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Fact or Myth: Toxic Cosmetics Essay

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The cosmetic industry in the United States has been under scrutiny concerning whether the chemicals used in cosmetics are safe or toxic. According to Annie Leonard from The Story of Cosmetics, “The average woman in the U.S. uses about 12 products daily, the average man about six, each product containing a dozen or more chemicals,” but what are these enigmatic chemicals? When a person examines the ingredients list of their shampoo or lotion, one would observe a list of lengthy chemical names; names that the average person would possibly never be able to enunciate correctly. These same chemicals are in cosmetics we use on a daily basis. The FDA categorizes cosmetics as “articles intended to be rubbed, poured, sprinkled, or sprayed on, …show more content…

Other consumer products people should be conscious about are: pink-ribbon cosmetics, fragrances, lipsticks, bath products, and nail products (Campaign).
According to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, pink-ribbon cosmetics sometimes contain carcinogens, which are cancer causing agents. In these cases, some people use the term “pinkwashing”, which is a term used when companies market pink ribbons along with their products promoting the fight against breast cancer, also contain particles that contribute to breast cancer at the same time. Fragrances include shampoos, deodorants, lotions and shaving creams because of their scent, but at the same time these fragrances can sensitize a person. The problem regarding lipstick is the fact that there’s lead in them and bath products often contain cancer-causing carcinogens even to infants. If a person is using nail polish or they go to a nail salon, they can smell the chemicals as soon as they walk into the room. (Campaign) Jane Houlihan, the Vice President for research at the Environmental Working Group, otherwise known as EWG, and creator of Skin Deep database, says, “Dark permanent hair dyes are linked to cancer. When you use those for a long time over your lifetime, those can be quite toxic. Nail care products tend to contain some of the most hazardous ingredients. But we also find carcinogens in baby products. We find skin

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