The Serious Dangers of Fragrances & How to Protect Yourself

Have you heard that artificial fragrances can be as bad for you as second hand smoke? It's true.

Let's talk about the dangers of fragrances, what you need to know, and what you can do about it.

Could your shampoo, perfumes, air fresheners, house cleaners, candles, and dryer sheets really be killing you?

It's true.

More than that, it's now being said that Fragrance is the New Second Hand Smoke, due to something called Phthalates (ph-thal-ates)

When I was a young girl, my parents both smoked.  I have distinct memories of asking them to:

• “PLEASE roll the (car) windows down.
• “Roll them down MORE please?”
• I even cut up my mom's pack of cigarettes once in protest.

The smoke made me feel sick. Really sick.

And it still does to this day.

I also couldn't stand artificial fragrances. Whenever I passed through the perfume section of a department store, or went down the cleaning aisle of the grocery store, my head felt terrible. To this day, I try to hold my breath as much as possible in heavily-fragranced public restrooms: it's not easy!

Anyway, I always felt like artificial fragrances weren't good for me, but I never knew that they could be as bad as that horribly demonized (and rightfully so) second-hand smoke!

Well, turns out, it is.

What Does the Term Fragrance Mean on Labels?

Fragrance is basically a catch word for all kinds of bad things.  It can be labeled as “fragrance” or “parfum” and the real ingredients don't need to be disclosed and have not been tested for safety.

“Fragrance” can be made up of 1, or 2, or even hundreds of chemicals. In fact, in 2010, there were 3,163 chemicals that could be part of the term “fragrance” on labels in the US.

Up to 75% of the time, when there is a “fragrance” in an ingredient, there are legally hidden phthalates, which is not a good thing.

In addition to phthalates, there also can be other nasty ingredients, including aldehydes, toluenes, and petroleum-derived chemicals that might be best to be avoided.

Let's find out more what the concerns are with these.

What are Phthalates?

Phthalates (pronounced “THAL ates”) are solvents that are often used in cosmetics because they help fragrances last longer and also help lotions penetrate the skin.

Those are nice benefits, (who wants their perfume not to last as long, right?) but they are known endocrine disruptors that have been linked to:

birth defects
breast cancer (possibly)
infertility
diabetes
obesity
autoimmune disorders
and also autism and ADHD from exposure in the womb.

These chemicals also STICK around, meaning they hang around on you and in the environment too. No bueno.

What Is an Endocrine Disruptor?

Your endocrine system (adrenals, thyroid, pituitary, sex hormones, etc.) affects almost everything in your body.  So if you disrupt them, you disrupt everything, and that can lead to weight gain, blood sugar issues, and more.

Think about that. What happens when you disrupt your adrenals, thyroid, and sex hormones, and pituitary gland? Sounds like we have an epidemic of that going on right now.

In fact, did you know that an estimated 20 million people in the US have thyroid disease?

Oh, and they are not regulated in food or personal care products in the U.S.  Nice……

No thanks, I don't want these things on my body.

Other Toxic Components

Aside from phthalates, there are other troublesome ingredients that can be in artificial fragrances. The list is so plentiful, that to cover all of them would be quite difficult, but I will touch on these others briefly.

Aldehydes are linked to breathing problems, depending on the concentration.

Toluene (methylbenzene) is linked to developmental and reproductive toxicity, organ system toxicity, and irritation. It's a neurotoxin and is largely sourced from petroleum crude oil. It can cause damage to the lungs, liver, kidneys, heart, and central nervous system, and can cause headaches, loss of muscle control, brain damage, memory loss, problems with speech, hearing, and vision, and even death.

Other synthetic fragrance ingredients that are of notable concern are:

• Acetaldehyde:  produces a fruity odor, but is a probable human carcinogen.
• Acetonitrile: can cause weakness, headaches, tremors, numbness, and nausea.
• Styrene oxide: can cause skin and eye irritation, and in animal studies, it is known to cause depression.
• Musk tetralin (AETT): has been shown to be an endocrine disruptor.

