As I was scrolling through Instagram one day, I came across a click-bait post shared by a friend in her stories. The title read, \u201cNew study finds skincare ingredients are linked to breast cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As a former breast cancer and immunology researcher, the post\u2014which linked to a research study<\/a>\u2014naturally caught my eye [1]. You\u2019re no doubt already familiar with the consumer push for \u201cclean beauty\u201d products, and a growing awareness that the ingredients in our cosmetics, skincare, and body care products might actually matter. Scientists, motivated by increased pressure from consumers and skincare developers alike, have also tried to understand how ingredients may affect our health.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n But how worried do you need to be about your skin care products and breast cancer risk?<\/p>\n\n\n\n This particular study was conducted in collaboration with Breast Cancer Over Time<\/a>, a nonprofit group funding community-based research. Two of the study authors are involved with this group, one is a breast cancer survivor and the other is a public health scientist. The collaboration allowed the research investigators to recruit study participants from a pool of women who are passionate about breast cancer research and risk reduction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The investigators recruited 41 female participants who regularly used skincare products that contained parabens or phthalates. Excitingly, they had 100% compliance, meaning all of the women followed all the requirements of the study, which is pretty rare!. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The 41 women were randomized into two groups. One group\u2013the control group\u2013kept using their same skincare, body care, and makeup products as usual. The other group was given skincare, body care, and makeup products free from paraben or phthalates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before we dive into the study results, we need to define what parabens and phthalates are, how they\u2019re related to estrogen, and why all this matters for breast cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA<\/a>), parabens are a commonly used preservative in personal care products and cosmetics. Preservatives are important ingredients because they prevent unwanted bacteria and\/or mold growth in your products. Some examples of parabens you might see on a personal care item\u2019s ingredients list include methylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben, and ethylparaben.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Parabens have the potential to act like the hormone estrogen<\/a> in the body. Estrogen, along with the hormone progesterone, plays a key role in the female menstrual cycle. Estrogen is responsible for the growth of the uterine lining and formation of peak-type cervical mucus, both of which are necessary for conception to occur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The FDA maintains<\/a> that parabens have much lower estrogenic activity compared to the natural hormone, and have not been shown to be harmful<\/a>. So far, studies in humans have not found strong evidence that parabens cause breast cancer, as explained by the American Cancer Society, here<\/a>. Some organizations and research groups, however, like the Environmental Working Group (EWG, a non-profit activist group) claim<\/a> parabens have potentially harmful endocrine-disrupting activity. They assert that these ingredients may be doing more in our bodies than just preventing bacterial growth on or in our skincare products.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Phthalates<\/a> are a class of chemicals used in a broad variety of products including plastics, personal care products, cosmetics, and fragrances. They have functions that make plastics more durable, act as solvents to help ingredients dissolve properly in a formulation, and help ingredients \u201cstick\u201d on your skin\u2013as in the case of fragrance.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n The FDA provides maximum amounts of phthalates that can be used in consumer products, and according to the available data, also considers these ingredients safe<\/a>. However, like parabens, phthalates are known endocrine disruptors<\/a>. Phthalate exposure may contribute to heavy periods<\/a>, irregular cycles, abnormal cervical mucus patterns, endometriosis, infertility, and even cancer.\u00a0 Phthalate exposure can be particularly damaging during pregnancy<\/a>, leading to increased risk of preterm birth<\/a>. Phthalates have also been shown to have endocrine-disrupting effects in males<\/a>, lowering testosterone levels and even disrupting sperm quality<\/a>, affecting male fertility.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\nResearchers explored whether parabens and phthalates affect cancer risk<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Parabens and phthalates: two skincare ingredients that might act like estrogen in the body<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Parabens and estrogen<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Phthalates and estrogen<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n