is your make up and skincare making you sick?

It has been claimed that women who use make-up and skincare products on a daily basis are absorbing 2kg of chemicals into their bodies each year. Many use more than 20 different beauty products a day, striving to look their best while nine out of 10 use products which are past their use-by date. If you have a dependence on cosmetics and toiletries, it means that each year, a cocktail of 2kg of chemicals are absorbed into the body through the skin.

Some synthetic compounds involved have been linked to side effects ranging from skin irritation to premature ageing and cancer. Richard Bence, a biochemist who has spent three years researching conventional products, said: "We really need to start questioning the products we are putting on our skin and not just assume that the chemicals in them are safe. "We have no idea what these chemicals do when they are mixed together, the effect could be much greater than the sum of the individual parts." Mr. Bence, believes that absorbing chemicals through the skin is more dangerous than swallowing them.

"If lipstick gets into your mouth it is broken down by the enzymes in saliva and in the stomach. Through application of skincare, chemicals get straight into your bloodstream, there is no protection," he said. Among chemicals under scrutiny are parabens (para-hydroxybenzoic acids) which are preservatives used in products including soap, shampoo, deodorant and baby lotion. Traces of parabens have been found in breast tumour samples, although its link to the development of the cancer is disputed. Sodium lauryl sulphate, used to help create lather in soaps, shampoo, shaving foam, toothpaste and bubble bath, can cause skin irritation. (By Paul Stokes—The Daily Telegraph)

By Eleni Cardaci of Safire Natural Skincare