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What’s in YOUR Cosmetics?

Chemical ingredients found in cosmetics

At present, the cosmetic industry selects from more than 5000 different ingredients. It’s no wonder consumers can be perplexed when they see the list. Here are some common cosmetic ingredients and their usual functions (active drug ingredients are not included).

Moisturizers function as a moisture barrier or to attract moisture from the environment:

• cetyl alcohol (fatty alcohol) – keeps oil and water from separating; also a foam booster
• dimethicone silicone – skin condition and anti-foam ingredient
• isopropyl lanolate, myristate, and palmitate
• lanolin and lanolin alcohols and oil – used in skin and hair conditioners
• octyl dodecanol – skin conditioner
• oleic acid (olive oil)
• panthenol (vitamin B-complex derivative) – hair conditioner
• stearic acid and stearyl alcohol

Preservatives and antioxidants (including vitamins) prevent product deterioration:

• trisodium and tetrasodium edetate (EDTA)
• tocopherol (vitamin E)

Antimicrobials fight bacteria:

• butyl, propyl, ethyl, and methyl parabens
• DMDM hydantoin
• methylisothiazolinone
• phenoxyethanol (also rose ether fragrance component)
• quaternium-15

Thickeners and waxes used in stick products such as lipsticks and blushers:

• candelilla, carnauba, and microcrystalline waxes
• carbomer and polyethylene thickeners

Solvents used to dilute:

• butylene glycol and propylene glycol
• cyclomethicone (volatile silicone)
• ethanol (alcohol)
• glycerin

Emulsifiers break up and refine:

• glyceryl monostearate (also pearlescent agent)
• lauramide DEA (also foam booster)
• polysorbates

Color additives:

• Synthetic Organic colors derived from coal and petroleum sources (not permitted for use around the eye):
  • D&C Red No. 7 Calcium Lake (lakes are dyes that do not dissolve in water)
• Inorganic pigments – approved for general use in cosmetics, including for the area of the eye:
  • iron oxides
  • mica (iridescent)

Hair Dyes - phenol derivatives used in combination with other chemicals in permanent (two-step) hair dyes:

• aminophenols

pH adjusters stabilize or adjust acids and bases:

• ammonium hydroxide in skin peels and hair waving and straightening
• citric acid – adjusts pH triethanolamine pH adjuster used mostly in transparent soap

Others:

• magnesium aluminum silicate absorbent – anti-caking agent
• silica (silicon dioxide) – absorbent, anti-caking, abrasive
• sodium lauryl sulfate – detergent
• stearic acid – cleansing, emulsifier
• talc (powdered magnesium silicate) – absorbent anti-caking
• zinc stearate – used in powder to improve texture, lubricates.

Source: FDA (www.fda.gov)

Three naturopathic physicians share insight on why and when to detox, what type of detox program is right for you, and 10 ways to start.

Feeling sluggish or out of sync? Having skin problems, aches and pains, or digestive problems? Straying from your healthier habits lately? It might be time for a detox.

Practiced for centuries by many cultures around the world — including ayurvedic and Chinese medicine systems — detoxification is about resting, cleaning and nourishing the body from the inside out. By removing and eliminating toxins, then feeding your body with healthy nutrients, detoxifying can help protect you from disease and renew your ability to maintain optimum health.

“The body has its own natural healing system,” says Peter Bennett, N.D., medical director of Helios Clinic in Victoria, B.C., and co-author with Stephen Barrie, N.D. and Sara Faye, of 7-Day Detox Miracle (Prima Health). “Detoxification enhances this system,” he explains.

How Does Detoxification Work?
Basically, detoxification means cleaning the blood. It does this mainly by removing impurities from the blood in the liver, where toxins are processed for elimination. The body also eliminates toxins through the kidneys, intestines, lungs, lymph and skin. However, when this system is compromised, impurities aren’t properly filtered and every cell in the body is adversely affected.

A detox program can help the body’s natural cleaning process by:
1) Resting the organs through fasting;
2) Stimulating the liver to drive toxins from the body;
3) Promoting elimination through the intestines, kidneys and skin;
4) Improving circulation of the blood; and
5) Refuelling the body with healthy nutrients.

“Detoxification works because it addresses the needs of individual cells, the smallest units of human life,” says Bennett.

How Do You Know if You Need to Detoxify?
Bennett suggests that everyone should detox at least once a year. A short detoxifying program is generally safe; in fact, scientific studies show that a detox is beneficial for health. However, Bennett cautions against detoxifying for nursing mothers, children, and patients with chronic degenerative diseases, cancer or tuberculosis. Consult your health care practitioner if you have questions about whether detoxing is right for you.

Today, with more toxins in the environment than ever, “it’s critical to detox,” says Linda Page, N.D., Ph.D., the author of Detoxification (Healthy Healing Publications). Page recommends detoxing for symptoms such as unexplained fatigue, sluggish elimination, irritated skin, allergies or low-grade infections; bags under the eyes; a distended stomach even if the rest of your body is thin; menstrual difficulties; or mental confusion.

Where Do You Begin?

First, lighten up your toxin load. Eliminate alcohol, coffee, cigarettes, refined sugars and saturated fats, all of which act as toxins in the body and are obstacles to your healing process. Also, minimize use of chemical-based household cleaners and personal health care products (cleansers, shampoos, deodorants and toothpastes), and substitute natural alternatives.

Another deterrent to good health is stress, which triggers your body to release stress hormones into your system. While these hormones can provide the “adrenaline rush” to win a race or meet a deadline, in large amounts they create toxins and slow down detoxification enzymes in the liver. So it’s a good idea to detox stressful life situations along with detoxifying your body. Yoga and meditation are simple and effective ways to relieve stress by resetting your physical and mental reactions to the inevitable stress life will bring.

