Brand Name Cosmetic Dangers They’re Not Telling You About
We live in a world where we’d like to think that the powers that be are regulating ingredients that may cause danger to the consumer, protect us from harm when necessary,
and at the very least monitor activities within billion dollar industries that obviously affect the lives of millions of consumers. In the cosmetic industry, although that might be logical, there is are far less regulations to safeguard the consumer than you’d care to imagine.
In the cosmetic industry (lipstick, lotions, mascara, fragrances, foundation, makeup, etc.) there is a myth that the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) is in charge of keeping a watchful eye over anything cosmetic and questioning with scrutiny anything that is deemed unsafe. But the fact of the matter is that the FDA does not approve or reject cosmetics, like they do drug manufacturers seeking to be released to the marketplace. Even worse, the cosmetic industry is not required to “prove” anything besides being “safe when used as directed in the labeling or under usual customary conditions of use,” as said by FDA spokeswoman, Stephanie Kwisnek.
Cosmetics need not be pre-approved before being released to the general public, nor conduct safety testing, nor are they required to provide proof of performance claims. Think about that. In fact, unless there is a major public outcry, or an onslaught of complaints about a product, the FDA pretty much keeps out of the industry all together.
There are self-regulated and voluntary boards, groups, policies and systems in place within the cosmetic industry to offer some guidance, but they are often viewed as “the fox guarding the hen house”, as they have their own agenda, without “official” power to make sweeping changes.
There are also environmental groups in place which seem to offer the most help, and united may lead to the kind of changes most women wish assume are already in place. For example, there are brand name cosmetics, with multi-million dollar corporations who include dangerous, red-flag, ingredients in their cosmetic line right now (January 2008). These include, but are not limited to: mercury found in eye-drops and mascara, lead reported in lipsticks, phthalates (potentially toxic synthetic components used in many industries, even outside of cosmetics) found in some nail polish, perfumes, and hair spray, parabens (known endocrine disrupters that may block hormonal activity within a woman’s body as well as be potentially toxic found in many types of cosmetics, petrochemicals (literally a by-product of crude oil that is non-renewable), and many other ingredients most people don’t even want to hear about.
So what’s a woman to do, with all this danger lurking in the shadows of today’s trusted brands? In a word, simplify. Find cosmetics that have fewer ingredients, and whose ingredients are words that you recognize, preferably being all-natural. Open the cap and smell what’s inside; if it smells like chemicals, odds are they’re probably in there. Buy your cosmetics only from reputable people who are looking out for your best interests.
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