The Top 3 Most Dangerous Chemicals Found in Personal Care Products

Possibly the most dangerous chemicals to be included in personal care products are the ammonia derivatives, which are known to have hormone disrupting effects.

These chemicals are used to thicken and cleanse and are added to soaps, bubble baths and facial cleansers. They are not carcinogenic in themselves; however, when combined with products containing nitrates, a common preservative, a dangerous chemical reaction takes place leading to the formation of nitrosamines.

Most nitrosamines are carcinogenic. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US recognized this threat; in the 1970s it urged the industry to remove these products from its cosmetics, however a FDA report in the late 1980s found that 37 per cent of products tested still contained nitrosamines.

US Dept of Health and Human Services’ National Toxicology Program, 1997 (NTP TR 478):
· clear evidence of carcinogenic activity
“Diethanolamine was selected for evaluation because its large-scale production and pattern of use indicate potential for widespread human exposure.”
NTP requested that the FDA require a warning label on all formulations containing cocamamide DEA

History:
1979–FDA warned that 42% of all cosmetics were found contaminated with NDEA (N-nitrosodiethanolamine) which is formed when DEA reacts with nitrosating agents (may be through actual addition of nitrite as a preservative, through degradation of other ingredients or by exposure to air)

1991–FDA found that 27 of 29 of the products they tested were still contaminated

No way of telling if NDEA has been formed…so avoid all DEA, TEA, MEA–in 1996, the Cosmetics, Toiletries, and Fragrance Association stated that “These chemicals…should not be used as ingredients in cosmetic products.”

Learn more about toxic chemicals in personal care products.