Tradional Lipstick VS All-Natural: Is it Really Worth the Cost to Buy All Natural Brands?

Millions of women enjoy wearing lipstick, and with all the different brands and colors available, it's not very difficult for them to find the colors that best fit their skin complexion and taste. What many women don't realize is that despite their popularity, traditional lipstick often contains some very toxic ingredients. Some of these common toxic ingredients are methylparaben, propylparaben, retinyl palmitate, colorants and tocopheryl. These ingredients have been linked to cancer, reproductive system abnormalities, endocrine disruption and topical skin eruptions, with methylparaben posing the greatest risk, according to the U. S. Cosmetics database.

On the other hand, all-natural lipstick is formulated without the use of such potentially harmful ingredients, and they only contain natural ingredients that don't pose the risk of complications related to toxins. A recent Canadian press release reports about an intervention by Canadian health officials. The concern is in regards to D4 and D5, which are toxins found in many personal care products like lotion, soap, hair products, and especially lipstick. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, products containing D4 and D5 don't break down and can build up in the environment, putting not only wildlife at risk, but also the health of Canadian citizens. Canadian health officials have instructed companies that produce lipstick and other products containing these two toxins to either totally eliminate the toxins, or replace them with environmentally safe ingredients.

Dr. Philippa Darbe and his colleagues at the University of Reading in Britain performed an analysis of 20 different samples of human breast tumors. Although there is no verifiable proof that paraben-containing health products directly cause cancer, Dr. Darbe made an interesting discovery during his analysis. All of the tumors that were tested contained traces of paraben, which is a proven endocrine disruptor. Although the study performed by the research group in Britain was related to wearing deodorant, which also contains forms of parabens, since parabens are also present in lipstick, it's safe to assume that oral tumors would also contain parabens in women who wear traditional lipstick.

According to research as well as an analysis and comparison of ingredients, it seems as if it is worth the extra cost to purchase all-natural and/or organic lipstick. Not only will you not be exposing yourself to the dangers of potential toxins or increasing your risk of developing cancer, but you'll be doing the over-burdened earth a favor by using earth-friendly products that are devoid of toxins. In fact, organic and all-natural lipstick really doesn't cost much more than traditional lipstick, although you will have to shop at stores besides your traditional neighborhood Walmart , CVS or Walgreens, because oftentimes they do not carry the organic or all-natural alternatives. It's not difficult, however, to shop online or at your local health food store in order to find non-toxic lipstick.

References

Breast Cancer Fund - www.breastcancerfund.org/clear-science/chemicals-glossary/parabens.html

Environmental Working Group - www.ewg.org/release/ewg-lipstick-chemicals-declared-toxic-canadian-gov-t

The Daily Green - www.thedailygreen.com/living-green/lipstick-ingredients-020410

UK Health Report - www.health-report.co.uk/parabens.htm