You’ve probably heard about parabens and how harmful they can be to your health. But do you really know what they are?
What are parabens?
Parabens are chemical substances found in many products we consume daily, used as preservatives. In the cosmetics world, parabens are used to extend product shelf life.
What does this mean? All cosmetics have a useful life that should not be exceeded, i.e., an expiration date. That’s why it’s advisable to replace them before the date mentioned on the labels, as using them afterward could cause health problems.
These preservatives extend the shelf life of the products that contain them because they have properties that prevent the appearance of microbes, bacteria, and fungi, and therefore protect the products from spoiling quickly. This does not mean that without parabens, all these bacteria would appear. In fact, there are many other alternatives.
Other natural preservatives
There are many natural options, and preservatives sometimes have very strange names, but that doesn’t make them any less natural. The best options are sorbic acid and its salts, benzoic acid and its salts, benzyl alcohol...
In fact, all cosmetics that have an aqueous content, or even aloe vera, must be fully protected from bacteria and fungi through a preservative.
Furthermore, cosmetic brands must undergo an expensive analysis called a “Challenge Test,” which studies the effect of the preservative we add to each of our products. To help you understand, for several weeks, a series of small organisms are introduced into the cosmetic, and they observe whether the specific organism lives or dies within the mixture for a given period. Therefore, you can rest assured about one thing: using a natural preservative is completely effective; the only difference is that the cosmetic has an earlier expiration date than it would, for example, with a paraben.
Parabens: How to find them on the label
Parabens are present in makeup, creams, and hair products, among others, and we can identify them by reading the terms methylparaben (E218), propylparaben (E216), butylparaben or benzylparaben (E214) on labels. But these substances are not only used in cosmetics; they are also employed in hygiene products, medicines, and many foods. They are commonly used due to their low cost and high effectiveness, but in recent years, many doubts have arisen about how toxic and harmful they can be.
Parabens and their effects
In fact, between 2002 and 2004, a study emerged explaining that parabens can be carcinogenic substances. Oncologists from the University of Edinburgh discovered this when they conducted studies on cancerous tissues from biopsies taken from women with breast cancer. Upon analysis, they observed traces of parabens, leading to the conclusion that they may encourage the development of tumors and breast cancer.
These preservatives have also been found to disrupt the body's hormonal balance and have led to an increase in allergic reactions and skin problems such as redness, dryness, inflammation, itching, and pain.
All these problems are leading many people to increasingly consume natural products that do not contain parabens, such as organic cosmetics, which use other types of natural preservatives that are not toxic to health.
If they are so toxic, why are they used?
We believe there are several reasons. The first is that using a paraben increases a company's profits. It's cheaper to buy and allows for longer stock retention. Imagine quickly producing 5,000 creams and knowing you can keep them on the shelf for 4 years, whereas if you use a natural preservative, you'd have them stored for a maximum of a year and a half.
If you choose a natural preservative, you are opting for conscious consumption
Therefore, we believe that using a natural preservative, characteristic of natural cosmetic brands, clearly means opting for more conscious consumption because, of course, the company that manufactures the product knows its durability, and the customer can recognize that they usually work with smaller batches, that they are buying a fresher and, of course, healthier product. Furthermore, they will stop storing too many similar products at home.