How Long Does It Take for Artificial Fragrances to Degrade?

The answer is: a LONG time.

Since there are so many components to artificial fragrances, it's impossible to list all of them, but some say that they last about 5 years, while in recent research I found one component lasts up to around 200 years!

Others Sounding the Alarm

It's not just “crunchy granola moms” who are concerned about these toxins. There are many other studies out there and large companies are concerned about the danger of artificial fragrances too. This breast cancer organization has sounded the alarm about toxins and cancer. And there's information linking toxic fragrances used during pregnancy to autism and more.

Are Natural/Clean Products Safe?

If you've been shopping at your local health food store, surely you're not in danger, right? Wrong!

I personally have been shocked to see the multitude of companies that are supposed to be “green”, “organic”, or “natural” that have these dangerous artificial fragrances in them. I think you'll be shocked too.

Here you are, shelling out extra money to get something that you think is clean and non-toxic, but really you are ending up with something that is mucking with your endocrine system big time.

Here is a listing of companies that tout themselves as being “natural”, but some of their products are far from.

• Melaleuca: (contains “fragrance”)
• Mrs. Meyer's: (contains a “mixture of natural, high-quality essential oils and safe synthetic fragrance ingredients”)
• Babyganics: (contains “fragrance” despite having “fragrance-free” on the label).
• Nubian Heritage: (contains “fragrance”)
• Jason: (contains “fragrance”)
• Alba Botanical: (contains “fragrance”)
• Herbivore: contains fragrance/parfum
• Oliveda: claims that fragrances are all natural but they are listed as fragrance/parfum

I'm not saying that everything these companies make is a problem, but I was shocked to see synthetic fragrances in these lines and figured you might be too. Of course, that could change, but I am encouraging you to read the labels and see what really is in your products.

Natural Fragrance Might Not Be Natural After All

I'll be sharing more about this later, but I have tried many products that said “Essential Oil Blend” or “Essential Oil” on the label, but believe me, something's not right there.

The scents are WAY too strong. And one company even owned up to me that “Essential Oil Blend” only meant that MOST of the fragrance ingredients were natural. HUH!?!?!?!?

DIY Recipe Concerns

There are loads of recipes on the internet that can help you save money by making things yourself, but some of those have unsavory ingredients too.

Be on the lookout for anything including Dawn Dish Soap (that's a pretty obvious one to avoid) or the more seemingly natural Fels-Naptha soap.  My mom used that soap a lot when I was young so I picked up a few bars thinking I would do some nice DIY projects, only to find that it contains that mystical “fragrance” too.

Bye-bye Fels.

How to Avoid Toxic Fragrances

So what's a person to do?

1.  First of all, Read Labels

If the label says “fragrance” or “parfum” contact the manufacturer and find out what that term means in this case.

Make sure you aren't buying products with phthalates or aldehydes, at the very least.

And even if it clearly says “fragrance-free” on the label, sometimes there still are synthetic fragrances in there. Sadly, misleading marketing is everywhere.

You REALLY need to be a detective here. I once bought a product that had “Fragrance (Essential Oil Blend)” listed on the label. I ended up having heart palpitations in the middle of the night from this product and had to wash my hair out! I contacted the company about this and asked them how that could be and they finally owned up that the “blend” wasn't entirely essential oils!!

Talk about deceptive marketing!!

2.  Return Products

Return any products containing phthalates, aldehydes, or any of these other problematic ingredients to the store where you bought them.  Tell them that you refuse to poison yourself, your family, and the environment with these toxins.

3.  Ditch Questionable Products

Get rid of products like air freshening sprays and gels, scented cleaners (think dish soap, toilet bowl cleaner, window cleaner), laundry detergent and toxic dryer sheets, and personal care products with problematic fragrances. Not only do they likely contain phthalates, but they also contain industrial chemicals that can cause asthma attacks and more.

