Have you ever taken the time to look at the products in your home and the ingredients they contain? Let’s talk about the chemicals found in most hair care products.
Here are a list of the 15 most dangerous chemicals commonly found, and what they do to your body.
You are the gatekeeper of your home. It is up to you to decide what you will allow to come into it.
- Sulfates: These are surface acting agents used to clean the dirt and excess sebum on the scalp. They are also added in go make the soap lather. Look for words like SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate), SLES (sodium laureth sulfate), and ammonium lauryl sulfate. They can cause frizzy hair. They can be hormone disrupters and can hurt the environment.
- Parabens: This is a type of preservative. It prevents bacteria from growing in your shampoo. Look for Parabens (Butyl, propyl, and ethyl). They mimic the hormone estrogen and have been linked to breast cancer.
- Polyethylene Glycol: This is a derivative of petroleum from the oil and gas industry. It is used as a thickening agent. Experts believe it can damage the scalp long term. You will find them listed as 100, 120, 14M, 30, 32, 75, and so on.
- Phthalates: These are used in hair care products to increase the spread ability of the product. They make the perfume and synthetic fragrances stick to your scalp and hair. They are also an endocrine disruptor (meaning they can cause early puberty in girls and reduce sperm count in men).
- Formaldehyde: This is used as a preservative. You will see it on the bottle as bronopol, imidazolidinyl urea, DMDM hydantoin, quaternium-15, and diazolidinyl urea.
- Triclosan: This is an antibacterial and antifungal agent added to reduce or prevent bacterial contamination. It is a known hormone disrupter that can cause you to gain weight and can lead to infertility.
- Dimethicone: This is a type of silicone added to hair care products. It acts like a protective layer to the hair shaft, but it builds up residue on your scalp. It prevents moisture from entering the hair and clogs the pores.
- Retinyl palmitate: This is used in a variety of products from eye drops to shampoo, to sunscreens. It is plugged for its anti-aging properties. This can cause skin itching, redness, scaling and peeling. It may also cause cancer.
- Alcohol: Alcohols used in hair care can make your hair extremely dry. Look for propanol and isopropanol alcohol on the side of the bottle. Alcohol is used as a thickener in shampoos and can cause brittleness in hair.
- Fragrances: Most brands are smart enough to not reveal ingredients and put them all in one category: fragrance or parfum. These are highly synthetic and made with a variety of toxic chemicals. How else can you make “apple pie” shampoo, but in a lab?! They do not add natural flowers and fruits. Synthetic fragrance is linked to problems such as cancer, reproductive issues, or asthma. It can also lead to hair loss.
- Colors: We love to see pretty looking colors in our shampoo; but these ingredients are derived form coal tar or petroleum. You can identify synthetic colors on the labels by the terms FD&C, or D&C.
- Toluene: This is a petrochemical solvent used in most hair dyes. It is found naturally in crude oil. This chemical is also used in gasoline and paint thinner. It can hamper your immune system and cause birth defects. It can cause headaches and dizziness short term; but it can also leave permanent effects on your central nervous system. It is labeled on bottles as benzene, phenyl methane, toluol, and methylbenzene.
- Resorcinol: This is a common crystalline ingredient in hair dyes and bleaching agents. It can cause functional disabilities in the immune system and thyroid disruption.
- Selenium Sulfide: This is a proven carcinogen, which means there is no safe exposure to this chemical. Lab tests on mice showed development of tumors. It could also cause damage to the liver and kidneys. This is commonly found in anti-dandruff shampoos as an anti-infective medication.
- Quaternium-15 (formaldehyde releaser): This is a surfactant and preservative used in shampoos and conditioners. It is an ammonium salt. It is harmful as a skin toxicant and allergen. It has caused reproductive toxicity in animals during testing. Because it is a formaldehyde releaser, and formaldehyde is carcinogenic, there is a potential link to cancer.
Whew! That is a crazy lot of toxic chemicals! Take a look at your favorite shampoo and see how it stacks up, does it contain any of these? The thing about shampoo is that it is rubbed on your scalp and is absorbed into the blood stream in under a minute, going straight to the brain. You can find alternatives to these toxin laden products. In my next blog post I will share with you what we have switched to.
Blessings,
Anna