Which Detox Program is best for you?

There are many detoxification programs, depending on your individual needs. Many programs follow a 7-day schedule because, as Bennett explains, “it takes the body some time to clean the blood.” His program involves fasting on liquids for two days, followed by a carefully-planned five-day diet to allow the digestive system to rest. He also advises supplements, herbs, exercise, and practices such as dry-skin brushing and hydrotherapy to enhance circulation.

Page recommends a 3-7 day juice fast (drinking only fresh fruit and vegetable juices and water) as an effective way to release toxins.

Other popular detoxing programs include:

• Cleansing supplement packages, which generally contain fibre, vitamins, herbs and minerals. There are several safe products on the market, with easy-to-follow instructions.
• A routine of drinking only water one day each week — an ancient practice of many cultures.

10 Ways to Help Your Body Detoxify

After a detoxification program, you can cleanse your body daily through diet, supplements and lifestyle practices.

1. Eat plenty of fibre, including brown rice and organically-grown fresh fruits and vegetables. Beets, radishes, artichokes, cabbage, broccoli, spirulina, chlorella, and seaweed are excellent detoxifying foods.

2. Cleanse and protect the liver by taking herbs such as dandelion root, burdock and milk thistle, and drinking green tea.

3. Take vitamin C, which helps the body produce glutathione, a liver compound that drives away toxins.

4. Drink at least 2 quarts of water daily.

5. Breathe deeply to allow oxygen to circulate more completely through your system.

6. Transform stress by emphasizing positive emotions.

7. Practice hydrotherapy by taking a very hot shower for five minutes, allowing the water to run on your back. Follow with cold water for 30 seconds. Do this three times, and then get into bed for 30 minutes.

8. Sweat in a sauna so your body can eliminate wastes through perspiration.

9. Dry-brush your skin or try detoxifying patches or  detox foot spas / foot baths to remove toxins through your pores. Special brushes are available at natural products stores.

10. What is the most important way to detoxify? “Exercise,” says Bennett. “Yoga or jump-roping are good. One hour every day.” Also try qigong, a martial-arts based exercise system that includes exercises specifically for detoxifying or cleansing, as well as many other exercises with specific health benefits.

Reference: Deborahann Smith

For centuries, people have enhanced their foods with various flavorings, preservatives, and dyes. But some ingredients on today’s food labels can be downright scary. Few foods reach today’s supermarkets free of additives – substances that do not occur naturally in a food but are added for various reasons. These include preservatives to prevent spoilage; emulsifiers to prevent water and fat from separating; thickeners; vitamins and minerals (either to replace nutrients lost in processing or to increase nutritional value); sweeteners (both natural and artificial), salt, flavorings to improve taste; and dyes to make everything from candies to soft drinks more visually appealing.

In all, North American food processors may use any of about 2,800 additives. Although many people question the safety of these additives, the fact is that their use is governed by stringent regulations. Authorities require extensive studies before an additive is allowed on the market. In spite of this, rare reactions to certain additives are possible. The appropriate use of additives, though, allows us to enjoy history’s safest and most abundant assortment of foods.

Some 10,000 substances make their way into food during growing, processing, and packaging; some of these accidental additives can pose more of a health threat than preservatives and other direct additives. Some foods, for example, contain traces of pesticides sprayed on crops or applied to the soil. Environmental pollutants in foods, such as PCBs, mercury, and lead, are harmful when ingested in large quantities.

Sometimes allergic reactions that are blamed on foods or intentional additives are actually triggered by an unintended one. For example, a person who has never had a food allergy may inexplicably develop a rash after drinking milk. The resulting small amounts of penicillin in the milk would not be harmful for most people, only to those who are allergic to the drug.

Reference: John A. Robert

Women who live in urban areas have denser breasts, making them more likely to develop breast cancer, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

“Women living in cities need to pay more attention to having regular breast screening,” said Nicholas M. Perry, M.B.B.S., F.R.C.S., F.R.C.R., director of The London Breast Institute at The Princess Grace Hospital in London, U.K. “Currently, women who live in urban areas are known to have lower attendance for breast screening programs than women in outlying areas.”

Breast tissue in women may be fatty or glandular or a mixture of both. Women with more glandular breasts show denser tissue on a mammogram and are known to have nearly four times the risk of developing breast cancer than women with fatty breasts. Dr. Perry and colleagues set out to determine if there was a relationship between breast density and area of residence.

The researchers analyzed digital mammograms of 972 women from urban, suburban and rural areas. They discovered that women who lived in London had significantly denser breasts than those living outside the city. The risk of increased density was twice as great in the 45- to 54-year-old group. Age-specific analyses suggested that overall differences by area were more pronounced in women under age 50.

Dr. Perry cautioned that more research is needed to determine the precise reason for this phenomenon, taking into account lifestyle factors, stress, workplace and other possible contributors, but he advised that all women maintain a recommended breast screening regimen, and that women with dense breasts be screened with digital mammography, which is more effective at detecting cancer in dense breast tissue.

“Regular breast screening with mammography saves lives,” Dr. Perry said. “Access to breast screening for women living in cities must be prioritized.”

Co-authors are P.C. Allgood, Ph.D., S.W. Duffy, M.D., S.E. Milner, B.Sc., and K. Mokbel, M.D.

Another study presented at RSNA 2007 looked at the influence of the Western lifestyle on breast composition. Miriam Sklair-Levy, M.D., and colleagues from Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem compared breast densities of Israeli women and Ethiopian women who immigrated to Israel. The study found that Ethiopian-born women who have immigrated to Israel had significantly lower breast density than did Israeli-born women. In addition, past Ethiopian immigrants who had begun to adopt a Western lifestyle (decreased number of children, change in diet or increased hormone use) had significantly higher breast density than recent immigrants.

Reference: Marv