I decided to look up
two products I use every single day. First,
I checked my mouthwash, which is Crest Pro Health Advanced Mint. The EWG Database has given it a rating of
four, or moderate with fair data. While
I knew it had a lot of chemicals which purportedly help to improve our oral
health, I’m interested to learn that it could cause other issues, primarily
from the fluoride, such as irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), organ system
toxicity (non-reproductive) and/or developmental/reproductive toxicity.
The most interesting thing about this is that I’ve never given it
a thought before. From a young age, it
was always simply brush your teeth and the use mouthwash. To this day, I’ve honestly never thought
twice about potential dangers, chemicals or any reason not to use it. It’s just something I’ve done. The second item I checked was my Dove antiperspirant
which I also use daily. This also fell
into the moderate category but with a score of three and limited data. Primary concern seems related to the actual
fragrance with allergies/immunotoxicity, skin/eye/lung irritation, organ system
toxicity and ecotoxicity. I think we all
know about the chemicals we’re exposed to on a daily basis, but I don’t think
many, myself included, know about what these chemicals can actually do to
us. I do feel strongly that people
should be aware of the risks found in the products we use daily or even occasionally. While I personally haven’t changed my
consumer behaviors yet, I am definitely going to start looking for some new
products.
Hey Doug,
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you're saying about the whole brushing your teeth and never thinking twice about what can be found. I do agree with fluoride does give off irritation; at least for me. Sometimes hone I use mouth wash it burns my gums, a lot. I know that is a common symptom since it is killing off germs but now looking more into the chemicals we find there is extra chemicals that we have no idea that can be found. I agree that this will help me look for new products to replace the old ones.
Hi Doug,
ReplyDeleteI think it's cool that you looked up products you use everyday. I've never thought about mouthwash because I don't use it. It seems a little scary that something like that could be toxic! Come to think of it I haven't looked up my toothpaste yet. I've heard bad things about antiperspirants (specifically breast cancer), so I stopped using mine a few years ago. There are a number of decent natural deodorants! I use Native. These posts are giving me an extra push to look at my products too!
Malena