Posts Tagged ‘chemicals’

Things We’ve Read – Week of November 17th

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Chemicals in Plastics and Cosmetics tied to Early Births (Reuters): A new study finds that women who delivered babies before 37 weeks had higher levels of phthalates.

Till Baby Comes, Keep Smiling (NYTimes): Ever wondered if pregnant women in ads are just skinny (non-pregnant) models with strap-on bumps? Turns out, there is demand and supply for real pregnant models.

10 Foods Sold in the U.S. That Are Banned Elsewhere (OracleTalk): Many countries have policies against ingredients that are harmful to humans. This is a practical guide of what to avoid & why.

Lifestyle Changes Could Reduce Risk’ of Pregnancy Complications (MedicalNewsToday): A new study links lifestyle factors, including fruit intake in the months before pregnancy as well as socioeconomic factors, to certain pregnancy health outcomes.

7 Natural And Effective Ways to Combat Pregnancy Insomnia (AllWomensTalk): Here are some simple ways to help you rest more easily while pregnant. We’d add tea and a warm bath (under 98 degrees Fahrenheit) to the list!

Healthy Child Healthy World: The Nonprofit Every Health-Conscious Parent Should Know


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We created Nine Naturals to empower moms and moms-to-be in their consumer choices. Central to our mission is not only to create amazing beauty products that you’ll love, but also to provide you with educational tools to make it easier to create a safer environment for you and your family.

That’s why Nine Naturals is a proud supporter of the non-profit, Healthy Child Healthy World.

Healthy Child Healthy World’s vision is a world where every child has the opportunity to grow up in a healthy and safe environment. By working with manufacturers and supporting policy initiatives, Healthy Child Healthy World provides access to critical information that encourages smarter lifestyle choices that reduce chemical exposure in homes and communities. Since our own launch, Nine Naturals has partnered with Healthy Child; we support and are grateful for their tireless work to create a healthy environment for children.

Why they do it.

James and Nancy Chuda launched Health Child Healthy World in honor of their daughter Colette, who was diagnosed with a rare, non-hereditary cancer at the young age of four years old and eventually passed away from the disease. Through their research they learned that a possible cause of their daughter’s cancer was maternal exposure to chemical pesticides. Healthy Child Healthy World celebrates Colette’s memory and helps to prevent other children from suffering the effects of unnecessary chemical exposure.

How they do it.

Healthy Child focuses on three channels to execute on their mission:

Empowering Parents

Healthy Child’s website provides practical ways to reduce chemical exposure in your home. They have developed an “Easy Steps” series to guide parents in finding safe baby formula, improving indoor air quality, and using environment-healthy alternatives to dry cleaning.

The nonprofit also assembles inspiring Moms on a Mission and Parent Ambassadors, arguably just as important as Healthy Child’s science gurus in spreading awareness on chemical safety and environmental concern. Celebrity supporters like Laila Ali and Molly Sims proudly support Healthy Child’s causes as well.

Influencing Policy

For over 20 years, Healthy Child has worked to influence policy that better protects our children’s health. Healthy Child partners with manufacturers and policymakers to shed light on issues like corporate accountability, legal and regulatory reform, and greater chemical and product safety.

Promoting Solutions

Healthy Child helps to identify safer alternatives to toxic products, work with responsible companies to create and promote those alternatives and pressure industry giants to follow suit. Nine Naturals is proud to be a Shop Healthy partner of Healthy Child Healthy World. Our haircare and skincare line prioritizes chemical-free safety above all, a flagship shared with Healthy Child Healthy World.

Watch Healthy Child’s “Wake-Up Story” below and check out Healthy Child’s page today.

 

This is Your Brain on Toxins: How Chemical Companies Are Threatening the Health of Our Children

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In a recent NYTimes op-ed, Nicholas Kristof likens the health threat from the chemical industry to the health threat of the lead industry and of the tobacco industry. He identifies several points of similarity:

  • Insidiousness of the threat – chemicals hidden in seemingly innocuous products like cosmetics and household cleaners
  • Enormity of the industry lobby to minimize regulation and defend profits, not consumers
  • Journalists behaving like lapdogs, not watchdogs
  • Scientifcally identified extent of harm these chemicals pose to our health

Just as the lead industry hoodwinked consumers into blind complacency before America finally wised up to its dangers, scores of scientists believe we are living through a similarly dangerous moment, the threat posed this time by endocrine-disruptor chemicals.

