July 2017 www.womanthismonth.com LIFESTYLE | wellbeing 36 The skin is the largest organ of the human body and readily absorbs a significant percentage of everything you slather on it. It protects the internal organs and tissues as the body’s first barrier against the harmful elements of the external world – such as bacteria, moisture, heat, cold and toxic substances. But the mammoth beauty industry that has permanently made its place on our bathroom shelves, dressing tables and in our mentality, may be wreaking havoc with our physiological systems, thanks to some questionable ingredients harboured in attractive tubs and tubes. Just grab the store-bought personal care product closest to you – your shampoo, face wash, moisturiser or even the hand cream in your purse – and read the ingredients that your skin is absorbing every day. According to the Huffington Post, if you see the following, the alarm bells should start ringing: SODIUM LAURYL SULFATE (SLS) is responsible for the suds in your shampoo and soaps, and also hides in mascara and acne topicals. Besides being a skin, lung and eye irritant, SLS combines with other chemicals to form carcinogens that can also cause kidney and respiratory damage. Behnaz Sanjana asks: what gives your lipstick its colour? What makes that shampoo lather? How do our magic lotions and potions ultimately hurt us and our planet? Ugly Beauty PARABENS have oestrogen-mimicking properties that are associated with increased risk of breast cancer. They have been identified in biopsy samples from breast tumours and lurk in conventionally available make-up, body washes, deodorants, shampoos and facial cleansers, besides food and pharmaceutical products. SYNTHETIC COLOURS are derived from petroleum or coal tar sources and are suspected to be a human carcinogen, a skin irritant and are linked to ADHD in children. The EU has banned their use. PHTHALATES are used to increase the flexibility and softness of plastics. They go by the names dibutyl phthalate in nail polish, diethyl phthalate in perfumes and lotions, and dimethyl phthalate in hair spray. They are known to be endocrine disruptors and have been linked to increased risk of breast cancer, early breast development in girls and reproductive birth defects in males and females. FORMALDEHYDE is found in popular hair smoothing and straightening treatments as well as nail polish, conditioners, shampoos,
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