New research has shown that exposure to toxic chemicals that raise havoc with our hormones could increase the risk of breast cancer. This is particularly true for teenagers and pregnant women when they expose themselves to these active ingredients in cosmetic products. Europe has made great progress in regulating cosmetics. The European Union (EU) passed an amendment to the "Cosmetics Directive", the law that regulates cosmetics in all 15 EU countries. It would ban any and all chemicals that were known or highly suspected of causing cancer, birth defects, or genetic mutation from use in cosmetic products. Hundreds of chemicals (over 1100) were prohibited.
Some US cosmetic companies responded by saying "American women are not as concerned about cosmetics as the Europeans." How dare they decide what concerns one has! One large cosmetic firm had a real disconnect and responded to a written request regarding the use of Pthalates (pronounced tha-lates and just a fancy word for fragrance and found in over 79% of all cosmetic products), saying "the US has the safest products that our laws will allow both for the consumer and for the environment". However in South Korea, that same company, in response to similar consumer concerns, acted in a somewhat different manner when the "Women's Committee of the Korean Federation for Environmental Movements" tested 24 products for a toxic ingredient known as Pthalates. One hundred percent of products tested had Pthalates. Ninety-six percent had more than two Pthalates. Fifty percent had more than three and eight percent had four different kinds. Now that same company that responded to the US inquiry saying what they used was safe, now responded in South Korea this way. "Our firm does not use DEHP and DBP (Pthalates), about which concerns have been raised, as components of our products". They subsequently removed all Pthalates from their products.
Some US cosmetic companies responded by saying "American women are not as concerned about cosmetics as the Europeans." How dare they decide what concerns one has! One large cosmetic firm had a real disconnect and responded to a written request regarding the use of Pthalates (pronounced tha-lates and just a fancy word for fragrance and found in over 79% of all cosmetic products), saying "the US has the safest products that our laws will allow both for the consumer and for the environment". However in South Korea, that same company, in response to similar consumer concerns, acted in a somewhat different manner when the "Women's Committee of the Korean Federation for Environmental Movements" tested 24 products for a toxic ingredient known as Pthalates. One hundred percent of products tested had Pthalates. Ninety-six percent had more than two Pthalates. Fifty percent had more than three and eight percent had four different kinds. Now that same company that responded to the US inquiry saying what they used was safe, now responded in South Korea this way. "Our firm does not use DEHP and DBP (Pthalates), about which concerns have been raised, as components of our products". They subsequently removed all Pthalates from their products.
No comments