What is lurking in those scented things we all love so much?
Do you love getting scented candles for different seasons? How about lotions or soaps? You can get wonderful yummy scents in just about everything these days. But, where do they get those scents from and are they really all that wonderful or safe?
I think not!
Fragrence or parfum, as listed in the ingredients is actually made up of about 5,000 different chemicals. Many of which are trade secret and we don’t even know what they are. I don’t know about you, but I like to know what I am putting on my body. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, fragrance is the number one cause of contact dermatitis. That kind of makes me wonder what else fragrances are doing.
In keeping with my “KISS” motto, let’s take a quick look at what else fragrances are doing. The chemicals in fragrances include musks, phthalates, neurotoxins and hazardous air pollutants. Musks have been linked to cancers in animal studies, phthalates are known to be hormone disrupters, neurotoxins means they are toxic to the brain and the pollutants include acetaldehyde, chloromethane, and 1, 4 dioxane. Keep in mind that very rarely is there a direct one to one cause and effect correlation with any of these chemicals. But there is strong evidence. While one toxin in a small amount may not be too much to worry about, it have been estimated that we are exposed to over 1 million chemical per day. Why add more to that?
What can you do? Let’s KISS, read the ingredients and don’t buy products that contain fragrance or parfum. That’s it. But you must read the ingredient list. Fragrance free just means that there may be chemicals that make a smell, but that smell is neutralized by other chemicals.
Maybe there is an oil in a lotion that has fragrance in it. That oil is used not for the scent but for other properties in the lotion. That sent can be neutralized by other chemicals and the product can be listed as fragrance free. Again, just read the ingredients.
If you still have fragrance questions or are concerned that maybe all the chemical smells are affecting you, let us know.
A fairly safe bet is using scents from essential oils. However, my general recommendation is to just stay away. Let those pheromones breathe baby!
P.S. - There is some emerging evidence that all the perfumes and fragrances that young girls are putting on from such an early age are contributing or even causing the huge increase in rate of thyroid cancers and thyroid diseases.
Smell you later!
Dr. Craig Mortensen
