Cosmetic Chemical List

   "Very little about the process restricts their sale. And it's a somewhat alarming idea to put acids on the skin. It raises obvious safety questions."
 Dr. John Bailey, Director of FDA’s Office of Cosmetics and Color, on the use of alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) in cosmetics (FDA 1999)

   "Parabens may contribute to the increasing incidence of breast cancer."
Dr. Philippa Darbre and colleagues at the University of Reading

  "Poisoning by a mixture of henna dye and para-phenylenediamine dyes led to the hospitalization of 31 Sudanese children between 1984 and 1989. There was a characteristic clinical presentation. All children presented with an acute and severe angioneurotic oedema and 15 of the cases required emergency tracheostomy for respiratory obstruction. Acute renal failure occurred in five children who recovered after peritoneal dialysis. Mortality was high, all 13 deaths occurring within 24 hours of presentation."
Hashim S., Hamza Y., Yahia B., Khogali F. and Sulieman G

   "washing dishes by hand and using a liquid with anti-bacterial properties and the ingredient Triclosan, could cause a reaction with the chlorinated water and produce chloroform, which is easily inhaled and highly toxic."
Virginia Polytechnic University

   "Tests show permanent eye damage in young animals from skin contact in non-eye areas. Studies indicated sodium lauryl sulfate kept young eyes from developing properly by possibly denaturing the proteins and not allowing for proper structural formation. This damage was permanent."
American College of Toxicology

   "Chronic abuse of toluene-containing products has been associated with serious brain toxicity, documented by loss of brain tissue mass on computerized tomographic (CT) scans, and by white matter degeneration on magnetic resonance imaging (NM) scans. Such brain damage results in impairment of cognition and other brain functions, gait disturbance and loss of coordination."
Richard Scatterday, M.D., Kaiser Permanente