Yes, it’s true:Â If you read the FutureDerm blog often enough, you’ll know that I am not a fan of automated websites that track scientific studies and “flag” ingredients as hazardous without thorough analysis or debate.
Ingredients like cosmetic-grade petrolatum, mineral oil, and parabens have fallen in popularity due to automated databases flagging them as unsafe, but groups of scientists reviewing all of the literature have found them to be safe (FDA.gov Petrolatum; FDA.gov Mineral Oil; FDA.gov Parabens). For the record, after thorough and careful review, I have found them to be safe as well. This is mainly due to the fact that the studies used the ingredients in unrealistic concentrations; the studies were in small animals or in cells, not humans; or the results were unrepeatable or inconclusive.
However, one of the ingredients I do watch are phthalates – particularly for women who are pregnant or nursing young boys. Unlike with mineral oil, petrolatum, or parabens, the U.S. FDA is on the line about phthalates: “It’s not clear what effect, if any, phthalates have on health.” (US FDA Phthalates)
Work published in the journal Toxicology and Industrial Health reveals that male reproductive development is sensitive to some phthalates. For example, the two phthalates most common in skin care products, dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), produced dramatic changes in male sexual characteristics when exposure took place in utero, at levels far beneath those of previous toxicological concern.
Dr. Shanna Swan, Ph.D., an epidemiologist at the University of Rochester Medical School, made headlines when she found a direct correlation between the levels of phthalates in a mother’s urine and the reproductive problems in young boys (CBS News, 2010).
Avoid These if Pregnant or Nursing
So, if I were pregnant or nursing, I would avoid the following fragrances, found in a 2005 study to have the 10 highest concentrations of phthalates of 31 popular perfumes:
- Bvlgari Blv Notte pour Homme
- Calvin Klein Eternity for Women
- Coty Celine Dion
- Dior Poison
- Jean-Paul Gaultier Le Mâle
- Joop! Nightflight
- Melvita Iris Blue
- Ralph Lauren Polo Blue
- The Body Shop White Musk
- Van Gils Van Gils
These Should Be OK
And the 10 perfumes found to have the lowest:
- Bogner High Speed
- Chanel Chance
- Dior Pure Poison
- FCUK Him
- Gloria Vanderbilt Vanderbilt
- Gucci Envy Me
- Hugo Boss Boss In Motion
- Mexx Waterlove Man
- Naomi Campbell Sunset
- Puma Puma Woman
Bottom Line
The data is still officially inconclusive, but I would avoid phthalates if I were pregnant or nursing. Phthalates do not accumulate in the body over time, so don’t be upset if you’ve used them before becoming pregnant.
