Two Things You Should know About Perfume IF you're the sensitive type — the always sneezing, quick-to-get-a-rash-from-a-new-detergent guy or gal — someone has probably already told you to avoid perfume. Ditto if you've ever been pregnant. It’s come up as a major no-no in every post we’ve done in this series.But how much do you know about parfum. Chances are, not a whole lot. Like most things in the self-regulated personal care business, it's shrouded in mystery — but this is an exceptionally thick and stinky smokescreen. As for the gentlemen who think they’re clear of risk because they haven’t doused in Drakkar Noir since 1997 — not so fast. The perfume is in your soap,
your shampoo, your aftershave, and your deodorant. Let’s not even talk about the crap they spray your car with post-wash. Of course, for women, it’s also in ... well, everything. It defies logic, but many lipsticks and mascaras are even made with the stuff. The biggest rub? If you want to know what’s in those scented concoctions used in most of your products — short of taking them to a lab — you can’t. Here’s why:
1. The perfume is protected under trade secret law. That means the industry is not Required to reveal what goes into its mixes. In its Cosmetic Labeling Guide, the FDA states that perfume ingredients “may be declared ... as "perfume." Now flip any bottle in your bathroom and peruse that list.
Somewhere amidst the unpronounceable words is that familiar “perfume” — but that alone represents an average of 10 to 20 secret ingredients. The industry will claim that these protective measures are a necessary bulwark against thieving perfumers — but really? Just because I know what’s in the Caramilk bar. Doesn’t mean I can duplicate it. These laws represent a significant deterrent, sure, but any hack can have perfume analyzed in a lab and got the ingredient list that way. So who should get the protection: the perfume business or the consumers? Read on. 2. The perfume is everywhere. As already mentioned — From your lipstick, to your body lotion, to your scented candle, from your cat’s collar, to your Tide. 3. Many of its ingredients haven’t been tested at all. The industry likes to boast about its scientific review panels and its voluntary safety compliance, but a recent lab analysis of 17 perfumes, colognes and body sprays done by the EWG and the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics reveals. “The majority of chemicals found in this report have never been assessed for safety by any publicly accountable agency, or by the cosmetics industry’s self-policing review panels.”
4. perfume may be messing with your hormones. ​Of the ingredients we do know something about, on average, each of the tested products contained four potentially hormone-disrupting chemicals. J-Lo and Halle Berry’s scents were singled out for containing seven. Among most of the products were phthalate (see our previous entry on that subject). That ubiquitous group of chemicals suspected of causing deformed sex organs in baby boys according to this "60 Minutes" report. Despite mounting evidence, the perfume industry has argued for their safety in the past.
5. It may also contain carcinogens. As one example (and there were more), the perfume compound myrcene was detected in 16 of the 17 products. According to a two-year study conducted by the National Toxicology Program, this substance has shown “clear evidence” of carcinogenic activity in rats. Charming.
6. You could be allergic to it. Twenty-four common allergens were found in the lab results. Sensitizations to perfume are frequent, varied and, as you can imagine, notoriously tricky to diagnose thanks to the business-friendly laws mentioned above. For the book, we spoke to a woman who spent eight years trying to track down the very common but “secret” chemical she was reacting to in perfume.