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The Carcinogenic Cataclysm in Cosmetics:explode: (((3): Dotinga, R. (2017,…

- - - - Besides, it's not like our consumers care about their health. They don't really want to see a change. If they did, they would stop purchasing our products! If you know so much about the harmful ingredients in cosmetics, why don't you just refrain from using them?
        
        That's the thing--some people don't have the luxury to stop using cosmetics and other personal care products. Have you considered the devastating impact Eurocentric beauty standards have had on women and men of color?
        
        It is far too easy to blame consumers, (especially POCs) for buying into products that are meant to beautify them. There is undoubtedly an unhealthy bias against people who don't conform to beauty standards, especially in the case of women. Physically attractive people are rejected less often in job interviews and they are often paid more than less attractive people.
        
        'Unattractive people are less likely to be hired and promoted, and they earn lower salaries, even in fields in which looks have no obvious relationship to professional duties. (In one study, economists Jeff Biddle and Daniel Hamermesh estimated that for lawyers, such prejudice can translate to a pay cut of as much as 12 percent.)' (5)
        
        Even something as simple as dying one's hair exposes one to so many harmful chemicals.
        
        Even conventionally attractive people can be discriminated against in job interviews on the basis of their hair color. Blonde-haired women have been depicted as vapid and stupid for so long that natural blondes often resort to dying their hair brunette in order to be taken seriously in an interview.
        
        And people of color have always succeeded more financially when they have tried to assimilate white culture.
        
        More recently, school districts enforced policies that banned black teenagers and children from wearing ‘natural’ hairstyles, which has implications in black children having to choose between having to either subject their hair to harmful chemical relaxers (read: treatments that increase risk of breast cancer, whether or not the FDA says so) or to stop going to school altogether. A child/teenager should not have to choose between education and safety. For that matter, nobody should have to make that choice.(2)(3)
        
        Stop trying to run nail salons out of business! They can't afford giving all of their workers paid leave! Or minimum wage! Or decent protective gear to keep their lungs safe from the toxic fumes they are exposed to for twelve hours everyday!
        
        Where do I even begin?
        
        That's also just..not accurate. There are several problems to this line of thinking. Just one of these problems is that the public is very misinformed about what is in their products. If products were accurately labeled and consumers were given full discretion of what they put in and on their bodies, I can guarantee you things would change. If not for the lies that you feed us, we might actually be able to stand a chance at improving our health.
        
        Let's think back on all the times public health has been compromised due to flagrant lies perpetuated by the media, and how it is still being compromised.
        
        Labels such as 'All Natural' and 'Organic' on products are incredibly misleading.
        
        Most people are not chemists, so I suppose they would not be familiar with most ingredients under product labels. This can be fixed with some good old-fashioned education.
        
        The non-disclosure of ingredients on products we expose ourselves to every single day.
        
        The label of 'fragrance' on many product ingredients, especially since the labels are abused by companies as 'legal loopholes' for non-disclosure of ingredients.
        
        The poverty of research that has been done on these ingredients.
        
        The Tobacco Industry. Nothing on this needs to be elaborated. All you need to do is look at mouth and lung cancer statistics. And pictures of Joe Camel, a mascot of Camel brand tobacco, also presumed to have encouraged children to smoke. (150
        
        Throwing caution to the wind in favor of only taking any sort of action after the damage is done.
        
        'Dutch Boy Lead Party' The National Lead Company created an advertisement in the form of the 'dutch boy.' The 'Dutch Boy' advertisements featured a cute illustration of a little blond boy painting using lead paint. When the company's sales were threatened by a greater awareness on lead's effects, they came out with a paint book with delightful illustrations of all the different uses for lead products. It featured pictures such as this:. (14)
        
        (14) The threat of regulations on lead concentrations in products also led to lead companies blaming parents for letting their children put objects in their mouths. They especially targeted parents from oppressed minority groups, who just happened to be apart of low-income communities. Let me add that one of the lead company's advertisements was one that praised lead paint for its affordability. If that is not emotional manipulation, I don't know what is.
    - - At the time of Malkan's book release, research on nanoparticles and their effects on physiological processes was in its infancy. Almost nine years later, a lot of research has been done on nanoparticles and their numerous effects.
        
        "MNPs reduced cell viability, enhanced ROS production, decreased the glutathione level, inhibited
        LPO level, and increased apoptosis in SH-SY5Y cells. DNA damage, determined by the comet assay, was detected in the SH-SY5Y cells a er cells were exposed to MNPs. DNA damage and oxidative stress as observed in the present study are in accordance with the findings of Alari et al. [26] in the human hepatocarcinoma cells for nanoalumina and Alkahtane [36] in the A549 for indium tin oxide nano- particles.
        In conclusion, the data confirm that MNPs have the capacity to induce apoptosis and DNA fragmentation in human neuronal cells"
        (6)
        
        The entry of manganese dioxide nanoparticles into the bloodstream is reported to increase the effects of oxidative distress, causing genotoxicity and apoptosis, or programmed cell death, in neuronal cells. Manganese dioxide is a coating for titanium dioxide nanoparticles, which are found in numerous personal care products.
        