4.  Choose Wisely

Learn to be an ingredient detective and find companies and products that you can trust.

There is more green-washing out there than not, but there are for sure some good companies out there that you can buy from with confidence.

Just be careful as more and more “good guys” are getting bought up by larger companies without a reputation for “being green”, so you really need to stay on top of things.

What might be “fragrance-free” one day, might not be so the next.

5.  Make Your Own Products

Instead of buying products in the store that likely have questionable ingredients, try your hand at making homemade beauty products. For example, you can learn how to make an essential oil body spray, or a homemade body wash.

However, make sure to only use natural essential oils for your fragrances. Of course, you have to be very very careful to make sure that you are buying pure essential oils (that post shows you how to evaluate companies for purity) since many essential oils on the market have been adulterated.

You might think that using essential oils is limiting compared to being able to buy Snickerdoodle Cookie scented candies at your local Body Shop, but it's not.

For an idea of how creative you can be, look at this list of Holiday Essential Oil Blends–perfect for making your home smell festive. You can do similar blends all year round–without toxins.

6. Buy a Quality Air Purifier

Quality air purifiers can help you deal with the effects of these fragrances.

A personal ionizer like this one helps deal with the effects of fragrances and addresses VOCs. You can read the reviews to see examples of how well they might work for you.

Austin Air is the leader in air purification and their Healthmate Plus addresses VOCs.

I'm an Austin Air dealer and can offer savings to my readers. Simply reach out at adrienne {at} wholenewmom {dot} com for more info.

This large ionizer purifier is another good option to address VOCs.

Of course, avoidance is the best bet, but sometimes you just can't avoid this kind of thing easily.

Where to Buy Products Without Artificial Fragrances

Basically, find a company that doesn't have “fragrance” or “parfum”, or if you really want to use a product that has those ingredients listed on the label, contact the company and do your homework.

Again, just make sure to read your labels.

AND reading labels might not be enough. Some “natural” products gave our son migraines– and one company even admitted that their labels were not transparent.

I spent a long time searching for companies that I could recommend wholeheartedly. Two that I have found are Crunchi and Poofy Organics.

Crunchi

Crunchi is super transparent about their ingredients and uses no artificial fragrances, no phthalates and no aldehydes. They have free shipping at $175, a 30 day return policy, and an Insider program with a free gift at $50 for joining, 10% CrunchiCash on each purchase, and free shipping at $125.

You can read more about Crunchi's high standards in my Crunchi review and my post about Beautycounter alternatives.

Rowe Casa

Rowe Casa uses only essential oils in their products and they smell amazing. It's not a personal care product, but their Bergamot Lavender Liquid Laundry Detergent makes laundry truly a pleasure.

I'm going to be testing out their face and body products as well, but I'm really liking their Scar Stick and Hair Spritz. This is truly a great company to check out and their Wellness products are superb.

Poofy Organics

Poofy Organics also uses no artificial ingredients and they also focus heavily on organic ingredients.

One fun difference is that they work really hard at having fun scents for a lot of their products. They utilize natural and organic oils for those. Vanilla Sugar is one of my favorites!

You can see more about Poofy Organics in my post about Beautycounter alternatives.

Not Transparent Companies

In my search for companies that I could trust, I found MANY other companies flat out lying about ingredients, including telling lies or making giant semantic leaps about the lingo related to the fragrances in their products.

Some of them even have ingredients on their labels that don't exist!  

I don't want these things in my home or on my body.  And I for sure don't want them on my kids' bodies.

Regardless of whether you choose to DIY, or buy products that are transparent like those from Crunchi and Poofy Organics, make a change for better health and ditch the fake fragrances for good.

Your health and your family's health might truly depend on it.

Did you know about the risks of fragrances and where they lurk? 
Or was this a complete surprise to you?