Considering formaldehyde, perhaps imagine a liquid of building materials and preservatives, rather than a body lotion or hair conditioner. However, this toxic chemical has long been linked to cancer and is also hidden in everyday personal care products. These products go directly to our skin, so health risks are personally faster.
new study The Silent Spring Institute, a research institute that investigates environmental links with breast cancer, highlights where formaldehyde was discovered, who are most affected, and why consumer protection against exposure needs to be improved.
Facts about formaldehyde
Formaldehyde and formaldehyde release preservatives (FRPs) are often added to beauty products to prevent bacterial growth and extend shelf life. However, these chemicals are not harmless. They are classified as known human carcinogens the study Link them to breast, uterine, blood and nasal cancer. It can also cause allergic contact dermatitis, affecting approximately 8% of the US population.
Nevertheless, they are widespread. A recent analysis of 546 personal care products found that 13% contained FRP, especially hair and skin products. Hair relaxers are growing concern, especially for black and Latina women. One study focusing on Southern Los Angeles reported that over half of black and Latina women used products using FRP. Due to social pressure to meet euro-centric beauty norms, these communities often face higher exposure and therefore face greater health risks.
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Tracking the chemicals used
To better understand actual exposures, the researchers asked 70 black and Latina women to use a smartphone app to record all personal care products they used for more than a week.
Previous research asked questions like, “Did you use lotion today?” However, lotions are very different. Some have shea butter, while others are packed with formaldehyde releasers and other harmful chemicals, explained Elysia Franklin, analytical chemist at Silent Springs. Press Statement. “We wanted a more detailed picture. We read all the chemicals in that lotion accurately and with other products that women used.”
Researchers reviewed over 1,100 products and found FRP in everything from shampoos to eyelash glue. “It’s not just about hair,” said lead author Robin Dodson. “These chemicals are present in the products we use all over our bodies all the time. Repeated exposures like these can add up and cause serious harm.”
Over half of participants used at least one product using a formaldehyde releaser. The compound DMDM hydantoin is the most common and was found in almost half of the skin products containing FRP and 58% of hair products. And Dodson warns, “These are just the things we knew we were looking for. There could be more.”
Promoting policy changes
The research is part of Do inventory researchSilent Spring, Columbia University, Occidental College, and the advocacy group Blackwomen’s for Wellness. This project explores how beauty product chemicals fuel racial health disparities.
Janette Robinson Flint, executive director of Wellness Black Women, may know that black women use many different products (often full of toxic ingredients), and that consumers avoid formaldehyde labelled products, but most people are unaware of it. Hidden chemicals It releases it. When seeking more government oversight for these products and their labels, she added, “We don’t need to be a chemist to figure out what kind of products make us sick.”
Finding FRP is not easy. They go under names such as 4kater-15 and imidazolidinylurea and do not include the word “formaldehyde.” The EU and some US states have restricted or banned these chemicals, but the US is still behind. The FDA proposed a nationwide ban on FRP for hair in 2023, but it has not been enabled.
Dodson says the ultimate goal is simple. “Ideally, companies should not include these chemicals in their products in the first place.”
This article does not provide medical advice and should be used for informational purposes only.
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Working as a biomedical research assistant in labs in three countries, Jenny excels at translating complex scientific concepts ranging from medical breakthroughs and pharmacological discoveries to the existence of modern nutrition. Her interests range from topics such as human evolution, psychology, and eccentric animal stories. When she’s not immersed in a popular science book, you’ll find her catching or cruising waves around Vancouver Island with her longboard.
