And So It Begins...The Crap In Your Soap

I started on this mission myself yesterday: taking care of your personal hygiene while not killing the planet.
Sounds easy to do, right?
Haha, wrong.

There's a bunch of stuff in makeup, soap, toothpaste, mouthwash, shampoo, conditioner, etc., that would just freak you out if you knew what it was.
Some things to look for?

- mercury
- anything ending in "paraben"
- thimerosol
- lead acetate (this one doesn't seem to show up often in products manufactured in the West)
- formaldehyde (this one almost never shows up as formaldehyde...more on this in a second)
- toluene (especially check nail polish for this)
- petroleum distillates (more on this also)
- ethylacrylate
- coal tar (dandruff shampoo users, beware!)
- anything starting with "phthalic" or ending with "phthalate"
- potassium dichromate

Now, most of us know enough about formaldehyde to know that it's used to preserve corpses. Our bodies even produce very, very small amounts naturally. So what's the big deal?

Did you also know that ingestion of large amounts can kill someone in a matter of days? It is also a known carcinogen, although it "does not build up in plants or animals," meaning it probably doesn't "build up" in you.

It goes by a number of names, some of which you may find on your labels: methanal, methylene oxide, oxymethyline, methylaldehyde, oxomethane, tosylamide, polyoxymethylene urea, formalin, methylal, polyoxymethylene melamine, methoxypolyoxymethylene melamine, tosylamide crosspolymer, DMHF, and DMDM Hydantoin, among many, many more names.

The ways you're saving the environment while saving yourself with formaldehyde? By removing just this one source, you're taking out some formic acid and carbon monoxide, the result when formaldehyde breaks down.

What about petroleum distillates? They are not by any means widespread in cosmetics use, but they are dangerous. For more information about petroleum distillates (I'm a little shifty on this area) check out http://cosmeticsdatabase.org/ingredient.php?ingred06=704787.

To check out what's in your personal care products, visit Skin Deep at http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.org, where you can look up any ingredient and most personal care products. It's really useful! :)

Sources: http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts111.html, http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.org

Much love, SNG :)