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What is SLS exactly? |
SODIUM LAURYL
SUPHATE (SLS) and SODIUM LAURETH SULPHATE (SLES)
Found in shampoos and other
personal care products, SLS is used commercially to clean
floors, as an engine degreaser and a car wash.
Potentially, SLS is perhaps the most harmful ingredient in
personal-care products. SLS is used in testing-labs as the
standard skin irritant to compare the healing properties of
other ingredients. Industrial uses of SLS include: garage floor
cleaners, engine degreasers and car wash soaps. Studies show its
danger potential to be great, when used in personal-care
products. Research has shown that SLS and SLES may cause
potentially carcinogenic nitrates and dioxins to form in the
bottles of shampoos and cleansers by reacting with commonly used
ingredients found in many products. Large amounts of nitrates
may enter the blood system from just one shampooing.
SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE (SLES)
Chemical name: Sodium Lauryl "ether" Sulfate An ether chain is
added to SLS. Called a premium agent in cleansers and shampoos.
In reality it is very inexpensive but thickens when salt is
added in the formula and produces high levels of foam to give
the concentrated illusion it is thick, rich and expensive. Used
as a wetting agent in the textile industry. Irritating to scalp
and may cause hair loss.
SODIUM LAURYL SULFATE (SLS)
No one making any claims about this one – and for good reason.
On examination, an anionic detergent, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate,
which is commonly found in soaps and shampoos, showed
penetration into the eyes, as well as systemic tissues (brain,
heart, liver, etc.). SLS also showed long-term retention in
tissues. In soaps and shampoos, there is an immediate concern
relating to the penetration of these chemicals into the eyes and
other tissues. This is especially important in infants, where
considerable growth is occurring, because a much greater uptake
occurs by tissues of younger eyes and SLS changes the amounts of
some proteins in cells from eye tissues. Tissues of young eyes
may be more susceptible to alternation by SLS (Green). Forms
nitrates, a possible carcinogen when used in shampoos and
cleansers containing nitrogen-based ingredients. These nitrates
can enter the blood stream in large numbers from shampooing,
bubble baths, bath and shower gels and facial cleansers. These
synthetic substances are used in shampoos for their detergent
and foam-building abilities. They can cause eye irritations,
skin rashes, hair loss, scalp scurf similar to dandruff and
allergic reactions. They are frequently disguised in
pseudo-natural cosmetics with the parenthetic explanation "comes
from coconut." Let's save the coconut from defamation of
character and NOT use products with sodium lauryl sulfate, etc.!
Dr. David H. Fine, the chemist who uncovered NDELA contamination
in cosmetics, estimates that a person would be applying 50 to
100 micrograms of nitrosamine to the skin each time he or she
used a nitrosamine-contaminated cosmetic. By comparison, a
person consuming sodium nitrite-preserved bacon is exposed to
less than 1 microgram of nitrosamine.
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| Parabens, a
necessary evil? |
Parabens are a
group of closely related chemicals which are 'esters' of
p-hydroxybenzoic acid. They are used widely as preservatives for
cosmetics, foods and drugs. They work as preservatives by
inhibiting the growth of organisms. As different esters inhibit
different organisms, they are often used as a combination of
different esters.
Paraben mix sensitivity produces classic
allergic contact dermatitis reactions. Sometimes it may be seen
as a flare or spread of an existing treated rash. Paraben
allergic hypersensitivity is not uncommon although rare in
relation to its widespread use. It appears that repeated
applications of relatively low concentrations of Parabens in
medications and cosmetics may lead to sensitivity. Allergic
reactions to orally ingested paraben-containing foods have yet
to be reported.
If you or your child
show an allergic reaction to paraben the list below will help
you identify Parabens in products
Alternative names/components of
Parabens
- Methylparaben
- Ethylparaben
- Propylparaben
- Butylparaben
- Benzyl-parahydroxybenzoic
acid (p-hydroxybenzoic acid)
- Methyl-parahydroxybenzoic
acid (p-hydroxybenzoic acid)
- Ethyl-parahydroxybenzoic acid
(p-hydroxybenzoic acid)
- Propyl-parahydroxybenzoic
acid (p-hydroxybenzoic acid)
- Butyl-parahydroxybenzoic acid
(p-hydroxybenzoic acid)
- Parahydroxybenzoic acid
(p-hydroxybenzoic acid)
- Parahydroxybenzoate
(p-hydroxybenzoate)
The most commonly used 'Parabens' are methylparaben,
ethylparaben, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, propylparaben and
butylparaben.
Parabens sensitivity is usually caused by medicaments used to
treat eczema. Although Parabens are found in many cosmetics,
they are used in low concentration.
