Parents beware! Your children may be at great risk for developmental and reproductive damage due to exposure from common baby care products. Substances called phthalates are present in a variety of consumer goods, especially many personal care products. Infants and young children are particularly susceptible to the effects of phthalates and other chemical toxins due to their small size and the immaturity of their immune systems.
It is criminal (or at least it should be) that manufacturers are allowed to put such poisons into their products simply to improve the formula, packaging, or shelf life. When personal care products are applied to the skin, their ingredients are introduced directly into the bloodstream and can be quickly transported throughout the body. This is why it is essential that you are very careful about what you allow your body or those of your children to be exposed to. The FDA does not force manufacturers to disclose phthalates and other harmful chemicals that are used in their products, so of course most of them do not include these ingredients on their labels.
Choose skin care and other personal care products that are made of natural, organic ingredients that will not be toxic to the body. Lanique Botanicals is a natural skin care line that I am currently developing. Very soon we will be offering one of the safest and most natural anti-aging moisturizing creams - Simply Ageless. I am committed to development of the very best of the best in natural skin care simply because I realize all too well the need and the importance of skin care that does not harm. For great articles about skin care please visit the Body and Facial Skin Center.
Babies absorb phthalates from baby products
Mon Feb 4, 2008 10:35am EST
By Megan Rauscher
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A new study suggests that baby lotion, baby powder, and baby shampoo may be exposing babies to potentially harmful chemicals called phthalates.
"At this time, we do not know what the potential long-term health effects might be, but there is a large body of animal studies to suggest developmental and reproductive toxicity (from phthalates) and a few human studies with changes in health outcomes as well," Dr. Sheela Sathyanarayana told Reuters Health.
Phthalates are used to make plastics flexible and stabilize fragrances, and are found in a plethora of consumer products including toys, personal care products and medical equipment.
As reported online today in the journal Pediatrics, Sathyanarayana, from the University of Washington, Seattle, and colleagues measured the levels of nine different phthalate breakdown products in urine from diapers of 163 infants aged 2 to 28 months.
All of the urine samples contained at least one phthalate at measurable levels, they report, and 81 percent of the samples had measurable amounts of seven or more phthalates.
"We found that reported use of baby lotion, baby shampoo, and baby powder was associated with increased concentrations of monethyl phthalate (MEP), monomethyl phthalate (MMP), and monoisobutyl phthalate (MIBP) in infant urine," Sathyanarayana said.
This association was strongest in young infants less than 8 months old, "who may be more vulnerable to developmental and reproductive toxicity of phthalates," the investigators note in their report.
At present, U.S. manufacturers are not required to list phthalate contents on products' package labels, making it hard for parents to make informed decisions, the investigators point out.
"If parents want to decrease exposures for their children, they can try to use lotions, shampoo, and baby powder sparingly unless otherwise indicated for a medical reason," Sathyanarayana suggested.
SOURCE: Pediatrics, February 2008.
http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSCOL45600320080204
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