The Green Room

Cheryl Swan of Calgary, Alberta writes:

I stopped buying into this cosmetic industry’s claims in 2002 and it changed my life (I have a lot more money left at the end of each month, for one thing). I only wish I could get my friends and co-workers on board with the idea of giving up their expensive cosmetics and other beauty products, but they all think I am just "preaching".

I once read that the cosmetic industry is a $30 billion business in North America, and it was pointed out in the article, that every night the users are washing these products off and sending them down the drain and into the sewer systems. If preservatives (and other toxins) are being added to beauty products to prevent the natural decay of plant and fruit extracts within those products, what exactly happens when these products are put into our sewer system? Have there been any studies done on the effects these products are having on the environment (our river beds, city water supplies, etc.). Do they break down? Do they end up in our tap water and ultimately ingested by us?

Lindsay Coulter responds:

Sounds like you stopped exposing yourself to the chemical soup a while back! I’m sure you’re aware of these facts but perhaps you want to pass them on to your friends:

• The average adult uses nine products/day containing about 126 chemical ingredients; some women use 15!
• About 10,500 chemical ingredients make up our personal care products.
• Only 11 per cent have been tested for safety.
• Tests aren’t done by agencies like Health Canada, but by the companies themselves!
If you want to get away from preaching, suggest friends or family members check their personal care products on the Skin Deep website at www.safecosmetics.org.

In Canada, the industry runs at about $5.3 billion annually, and you’re correct in making the wildlife and aquatic life link. You can learn a lot more about their impact in various websites and books, like Ecoholic. Author Adria Vasil includes many facts about chemicals we use on our bodies and their impacts on the environment. Definitely worth the read is her chapter on pharmaceuticals and things like the results of birth-control-pill-laden pee going into our sewage system.
There have been a lot of studies and I’ll highlight only a few facts below since unfortunately, there are too many to mention:
• Swedish Society for Nature Conservation did a study with dandruff shampoo and fish in a 1,000 L aquarium. The active ingredient of interest was zinc pyrithione and half the fish died within four days. Although the ingredients are said to breakdown in water, 80 days later they could still detect it.
• Triclosan is the chemical you’ll find in antibacterial soaps. It is accumulating in our rivers and sewage sludge where it can turn into carcinogenic dioxins when exposed to sunlight in water. If your county or municipality spreads sludge on food crop fields as fertilizer then, yes, you could say it may end up in the food chain.
To help convince your friends, why not host a fun spa day? I also make up batches of safe cosmetics and cleaning supplies and give them as gifts.
On the upside, some nail salons use polish without toluene and formaldehyde, which is great not just for clients but also because they’re finding estheticians and hair dressers (exposed to hair dye) will high levels of illness.
Here’s a book that may interest you, it’s called ‘Not Just a Pretty Face”: http://www.notjustaprettyface.org/?cat=3