The low-down on Parabens???

[kcherub]

Hey! Can any of you give me some real info on parabens? I know they are in almost every beauty product, but how much should I really avoid them? I tried to look up some info on the web, but it is really confusing.

I am currently taking Tamoxifen, so I don't want to use anything that might negate it, or make it obsolete in any way!

Can someone just break it down into plain, ER+ English? :)

Much love,

[dlaxague]

Hi Krista,

I think that the reason you cannot find the answers that you seek is that there aren't any firm answers out there. Parabens and pthalates are two ingredients (of many) under suspicion as causing cancer or contributing to its growth but the evidence is not conclusive yet.

My thoughts? Can't hurt to avoid them, and it's easier to do so than ever before, at least for the parabens. You'll find lots of products now labeled paraben-free right on the front label, as opposed to having to get out the magifying glass and inspect the fine print.

I think that one reason that this doesn't get much attention is that most people's perception is that things that we put ON our skin don't have the same potential to affect us as things we put INTO our body. But the skin is an organ and one of its functions is absorption. Think about how many meds are delivered with patches. The skin absorbs what is put on it, and does so quite efficiently.

I'm not sure how much difference it would make now (if parabens ARE a problem) for us adults, but if I had young children, I'd be especially cautious for them. And again, I figure it's easy enough to err on the safe side. Paraben free products aren't that hard to find and are competitively priced (even Costco has a paraben-free shampoo/conditioner brand - giovanni). And btw, being labeled "organic" or "natural" does not mean that the product is paraben-free. Read the labels to be sure.

Breast Cancer Action has ben talking about parabens and pthalates for a long time. If you read their discussion of the issue, you can also see what they've used as references on which to base their arguments. Although I do not agree with everything BCA says, nor all the ways in which they say it, I do think that they are on solid scientific ground in what they say on this topic.

Most of their information seems to be within their "think before you pink" section: http://www.thinkbeforeyoupink.org/
Look around there - it's not just one page.

I hope this doesn't just give you more to read without clarifying. As I said in the beginning, there aren't any perfectly solid answers. Yet.

Debbie Laxague

[Jackie07]

When my mother was diagnosed with non-Hodgekins lymphoma in 1998, I did some research and found out that 'black' hair dye is linked to cancer. Both my mother and I started having gray hairs in our teens. I started dying my hair in 1988 out of the urge of my Mother-in-law who believed that I would look better professionally.
I quit dying my hair after my brain tumor surgery and nobody has fussed about it ever since. That was 18 years ago. I wear a wig to work these days and my husband doesn't really think I needed it. (He's wrong, because I will soon be unemployed again.)

Here's an article I found in PubMed concerning
'Parabens' and 'Phthalates': [keep in mind that cancer patients like me does not really belong to the average, general population. I was born premature, has had many health problems since I was little. Thus, the 'safe' label might not apply to me.

Also, the person who wrote this paper could well be biased if he is working for the cosmetic industry. "the American Council on Science and Health" sounds grand, but can well be a council made up of the cosmetic companies.

Int J Toxicol. <javascript:AL_get(this, 'jour', 'Int J Toxicol.');> 2006 Jul-Aug;25(4):269-77
A perspective on the safety of cosmetic products: a position paper of the American Council on Science and Health.
Ross G </sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=Search&Term=%22Ross%20G%22%5BAuthor%5D&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsP anel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlus>.
The American Council on Science and Health, New York, New York, USA. rossg@acsh.org
Over the years, some activist groups have targeted cosmetics as possible human health threats, claiming that cosmetic ingredients are not adequately tested for safety and may pose risks to consumers. The groups allege that industry practices related to safety testing are flawed, that there is little government oversight, and that cosmetics contain cancer-causing chemicals and other toxicants. A critical review of the scientific data related to these claims indicates the following: (1) Industry has the primary responsibility to ensure that all ingredients, preservatives, and coformulants used in products are safe for their intended uses. (2) The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has regulatory oversight of the cosmetic industry. Its authority includes the banning or restriction of ingredients for safety reasons. (3) The Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR), an independent, scientific review board, critically evaluates chemical ingredients used in cosmetics and publishes the results of its findings in the peer-reviewed literature. (4) Health-related allegations about cosmetic ingredients are generally based on the results of high-dose laboratory testing in animals and have little relevance for humans. As true now as when Paracelsus said it in the 16th century, "It is the dose that makes the poison." (5) The health-related allegations involving specific chemicals (e.g., phthalates, parabens, and 1,3-butadiene) fail to consider important scientific studies and recent regulatory conclusions about these chemicals, which have found that they are not hazardous. (6) Animal and human physiology differ in crucial ways, further invalidating simplistic attempts to extrapolate rodent testing to human health risks. The cosmetic industry should be encouraged to publish more of its toxicity studies and safety evaluations, which would aid in dispelling the uncertainty that some consumers have about cosmetic safety.
PMID: 16815815 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[Jackie07]

J Am Acad Dermatol. <javascript:AL_get(this, 'jour', 'J Am Acad Dermatol.');> 2005 Jan;52(1):125-32

Erratum in:
J Am Acad Dermatol. 2005 Jul;53(1):137.
Safety of ingredients used in cosmetics.
Bergfeld WF </sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=Search&Term=%22Bergfeld%20WF%22%5BAuthor%5D&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsP anel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlus>, Belsito DV </sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=Search&Term=%22Belsito%20DV%22%5BAuthor%5D&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsP anel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlus>, Marks JG Jr </sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=Search&Term=%22Marks%20JG%20Jr%22%5BAuthor%5D&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsP anel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlus>, Andersen FA </sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=Search&Term=%22Andersen%20FA%22%5BAuthor%5D&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsP anel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlus>.
Dermatology Department, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, OH, USA.
The Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) program was established in 1976 by the Cosmetics, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association, with the support of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Consumer Federation of America (CFA). CIR performs independent, expert reviews to determine if ingredients used in cosmetics are safe. CIR staff prepares summaries of available data and the CIR Expert Panel reviews the data in open, public meetings. If more data are needed, requests are made. Unpublished studies may be provided, but become public and available for review once summarized in CIR safety assessments. Tentative conclusions are supported with a rationale and public comment is sought. Taking any input into consideration, a final safety assessment monograph is issued. These monographs are submitted for publication in the peer-reviewed International Journal of Toxicology . To date, 1194 individual cosmetic ingredients have been addressed. Of these, 683 were found to be safe in cosmetics in the present practices of use and concentration. With qualifications, another 388 have been found safe for use in cosmetics; specific qualifications for each are given. Nine ingredients have been deemed unsafe for use in cosmetics and the safety issue has been described. The available data were found insufficient to support the safety of 114 ingredients; the needed data are listed. Hair dyes represent an important product category reviewed by CIR. In considering hair dyes, the CIR Expert Panel reviews experimental and clinical data specific to the particular chemical structure of each hair dye and reviews epidemiologic studies that address hair dye use that are less specific. Recently the CIR Expert Panel concluded that the available epidemiologic studies are insufficient to conclude there is a causal relationship between hair dye use and cancer and other end points. It is inevitable that new information will become available concerning ingredients for which safety assessments were completed in the early days of the program. To consider new data, the CIR Expert Panel has instituted a re-review program. Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), formaldehyde, and parabens are discussed as examples. Safety assessments currently underway are listed, along with high-priority ingredients from which new work will be chosen. Although supported by the cosmetics industry, the CIR program has remained independent in its decision making, based on its open, public process; the integrity of the expert panel members; the participation of the FDA and the CFA; and the cooperation of the cosmetics industry.
PMID: 15627090 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]