The Rutgers Health study reveals that the average consumer encounters over one hundred chemicals daily through personal care products (PCPs). This research, published in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology, involved 593 participants and examined nearly 9,350 specific products. It highlighted that while most individuals use dozens of potentially hazardous chemicals, those concerned about safety and opting for safer alternatives encountered less risk.
“Average exposure was high, but there was a silver lining,” stated Emily Barrett, lead author and vice chair at Rutgers School of Public Health’s Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology. “We saw signs that people who tried to limit exposure succeeded in doing so, so it’s certainly possible for others as well.”
Participants reported using an average of 14.5 personal care products daily, ranging from basic items like soap and toothpaste to cosmetics and fragrances. The research team linked each product to the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep database, which assigns hazard scores based on ingredient profiles.
“They take the ingredient lists, they match the ingredients onto the totality of literature that’s out there – scientific papers, toxicological reports – and identify potential hazards associated with each one of those ingredients,” Barrett explained.
Perfumes and colognes were found to be consistently hazardous due to endocrine-disrupting phthalates. Other categories posed varying health concerns; hair products have been linked to reproductive cancers while skin care items with phenols raised reproductive health concerns. Notably, non-Hispanic Black women were twice as likely as white women to use high-hazard hair products recently.
Barrett commented on regulatory differences: “In the U.S., we tend to err on the side of allowing things to be put into our products until they’re proven to be unsafe,” contrasting this with stricter European Union regulations.
Health implications are significant as higher chemical levels from PCPs correlate with adverse outcomes like preterm birth and reproductive cancers. However, changes can swiftly reduce risks: “Studies show that when you swap out people’s hazardous products for safer products, their chemical levels drop within a matter of days,” Barrett noted.
She advised consumers aiming to lower exposure: “Use fewer products if you can…swap out products for cleaner alternatives as you finish them.”
Future research will focus on adolescents’ product choices influenced by social media during development. “I’ve already drafted my children into the new study,” Barrett added.
Explore more ways Rutgers research is shaping future perspectives.
