AIBU to panic about my personal care and grooming products now?

[PeaceAndHope]

Apparently I am very ignorant when it comes the potential health dangers of cosmetics:(

I used to be a make-up artist when I was younger and I still enjoy painting on a face when I'm stepping out

My SIL has just sent me a barrage of emails about the carcinogens (cancer-causing agents) in moisturisers, make-up and perfumes. There is all this information about lead in lipsticks, chromium and iron in eye shadows, parabens in moisturiser and some other dangerous stuff in anti-perspirants. All of these ingredients can apparently cause cancer and/or infertility.

What do you girls make of this? Do you think we should be concerned about what's in our make-up and toiletries? Will you stop using make-up and your favourite moisturiser after hearing about this?

I am personally scared now! I don't want to stop using make-up or my anti-frizz shampoo, but I am going to feel a lot less safe putting them on my body now.

Am I worrying over nothing? More importantly, are you worried?

[meditrina]

When you say "girls"' is there a particular age of respondent you are after - under 18 for ordinary meaning of 'female child' doesn't seem likely for this site, but are you specifically after say under 25s?

[Iamsparklyknickers]

Not overly - if you tested all the chemicals in your everyday environment you'd find gazillions that you're regularly inhaling or absorbing. Arsenic in almonds, nicotine in tomatoes - the world is made of chemicals.

Meh - make-up is a drop in the chemical ocean that we live in.

[CaptainCapybara]

Yes I think you are worrying over nothing. Many, many things can be said to be carcinogenic, you would never do anything if you worried over everything. Occasional use of makeup will not kill you, I would wager using it everyday wouldn't either.

[GeraldineAubergine]

This seems like a very plausible, off the cuff post with a perfectly usual turn of phrase here and there.

[Iamsparklyknickers]

Oh and I'm pretty sure oxygen can be classed as carcinogenic and I'm not about to give that up!

(you might want to fact check that statement though)

[PeaceAndHope]

meditrina

Sorry if I offended you with the use of that word. I am not addressing this to any particular age group.

I said "girls" because I tend to refer to my mates like that since our school days :) This is a conversation that I would have with them, so I just said girls without thinking. It wasn't my intention to offend anyone!

This question is open to all age groups! I would like to amend the word 'girls' in my OP to 'ladies'

[GeraldineAubergine]

I wonder, if I were writing, say, an article about women being sold carcinogenic make up, where would I do my research? Hmmmmmm what say you girls?

[MinnieBar]

I'm pretty sure lipstick hasn't had lead in it since the 50s?

[lifeissweet]

Pretty much everything has been charged with being carcinogenic at one time or another (mostly in the Daily Mail).

I have come to the conclusion that Life is a carcinogen and that it's best just to get on with it - unless something is dangerous enough to be banned for it (e.g. smoking), then I wouldn't lose too much sleep over it.

[lifeissweet]

Oh and try 'women'

[TrucksAndDinosaurs]

Have you checked Snopes?
Google 'Snopes makeup cancer'

[TooTabooToBoo]

Why, when I read this, did I do so with Matthew Wright's voice ringing in my ears?

[amothersplaceisinthewrong]

I am most certainly NOT worried. Having used make up for 40 plus years I am not about to stop now, in fact it would be much more scary TO stop. I would be far more worried about being overweight than using make up.

Some people clearly do not have enough to occupy themselves.

[PeaceAndHope]

MinnieBar

That's what I thought! But read this-

jezebel.com/the-lead-in-your-favorite-lipstick-is-even-worse-than-y-493159725

I am not sure if this is a reliable website, but if what they state is true then it is quite alarming.

[PeaceAndHope]

This one is a more balanced article-

articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-08-22/news/41437357_1_dr-sean-palfrey-metals-lipstick

[JeanPaget]

Jesus, the OP is asking a genuine question and has already very politely changed her phrasing once. Is there really any need to be quite so nasty about her choice of words .

To answer your question, no I'm not at all worried about carcinogens in makeup, smacks of DM scaremongering to me.

[LifeIsBetterInFlipFlops]

No I wouldn't worry about all the chemicals - a bit head in the sand I know, but I think in the great scheme, it's not high on the list of worries.

Neither is the use of the words girls / ladies - that's just MN vipers for you.

[BrianTheMole]

I wonder, if I were writing, say, an article about women being sold carcinogenic make up, where would I do my research? Hmmmmmm what say you girls?

hmm, well girl, I think here would be a good place to start

[AgentZigzag]

Not sure 'ladies' is any better tbh

Maybe vipers wimmen women/people?

Everything seems to cause cancer, it's random and viscous, if I stopped doing everything I thought upped the risk of it hitting me, I wouldn't get out of bed of a morning (which probably causes cancer in some way regardless).

I'm a bit fatalistic about it, which I might regret at some point but I'll cross that bridge as/when.

[AgentZigzag]

Is barraging you with scary emails the norm for your SIL?

And do you usually freak out about them?

[PeaceAndHope]

Aaaah. Thanks for the referral to snopes.

[PeaceAndHope]

I just wanted to confirm with more people before I tossed out my Bobbi Brown collection!

[LifeIsBetterInFlipFlops]

Hurrah...long live the Bobbi Brown collection!

[PeaceAndHope]

Bloody things are so expensive . If these claims were true, they would be charging to give us cancer.

[meditrina]

Thanks OP.

I am eligible after all!

I'm not especially worried. The major nasties have been removed, though there are some ingredients which you wouldn't want high exposure to (and it's so hard to know overall lifetime load, especially for those found in so many products (not just grooming ones).

Idon't use cosmetics very often, so tend not to think about what may be in them (I've also read somewhere about some bizarrely huge number of lipsticks a lipstick-wearing woman eats over a lifetime, and that in itself is pretty off putting).

I do look for ranges which are free of certain ingredients(SLS in high quantities which makes my skin noticeably drier). Lots of French mainstream ranges are paraben free these days too.