So, I figured now that we’re midway through October it might be a good time to revisit the topic of parabens in leu of Breast Cancer Awareness month.
I tune-in to many of the youtube makeup/style guru’s videos, blogs, websites, etc., and I really enjoy that network of girl-world advice. While I know political or social issue soap-box-ing isn’t the route many girls care to direct their channels, I do think it would be nice to see some “girl power”/uniting chatter about breast cancer as it is a disease that claims so many lives.
Fact: 85% of diagnoses have no family history. (breastcancerawareness.com). That means those diagnoses’s come from causes related to diet, wellness, lifestyle and environment -aka- things we can control. I’m willing to bet on average most women hold the attitude of, “Wow, what a sad disease… but I’m not convinced it’ll happen to me”. – realistically. As someone who prefers to take a preventative approach to something as serious as breast cancer, well knowing how deeply it affects lives– I like to focus on the things that are within my power. After all, people always say, “it’s the little things”.
So, Parabens: they’re chemicals found in most cosmetics and skincare products that are injected for a multitude of reasons, but commonly: 1.) to prevent bacteria/microbial growth and 2.) to boost a ‘youthful’ appearance– usually by acting as a pluming or lifting agent. While that sounds pretty harmless, parabens (when soaked into the skin) make friends with ostrogen hormones (aka the ones that promote cell growth), and fool the body by mimicing said hormones. As we know, cancer is a cell vs. cell attacking disease, and as you can guess when you build an army of strong faux hormone cells (which hold the capability of multiplying) and they befriend tumor cells… well, that’s not a fun time.
Think of how many things per day (or twice a day) you apply to just your face:
- cleanser/face wash
- toner
- moisturizer
- foundation primer
- concealer, foundation (wet &/or powder)
- blush, bronzer
- eye shadow, liner, mascara
- ETC!!
Point being, roughly 10-12 products are being soaked into your skin just via your every day makeup routine. And if each of those products contain parabens… well, I think that’s just scary. I should mention, to avoid parabens altogether in life is virtually impossible. They are in toothpaste, soap, shampoo, makeup, and even in some foods. My goal is mainly to be aware and cut-down whenever possible… and I also think knowledge is power in this instance. If every woman were just conscious of the products they buy, reading the labels on what they’re applying to themselves– it’s a small step in the right direction.
Parabens listed in on labels in the ingredients section to look out for:
- Methylparaben (E218)
- Ethylparaben (E214)
- Propylparaben (E216)
- Butylparaben
I personally think it would be amazing to see Youtube Guru’s support on this topic, or if anything to use your video platform for creating awareness to a disease that’s a concern (or should be a concern) to each woman.
Love your bewebies ladies!! Take a preventative approach to breast cancer and make small lifestyle changes!!
Web linkage you may be interested in:
- Deodorants, Antiperspirants, Parabens & Breast Cancer: a great educational article about parabens in cosmetics
- BreastCancerAwareness.com: a pretty excellent FAQ resource
- Shine A Light On Breast Cancer: a great BCA campaign by Estee Lauder
- KeepABreast.org
Go pink! :)
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