Toxic Beauty Extracts: Cosmetics and Cancer
Cosmetics and Cancer
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in America, after heart disease and around one in four deaths in the EU are as a result of cancer. Cancer can be characterised as a cluster of diseases where normal cells multiply beyond normal growth mechanisms, generating millions of similar self-multiplying cells that become cancerous when they spread beyond their normal area (metastasis). There are over 100 types of cancer.
It is thought that every cancer develops from one altered cell, which fails to respond to normal attempts to control its growth, inheriting or aquiring DNA Read more
Schoolgirl Suffers Severe Allergic Reaction to L’Oreal Hair Dye
April 16, 2009 by DawnM
Filed under Allergies & Asthma
Schoolgirl Suffers Allergic Reaction to Hair Dye
Today the Daily Mail reported a story about Carla Harris, a 15 year old schoolgirl who suffered a potent allergic reaction to L’Oreal Recital hair dye, causing her head to swell up to twice its normal size, leaving the teenager in agony for several days. You can see an image of the damage caused on the Daily Mail website.
Despite conducting a patch test prior to using the product, Carla still had a severe reaction after using the L’Oreal hair dye and was admitted into hospital and treated with antihistamines and steroids.
Campaign for Safe Cosmetics: Carcinogens in Children’s Bath Products
March 12, 2009 by DawnM
Filed under Health Issues
Carcinogens in children's personal care products
A report called “No More Toxic Tub” released today by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics has revealed that, far from being safe and gentle, dozens of best-selling children’s bath products are contaminated with the cancer-causing chemicals formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane.
The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics commissioned an independent laboratory to test 48 products for 1,4-dioxane and formaldehyde. Findings included:
17 out of 28 (61 percent) products tested contained formaldehyde and 1,4- Read more
Cosmetics Companies Should be Concerned About Safety
February 27, 2009 by DawnM
Filed under Health Issues
Peanut Scandal Sends out Warning
Guy Montague-Jones writing on Cosmeticsdesign.com warns that cosmetics manufacturers should be wary of toxic chemicals in cosmetics and “learn from the mistakes made in the food and banking industries.” The contamination of products made by the Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) has resulted in six deaths and made 600 people ill, leaving in its wake “a trail of corporate irresponsibility that would have been difficult to imagine three months ago…The Peanut Corporation of American is the perpetrator of a tragedy that reflects a failure to properly prioritise risk in modern business.”
Guy compares the toxic assets now crippling the global financial system to Read more
Living a Healthy Lifestyle Could Reduce Many Cancers
February 26, 2009 by DawnM
Filed under Cancer, Health Issues
Healthy Living Prevents Cancer
Surprise, surprise, a study commissioned by the World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research, has suggested that living a healthier lifestyle could prevent approximately a third of the most common cancers in rich countries and a quarter in poorer countries.”
The study involved 23 experts who assessed the incidence of 12 common cancers across the world and data on diet, exercise and weight, to identify how these factors contributed to a range of cancers.
Toxic Shampoo Scare in Middle East
February 13, 2009 by DawnM
Filed under Cancer, Health Issues, Regulation
Carcinogen Found in Shampoo in Middle East
According to Cosmetics Design Europe Saudi and Dubai health authorities have issued warnings after incidences of toxicity in a variety of shampoos sold to consumers. The Dubai Municipality has banned 17 imported shampoos contaminated with the carcinogen 1,4-dioxane and The Saudi Food and Drug Authority has issued a warning over Rolana Baby Shampoo, which was found to be contaminated with the bacteria serratia maracescens. This has allegedly made 13 babies sick and resulted in the death of one child. The bacteria can cause urinary infections, meninjitus, toxemia and other health problems, particulary in infants.
Petrochemical Compounds: An Introduction
February 9, 2009 by DawnM
Filed under Allergies & Asthma, Cancer, Endocrine Disruptors, Health Issues, Neurotoxicity, Other Health
Lowdown on Petroleum Derived Compounds
A petrochemical compound is an organic (based on carbon) compound derived from crude oil (petroleum) or natural gas, which were formed millions of years ago in the earth’s crust from decayed plants and animals.
These two primary classes of petrochemical are olefins (e.g. ethylene, butylene and propylene) and aromatics (e.g. benzene, toluene and xylenes) produced by chemical cracking (breaking large hydrocarbon molecules into simpler molecules, aided by a catalyst and high temperatures) and catalytic reforming (used to convert low-octane naphthas into high-octane gasoline blending components and often benzene, toluene and xylene aromatics for Read more
