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They are everywhere – in toothpaste and medicines, in confectionery and canned fish. And in cosmetics, of course, too. But lately, many users have been chasing beauty products labeled paraben free. Are they really better and safer? Let’s figure it out.
Parabens: what is it
Parabens were not invented yesterday. Their history began in the XNUMXth century. Even then, chemists were experimenting with might and main with benzoic acid, a natural antibacterial agent that is found in large quantities, for example, in cranberries. Scientists have tried modifying benzoic acid to make more effective preservatives.
This is how parabens were discovered – esters of para-hydroxybenzoic acid, which have pronounced antiseptic and antifungal properties. They are actively used in the cosmetic, pharmaceutical and food industries with 1925 year.
Parabens are an inexpensive preservative, which means that cosmetics with them will never cost crazy money.
Are parabens dangerous?
Of course, when parabens first began to be used, their safety issues were not deeply investigated. At the beginning of the XNUMXth century, people were rather frivolous (by today’s standards) about the possible toxicity of products. But in the future, parabens have undergone many tests.
So, in a scientific review published in the journal Food and Chemical Toxicology in 2002, noted: the health hazard of experimental rats becomes real if they are fed daily with 5700 mg of parabens per kilogram of body weight. For comparison: according to the most inflated estimates, with the active use of cosmetics, a woman can apply up to 50 mg of these substances to the skin per day.
Many laboratories today continue to find out:
- whether it is possible to attribute carcinogenic properties to parabens (apparently not);
- whether they are able to act on cells, like sex hormones (yes, but only in huge doses, very far from real life).
Research has found no direct link between parabens and any health problems, including breast cancer, the American Cancer Society website says today.
Since 1925, parabens have been used extensively in the cosmetics industry.
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Useful Properties
The harm of parabens has not been proven, but why not play it safe? Isn’t it better to really do without preservatives in cosmetics? And here it is not. The fact is that cream or lipstick without preservatives is excellent nutrition. And not only for the skin, but also for bacteria, including pathogens.
- Lipstick in a stick is in contact with the entire diversity of the bacterial world of our oral cavity and skin of the lips.
- And the cream that we most often pick up with our fingers is with microorganisms that live on the skin of the hands and under the nails.
And in general, as soon as we open a jar of cream, bacteria from the air instantly get into it.
What do parabens do?
- Extend the lifespan of cosmetics. Without preservatives, beauty products last only a few days, and we would have to buy them very, very often.
- Practically exclude allergic reactions and well tolerated by the body. Proponents of natural cosmetics call for the use of natural preservatives, such as grapefruit seed oil or cloves, and these are just potential allergens.
- Keep prices for cosmetics within reason. This is an inexpensive preservative, which means that cosmetics with parabens will never cost crazy money.
kAs soon as we open a jar of cream, bacteria from the air instantly enter it
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The use of parabens in cosmetics
How to understand if a particular cream contains parabens or not? Carefully study its composition. On food labels, parabens are most often denoted by the letter E in combination with certain numbers:
- E214 – ethylparaben;
- E216 — propylparaben;
- E218 — methylparaben.
On the packaging of a cosmetic product, they are simply listed:
- butylparaben;
- benzylparaben;
- isobutylparaben (and its sodium salts);
- isopropylparaben (and its sodium salts).
Finally, the manufacturer may covertly report the presence of parabens using the following synonyms:
- metagin;
- propagin;
- methyl-, ethyl-, propyloxybenzoic acids (hydroxybenzoate);
- hydroxybenzoic acids (hydroxybenzoate);
- RNV.
All products of large manufacturers, with or without parabens, must be researched and tested for safety.
You can read more about ingredients, production processes, quality and safety requirements here!