You walk down an aisle in the huge supermarket that stocks just
about everything imaginable. Your cart already contains food, about
which you feel virtuous because you conscientiously read labels to avoid
unhealthy additives.
Spying a shampoo brand you saw in a TV
ad, you drop the plastic bottle into your cart. The same brand of hair
conditioner gets snapped up next. Further along, toothpastes are
displayed. A familiar brand that tastes like peppermint goes into the
cart. Since you're in the personal products section, you add deodorant,
antibacterial hand soap, hand sanitizer, mouthwash, shaving gel,
and—from the cleaning supplies section—dish washing detergent. A package
of plastic containers will let you nuke your lunches at work.
Next…trash bags in the large economy size—what a great buy, so in they
go!
What's this? Some of the cosmetics and skin care
products are on sale. Great! Here's a moisturizer at a dollar off and
skin cleanser with a fifty-cent discount, not to mention makeup base on
special for $2 less than usual, and lipstick in a gorgeous shade at a $3
savings. You saved enough money to buy a bottle of sunscreen for skin
protection.
Next is the OTC medication section, where you
purchase the store brand of topical ointment for that bit of rash on
your arm. What's left? Oh, yes…snag your favorite beverage and you're
ready for the checkout line.
What a great shopping trip!
Or was it?
You've gotten pretty good about reading food labels, which helps you
stay away from a lot of nasty additives that can cause everything from
weight gain to insulin resistance to heart disease. But there was no
label-reading in the non-food sections, was there? Did you think all
those products are pure because some of them have the words “natural"
and “gentle" on the packaging? That's where you may have made a huge
mistake.
The personal product section of any store is a
hotbed of toxic ingredients. You thought you were buying toothpaste,
mouthwash, deodorant, and other things you've bought countless times
before, but what you were really buying was…triclosan. This is a
chemical found in numerous consumer products like the ones you bought
today, as well as toys, kitchen utensils, bedding and the insoles of
shoes, to name a few.
The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) reports that this chemical shows up in the urine of
seventy-five percent of the U.S population. Their research studies show
that triclosan is absorbed through the skin, even at low levels, where
it goes into the bloodstream to wreak havoc. Even these low levels can
cause thyroid dysfunction. When triclosan gets into the blood of a
pregnant woman, it can cause developmental problems in the fetus.
Triclosan also interferes with immune system function and opens the door
to allergies.
Even more disquieting, triclosan is
implicated in the increase of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, or
Superbugs. The chemical is not completely removed by waste water
treatment plants, so it's been found in waterways, where it kills some
forms of aquatic life.
Triclosan is not the only baddie
found in the items tossed so casually into your grocery cart. Parabens
are cheap synthetic preservatives found in so many products that you
will probably find an ingredient ending in “–parabens" (one of six
commonly-used forms) on the label of every non-food item you bought.
Parabens were found in the majority of urine samples in a study by the
CDC, so it's obvious the chemical in its various forms is easily
absorbed by the body. Parabens are linked to disruption of the body's
hormone systems and have been detected in breast cancer tumors, proving
they not only are absorbed into the body, but can persist in their
original form (non-degraded) and accumulate in tumor tissue in the
breasts.
Still think you scooped up a bunch of bargains on
your shopping trip today? If you begin reading the labels of non-food
items as conscientously as you study those found on food packaging, you
may avoid these dangerous chemicals that are as bad as, if not worse,
than the additives you routinely shun in processed foods
Are there alternatives to the many triclosan-and-parabens-laden products
stocked on shelves and available from online vendors? Yes, but they
aren't available on a grand scale, and they will undoubtedly cost more
because they aren't produced using cheap toxic chemicals. Still, it is
possible to find safer alternatives in personal products through an
Internet search. One excellent source is the Skin Deep cosmetic and
skincare database maintained by the Environmental Working Group.
It's also best to stay away from any product—including cutting boards,
shower curtains and toys—designated “antibacterial," even if triclosan
isn't listed as an ingredient.
Sadly, tricking consumers is now considered a fair marketing practice.
Suggested Resources
https://www.organicconsumers.org/old_articles/body...
www.ewg.org/skindeep