Parabens are found in;
Pharmaceutical preparations, including:
Alphosyl HC cream,
Aureocort ointment,
Barquinol HC cream,
Betnovate lotion,
Betnovate N lotion,
Carbo-cort cream,
Cobadex cream,
Dome-cort cream,
Efcortelan lotion,
Epifoam,
Eurax-Hydrocortisone cream,
Fucidin H gel,
Genticin HC ointment and cream,
Haelen-C cream,
Ledercort cream and ointment,
Locoid cream, Locoid Lipocream, Mildison Lipocream,Neo-medrone cream, Nerisone cream, Synalar gel and
lotion, Synalar C cream, Synalar N cream
and lotion, Siladerm cream, Synalar forte
cream, Tarcortin
cream, Temtex cream, TerraCortril
Nystatin cream, Timodine cream, Tridesilon cream, Ultradil cream, Ultralanum
plain cream.
Barrier creams.
Cosmetics. Many cosmetics contain Parabens.
Many drugs given by injection.
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Phthalates in Baby Milk, see
Toys |
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In a study of
formula baby milk published in 1996 all 15 brands of baby milk
formula tested by the UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and
Food contained phthalates. The highest total phthalate
concentration found was 10.2 mg/kg, and the highest
concentration of BBP found was 0.25 mg/kg. Using the
manufactures' feeding guides it was estimated that a new born
infant would receive , on average, 0.13 mg/kg body weight/day of
total phthalate, falling to 0.10 mg/kg/day at 6 months (MAFF,
1996b).
However, a more recent MAFF survey, published in December 1998,
found levels ten times lower. It is not clear what the reason
for this is - it could include improved production techniques,
or possibly changes in analytical technique
What do the phthalates do?
This group of chemicals are very widely used as plasticisers in
plastics such as PVC, but some of them are also testicular
toxins and can disrupt hormones. Phthalates are fat soluble, so
tend to concentrate in materials such as butter, margarine and
cheese. In addition, they are likely to accumulate in body fat.
Occupational exposures
Several phthalates, particularly DEHP, are testicular toxicants.
Part of this toxicity is believed to involve depletion of
testicular Zinc, and may include the death and disintegration of
the testicular germ cells (Amdur et al., 1991; Peters et al.,
1997).
Occupational exposure to high levels of phthalates has been
reported to lead to miscarriages and other complications of
pregnancy (IEH, 1995)
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What's in a mattress |
The dangers
of Petroleum Chemical materials
Over the past 50 years there has
been a steady rise in the incidence of children developing
cancer and asthma. Logic and common sense would suggest that
such a trend would be the result of changes in environmental
factors that are now affecting our children that were not
present previously. During this same 50 year period, consumer
product manufacturers have found production costs can be
substantially cut if natural materials are replaced with
petroleum based alternatives made from synthetic chemicals.
Although, this change has
occurred in nearly every aspect of human life from home
construction to food production to cosmetic ingredients, we need
to first research factors that are in closest proximity to the
child if investigating child related diseases. One such product
would be the bedding materials used by a child. For example,
some crib mattresses are constructed of polyurethane foam
enclosed in vinyl covers. These plastic products are made by
combining highly toxic chemicals together to form the final
material. During the sleep process, the child's every breath
pulls in air that is literally inches away from the petroleum
chemical materials used in the manufacturing of the bed itself.
This process begins at birth and continues day after day during
the child's critical development periods. With each breath,
these chemical molecules are pulled across the child's airways
and then transferred to the blood from deep within the lungs.
This process is repeated with each breath 365 nights a year. Now
that it is widely accepted that child cancer and asthma can be
caused or worsened by some petroleum chemical products, it is
important to identify to what extent various chemical emitting
products in bedding materials could be affecting a child's
health.
The paragraph below is the direct abstract of a report
addressing this issue and published in the journal - Archives of
Environmental Health, Jan/Feb, 2000
Respiratory Toxicity of Mattress Emissions in Mice
SOURCE: Archives of Environmental Health, 55(1):38-43, 2000
"Groups of male Swiss-Webster mice breathed emissions of several brands of crib
mattresses for two 1-hr periods. The authors used a computerized version of
ASTM-E-981 test method to monitor respiratory frequency, pattern, and airflow
velocity and to diagnose abnormalities when statistically significant changes
appeared. The emissions of four mattresses caused various combinations of
upper-airways irritation (i.e., sensory irritation, lower-airways irritation
(pulmonary irritation), and decreases in mid-expiratory airflow velocity. At the
peak effect, a traditional mattress (wire springs with fibre padding) caused
sensory irritation in 57% of breaths, pulmonary irritation in 23% of breaths,
and airflow decrease in 11% of breaths. All mattresses caused pulmonary
irritation, as shown by 17-23% of breaths at peak. The largest airflow decrease
(i.e., affecting 26% of the breaths occurred with a polyurethane foam pad
covered with vinyl. Sham exposures produced less than 6% sensory irritation,
pulmonary irritation, or airflow limitation. Organic cotton padding caused very
different effects, evidenced by increases in both respiratory rate and tidal
volume. The authors used gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to identify
respiratory irritants (e.g. styrene, isopropyl benzene, limonene) in the
emissions of one of the polyurethane foam mattresses. Some mattresses emitted
mixtures of volatile chemicals that had the potential to cause respiratory-tract
irritation and decrease airflow velocity in mice. "
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