These harmful compounds are found in virtually every product – from cosmetics and plastics to toys and some furniture. Yet the fight to eradicate these chemicals has not gained nearly enough traction. Big chemical companies have yet to encounter more than an occasional attack against their harmful practices.

Arguably the most noteworthy counter-attack to the chemical industry took place last year, when the Chicago Tribune exposed the truth on flame retardants in furniture, especially in baby crib mattresses. (They pose a serious threat to our children’s health and don’t actually expel flames. Check out our summary of the major exposé here.)

Another significant push against chemical companies’ use of endocrine disruptors occurred with the angry-letter writing campaign this summer, in which noted scientific experts participated. Just what got these scientists riled up, and why should it anger you as well?

Bottom line: endocrine-disrupting chemicals could prove as detrimental to health as lead. Developing fetuses and children face particularly troubling risk from these chemicals. Do more than eat organic and avoid plastic water bottles. Fight to change regulation to force an end to the use of these chemicals. (NY Times)

What are parabens and the dangers they pose? You’d be surprised.

Have you ever flipped over the bottle of your favorite beauty products to see what ingredients are inside? If the product is not paraben-free, like Nine Naturals, then you will more than likely find parabens listed as an ingredient.

What are parabens?

Parabens are synthetic, chemical preservatives used pervasively in cosmetic and some food products to inhibit the growth of bacteria, mold and yeast in products. Common parabens found in cosmetics include methylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben, or benzylparaben.

Since the 1950’s, parabens have been a very common ingredient in cosmetic products including haircare, skincare and make-up products; as much as 75%-95% of cosmetic products contain parabens[1]. The industry’s logic behind using parabens has been that that parabens help protect the consumer from bacteria and also preserve product integrity and maximize shelf life.

For most of the past 60 years, parabens have been considered innocuous. However, in the 1990’s and since then, new studies have suggested that parabens are dangerous for humans.

Why are parabens dangerous?

A study conducted in 2004 found parabens in the tissue of breast cancer tumors. The FDA and other researchers have reminded the public that there is not proven causality between parabens and cancer. However, the study did prove that parabens could penetrate the surface layer of the skin and linger in tissues.

Further studies have proven that parabens are hormone disruptors. Parabens behave like estrogen in the body, thus, interfering with normal hormone functions, which can potentially lead to developmental and reproductive complications.

Why should pregnant women avoid parabens?

Since studies have proven that parabens can penetrate the skin and other organ tissue and reside in your body intact for an extended period of time, there is also potential for a pregnant woman’s exposures to parabens through cosmetic products to be passed on to her unborn baby. In fact, a 2003 study detected parabens in the cord blood of newborn babies and the breast milk of mothers. Exposure to parabens, or to any environmental toxins, during a baby’s critical stages of development in the womb are more impactful not only because smaller doses are more impactful on a pound-for-pound basis, but because a baby’s critical organs are developing at such a rapid rate while in the womb.

Top tips for protecting your family from the potentially harmful effects of parabens:

  1. Learn how to read labels. On the ingredients list parabens may also take on the forms of ethylparaben, butylparaben, methylparaben and propylparaben. Keep an eye out for these, or anything else that contains “parabens”.
  2. Switch the products you use the most first. Making the switch to all-natural products doesn’t occur overnight. It takes some time to find an all-natural holy grail worthy foundation or eyeliner. Start by switching out the products you use the most for maximum impact with the least amount of effort. For example, try switching your shampoo or body lotion first—these products are products that you use everyday and come into contact with large areas of skin.
  3. Stick with brands you trust. Look for companies, like Nine Naturals, who are committed to creating safer, more natural products for you.
  4. Follow the science. There are a number of organization doing great research, advocacy and public service on the issue of parabens. We recommend paying close attention to these organizations:

Regulation?

Most people assume that if a company is selling a product that it is necessarily safe and that the government regulates the use of chemicals in the cosmetic industry. Unfortunately, this is not the case. There are very few regulations limiting what cosmetic companies can use in products the United States. The U.S. FDA has banned or restricted only 11 chemicals in cosmetics, while the EU has banned over 1,300! Until there is stricter regulation, the onus is on us, as mothers, to make sure that the products we are using on ourselves and our families are safe.


[1] Winter, R. A Consumer’s Dictionary of Cosmetic Ingredients, 7th ed. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2009.