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There are a never ending list of factors to take into consideration when adding new beauty products to your day to day routine, but one we often don’t consider enough is the potential danger of the ingredients included within some of your favorites. Both skincare products and fragrances house a number of chemicals and ingredients which may not be advisable to use on the skin, and it’s important to be aware of what you may be blindly applying before purchasing certain perfumes that could be distributing chemicals onto your body.
While choosing a scent you enjoy is typically top of the list for criteria in buying a new fragrance, you should actually be looking out to avoid two specific ingredients that may be housed within your favorite perfume. Although they have yet to be formally banned by the FDA, phthalates and acrylates are the two ingredients you should be wary of when picking out your next perfume due to the side effects they can cause.
Phthalates
Banned by the EU but still working to be enforced, phthalates are an ingredient often found in perfumes which has been flagged by the CDC as a potential danger to both children and women hoping to become mothers. “[Phthalates] are well documented to have negative impacts on humans particularly developing/growing children and also mothers (a.k.a. reproductive health). Essentially Phthalates are a plasticizer,” explains Ellis Brooklyn founder, Bee Shapiro. “They can prevent a formula from separating or make certain formulas, particularly in fragrance, the molecules stick together longer, resulting in a longer lasting scent. In fragrance it's often known as a fixative.”
This ingredient can also be found in scented bath products such as soap and body wash, so checking the ingredients list before making any scented purchases is the best way to avoid phthalates. Additionally, looking into ‘clean’ brands which ban harsh chemicals can also protect your body from this ingredient.
Acrylates
More commonly found in nail polishes and nail care products, acrylates may also appear in your perfume and could be a potential danger to the body. “[Acrylates] are a family of polymers often used to make a scent disperse more evenly (also known as controlled fragrance release) and last longer. It's a fragrance carrier,” explains Shapiro. In fact, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has declared acrylates a potential carcinogen, meaning they may cause cancer when used regularly, as well as other skin allergies and reactions.
“An easy way to save yourself from work is to head to the clean beauty section of a beauty retailer that you know has high beauty standards and has their policies and definition of "clean" products defined,” Shapiro adds. Clean beauty can often be used as an ambiguous umbrella term that may greenwash brands to appear more environmentally conscious than they actually are, so be sure to be picky when selecting your next perfume to ensure this ingredient hasn’t been snuck into the formulation.
Unfortunately, acrylates can also find their way into other beauty products, so checking the ingredients list and researching trusted brands like Ellis Brooklyn which are dedicated to creating clean beauty products is going to be your best bet for avoiding dangerous ingredients and finding the highest quality products possible. Although not yet banned by the FDA, both phthalates and acrylates should not be included in any beauty routine to ensure you have the safest, most well-made products that won’t put your skin or body at risk.
