist, so I rely on information I read etc.

I do know a person who hauls chemicals, and he does state as well, how dangerous or toxic some of the ingredients in our cosmetics, shampoos etc are.

"Concerned about Cosmetics"

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Dear "Concerned",

I can certainly understand your high level of concern. I am sorry to hear of your husband's cancer but glad to hear he can call himself a cancer survivor.

I am not a chemist or physician either and I have to rely on the published research regarding skin care safety. After doing this research, I am of the opinion that a lot of these concerns are unwarranted.

Weeding Out the Misinformation

Yes, it is hard to know who and what to believe. There is a lot of marketing hype trying to push products at you.

There are also disreputable companies that knowingly sell adulterated products – some even containing such dangerous ingredients as mercury! Many adulterated products are coming to the U.S. from the Orient.

That's why I prefer to stick with well-known companies that I feel I can trust.

On the other hand, there is a lot of misinformation floating around – some of it perpetrated by companies using scare tactics to drive people away from competitors' products.

Other misinformation is of the "urban legend" type. People, who have nothing better to do, make up these crazy stories that end up costing companies and consumers millions of dollars.

Finally there is misinformation or incomplete information put out by organizations that have some hidden agenda – usually political or economic.

You might be interested to read the reader reviews on Amazon of Kevin Trudeau's Natural Cures "They" Don't Want You To Know About.

Whom Can You Trust

If you would like a better source for unbiased information on cosmetic ingredient safety and efficacy, I can recommend Paula Begoun, the so-called Cosmetic Cop.

She and her large staff of experts maintain a database of cosmetic ingredients. The entries explain any risks and debunk some of the misinformation floating around.

Ageless Beauty does not have the resources that Paula has built up, so I use her as one of my sources when I research ingredients and skin care ingredient safety.

I personally would not recommend any product on Ageless Beauty which I thought was unsafe in any way.

How Do Ingredients Penetrate the Skin?

It's simply not correct that "anything we put on our skin is absorbed in our system". If it were, any drug could just be rubbed on.

In fact, the biggest challenge for skincare product developers has been finding ways to get the active ingredients to penetrate the skin's outer layers.

Major drug companies have only recently developed transdermal delivery systems and only for a very limited selection of drugs.

Cosmetic companies use penetration enhancers, nano-encapsulation and molecules (like peptides) which are naturally small enough to get active ingredients to where they can do their work. While such ingredients can penetrate the skin's outer layers, study after study has demonstrated that they do not get into the bloodstream.

One study which suggested that specific skincare ingredients might be crossing the skin's barrier and getting into the bloodstream is mentioned in my article on parabens. That study appears to have been very flawed and needs to be followed up on.

Interpreting Skin Care Safety Data

There are other sites that claim to present data on skin care and cosmetic safety. I looked at the information you forwarded from one such site about Avon Deep Crease and see that the primary "hazards" listed relate to: 1. fragrance ingredients; 2. dyes; and 3. benzyl alcohol.

Fragrances

It would be nice if companies would leave out the fragrances (from non-fragrance products) for the growing number of consumers who are developing allergies to these substances. However, sometimes the fragrances are there to mask another odor that more people would find offensive. It's a bit of a Catch-22.

Dyes

I could do without the dyes too, but they are included in such minuscule amounts that their inclusion is not considered dangerous by most experts. Note that the database printout you sent indicates a 95% data gap for the red dye found in Deep Crease.

What that says to me is that some study somewhere indicated a possible risk, but members of the scientific community who reviewed the study did not find it credible enough to justify further study.

Benzyl Alcohol

Regarding benzyl alcohol, Paula Begoun says, "alcohols to be concerned about in skin-care products are ethanol, denatured alcohol, ethyl alcohol, methanol, benzyl alcohol, isopropyl, and SD alcohol, which can be extremely drying and irritating to skin … When these ingredients are at the top of an ingredient list it is problematic for all skin types, when they are at the end of an ingredient list there isn't enough concentration present to be considered a problem for skin."

That's a lot more informative than posting a risk factor of 6 (out of 10) with a 67% data gap and the listing "Violations, Restrictions & Warnings, Neurotoxicity, Allergies/immunotoxicity, Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), Occupational hazards".

Sounds very scary, right? But look at each element on its own.

"Occupational hazards" are relevant to those who may be exposed to massive amounts of a substance during manufacture or transport, but not to those who purchase a microscopic amount in a jar of skin cream.

“Allergies” and [skin] “Irritation” are related. Someone somewhere in the world will be allergic to any single element in the Periodic Table; but for most people the relevant compounds of the elements and amounts used in skincare products are non-irritating.

I believe that, for legal purposes, there is an accepted norm which states that at least 1% of the population will have adverse reactions to any product, whether natural (like shellfish or peanuts) or artificial.

I'm not sure how to interpret "Violations, Restrictions & Warnings". Any warnings must appear on the product package.

Legal restrictions and violations are enforced by the FDA and other consumer protection agencies before an ingredient makes its way into a consumer product and so is not an issue for consumers buying products from reputable companies.

Skincare Lines for Sensitive Skins

There are several skincare lines that cater to people with very sensitive skins or those who are concerned about the inclusion of particular ingredients like dyes and fragrances. Unfortunately, there are only a few that have developed anti-aging and age-reversing lines.

Arbonne is one of the best-known. Arbonne uses no artificial dyes or fragrances (in non-fragrance products), no animal by-products, no mineral oil and does not use animal testing.

The prices are on the high side because of the multi-level marketing sales force which the company employs; but you can get around that by signing up as a distributor. Arbonne allows people to sign up just to get their own products at 35% off retail.

I think they've found that many of these people start supplying friends and relatives and end up becoming distributors and making a business for themselves.

Another such skincare line that I am just beginning to look into is made by Revitol.

Revitol has been a supplier of herbal supplements for 15 years. More recently they have expanded into skincare. Their stated goal is, "to provide retailers and vendors with the finest quality supplements ever made at wholesale prices barely above our manufacturing costs".

It seems they have extended this goal to their anti-aging skincare line because the prices are very reasonable, yet the products contain some of the finest, most advanced ingredients found in higher priced brands.

I will put up a full review of Revitol's anti-aging skincare line as soon as possible.

The Bottom Line on Skin Care Safety

You stated that "If it means my health over a wrinkle, I would rather have my health." In my opinion, skin care and cosmetics products should never be the cause for concern.

So, if the use of skin care products cause you to worry about your health, don't use them. It is not worth it for you and that is a perfectly sensible conclusion for you to reach.

Check out the current offers promotions at SkinStore.com!

This article is for information only. It does not purport to offer medical advice.

 

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