One of the chemical groups I am eliminating from my life is the parabens. Parabens are used in almost all moisturizers and skin creams, shampoos, conditioners, makeup, deodorants, and even in most baby moisturizers and other baby lotions.
Why the worry? Parabens can cause skin irritations, contact dermatitis and allergies. Worse though, in a study of breast tumors, scientists found parabens in every sample. Parabens have also been linked to ovarian cancer, uterine cancer and testicular cancer. They are also suspected to effect fetal development.
They act as estrogen mimics, which is a bad thing because increased amounts of estrogen over a lifetime is linked to an increased risk of breast cancer. Most people expose themselves to parabens daily, and most people are exposing themselves to parabens more than a few times a day.
The parabens can be found in your ingredients are listed in order of strength: butylparaben, isobutylparaben, propylparaben, ethylparaben, methylparaben. My advice: carefully read your ingredient listings and steer clear of any of these. Most organic products do not contain parabens, by the way.