        Zinc oxide NPs are used in sunscreen to block UV rays, and silver NPs are used in products like toys, toothpaste, and clothing. They also have high levels of genotoxicity. (They are capable of causing DNA damage.) (4)(7)
        
        I hope you are happy knowing that we are swimming in neurotoxins and carcinogens.
        
        Titanium oxide NPs cause cytotoxic and mitochondrial damage in glial cells, especially in astrocytes, which regulate the membrane potential in neurons and nourish neurons. In other words, This Is Bad ™ (7) (8)
        
        If you think that's bad, remember that the FDA literally cannot regulate these particles in food and cosmetics if they aren't dangerous in bulk amounts. However, one major oversight of theirs is that because of their very small size and their ability to enter the bloodstream, nanoparticles of a substance may exert completely different effects on the human body than particles of the same substance but of a larger size. For example, silver is known for its anti-microbial properties, but silver nanoparticles can cause mitochondrial damage and a host of other unwanted effects.
- - - - Mindfulness or awareness is really only the beginning, though. Knowing about a problem is not nearly enough to eradicate it. If I want to make changes, I should actively avoid purchasing products with low ratings on the Skin Deep database and the Think Dirty app.
        
        Well, what else can I do??
        
        Spread the word! I have already started to do this with friends and family members but it would not hurt to broaden my scope. Maybe I will start a Facebook page or an Instagram account to help spread awareness about the harmful chemicals in our PCPs, because knowing that so many pregnant women are unwillingly passing them on to their children is terrifying.
        
        I have a feeling that appealing to emotions through logic is the best way to convince other people to care. Telling an expecting mother that her PCPs increase the risk of her children developing cancer thirty years down the road might seem somewhat cruel, but the truth is oftentimes cruel. It is really one thing to willingly expose yourself to these dangers and another thing entirely to willingly expose others to these same dangers. (I obviously know that not every woman is amenable to the idea of having children, but the use of these products still has far-reaching consequences on public health and of environmental health.)
        
        I know connecting to mothers with this idea is important because I am also faced with the fear of causing unintended harm to my future children.
        
        If those teratogens, carcinogens, and toxicants aren't being passed to children in the womb, there is no place for them to go. Can't worry about other people when your own life is at stake.
        
        It can't hurt to rally for better ingredients in our cosmetics and better treatment of salon workers! It is a viable option for me, and for anyone who wants to help their communities be safer. We can also organize fundraisers to raise money for companies who research the effects of chemicals on our bodies and on the environment, like Silent Spring, or raise money for companies like Think Before You Pink.
        
        Turn every trip to Target, Walmart, CVS, Sephora,etc. into a field study. Make note of well-researched carcinogens, hormone disruptors, phthalates, and the other classes of chemicals mentioned in the above branch. Be aware of their effects. And please refrain from buying those products. Using the Think Dirty app and/or the Skin Deep database to supplement your own knowledge of harmful chemicals is also advised.
        
        Stop any and all support for pink-washing companies, or companies that exploit fears of developing breast cancer for their own monetary gain.
        
        Some companies that are known to 'pink-wash' include:
        •Look Good, Feel Better
        •Estee Lauder (9)
        •Bee Sweet Citrus and Wonderful Citrus, i.e. the companies behind Halos Mandarins (10)
        • AVON (11) (12) (13)
        •Kohl's
        and more...
        
        We can join the campaign to end pink-washing for good! On Think Before You Pink's website, you can join the fight against these companies by donating or sending the offending companies (or their representatives) well-informed, passive-aggressive emails that get your word across to them. I think that is pretty cool.
        
        Estee Lauder is still adamant about keeping their dangerous products on store shelves, but they have profited so much off of pink-ribbon products-now and in the past- which makes me question where their loyalties lie.
        
        The companies behind Halos Mandarins are profiting off pink-ribbon products, all the while irrigating the mandarins they sell with oil
        
        Avon is absolutely despicable. Albeit they donated one billion dollars to their breast cancer foundation in 2016, most of that money went towards treatment of breast cancer and towards 'breast cancer AWARENESS' which I found ridiculous, because awareness is no longer a top priority when it comes to breast cancer. Furthermore, they dedicated an entire page on their online website to pink-ribbon products, when they are only donating 20% of the profit made off the products to their breast cancer foundation.
        
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        We can also do our part in refusing the services of nail salons that pay their workers unfair wage and/or force them to work in unsafe conditions!
        
        I can start using the DetoxMe app in order to make better-informed decisions regarding the kinds of products I expose myself to. The DetoxMe app is funded by the Silent Spring Institute, which has made many ground-breaking discoveries about the toxic chemicals in our everyday lives. The app offers tips on what labels and ingredients to avoid when purchasing products, as well as what habits to adopt/break to live a safer lifestyle.
        
        I can also start to support smaller companies that have taken an oath to only disseminate products that have undergone a vetting process to insure their safety. Some known companies are Follain, Intelligent Ingredients, Avalon Organics, Dr. Bronners, MotherDirt, Hair Print, and more!