
Diamonds are a girl’s best friend – next to beauty products, that is. Make-up, lotion, hair conditioner, facial cleanser, and soap are just some of the things you simply can’t live without! These body care products make you look and feel good about yourself. Sadly, they do much more than give you a boost of confidence.
Beauty care products also provide you with regular doses of toxic ingredients that are damaging to your body. Research shows that 1 in every 8 personal care ingredients are industrial-grade chemicals used in concrete, paint, auto parts, and many more. These harmful substances include pesticides, carcinogens, and toxins that disrupt your body’s normal function.
Here are the 10 most toxic beauty ingredients to avoid.

1. Fragrances
“Fragrance” and “parfum” are the main ingredients of colognes and perfumes – but don’t be surprised to find them in almost every personal care product! They’re behind the sweet smell of your favorite shampoo, the luscious scent which lotion leaves on your skin, and the whiff that masks unwanted body odor. Even beauty products that are labeled “unscented” or “fragrance-free” sometimes contain fragrances.
What makes fragrances dangerous is that many of them haven’t been tested for toxicity alone or in combination with other substances. They tend to be irritants that trigger asthma, allergies, and migraines. Furthermore, a single product can have more than one fragrance as its ingredient, amplifying its toxic effects. Other evidences point to their exacerbating effects and the possibility that they cause asthma in children.
Irritation of the skin, eyes, and nose along with other allergic symptoms tend to be the more common effects of these fragrances. That being said, laboratory experiments have associated them with more concerning health problems such as cancer and neurotoxicity. One example is diethyl phthalate, a toxic pollutant under the United States Clean Water Act and a commonly used ingredient in cosmetic fragrances. Also known as DEP, it has been linked to hormonal imbalances in pubescent girls, decreased fertility in males, and kidney or liver failure in children.