Less harmful chemicals coming soon to CVS

Finding green less toxic beauty and personal care products will soon be easier than ever. CVS just announced that their store-brand beauty prods — i.e. the CVS Health, Beauty 360, Essence of Beauty, and Blade lines will be free of known toxins like parabens and phthalates ( both endocrine disruptors) as well as the most common formaldehyde contributors.   The safer products will be fully available by 2019- so there is a waiting period BUT it is amazing news for health conscious  consumers!!

What chemicals will be eliminated from CVS 

Store Brand Baby, Beauty and Personal Care Products include ?

formaldehyde donors:

• What are they: These are chemicals that either contain formaldehyde or release formaldehyde a known carcinogen. Companies use these chemicals in personal care products like shampoos and liquid baby soap to help prevent microbes from growing in water-based products. Unfortunately these chemicals can be absorbed through the skin and have been linked to cancer and allergic skin reactions.

• How to identify them: They could show up on a label with these names: Formaldehyde, quaternium-15, DMDM hydantoin, imidazolidinyl urea, diazolidinyl urea, polyoxymethylene urea, sodium hydroxymethylglycinate, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1,3-diol (bromopol) and glyoxal.... but remember personal care companies do not have to disclose their ingredients so just because a product does not list an ingredient does not mean they do not contain the ingredient

Parabens

• What are they? Parabens, like formaldehyde in personal care products are chemicals used as preservatives in a wide variety of personal care products and foods to prevent the growth of microbes. They are proven endocrine-disrupting chemicals which can be absorbed through skin, blood and the digestive system.

• How to identify them: Parabens are usually found in makeup, shampoos, conditioners, lotions, facial and shower cleansers and scrubs. CVS has specifically banned: Ethylparaben, butylparaben, methylparaben, propylparaben, Heptylparaben and isobutylparaben.

• Phthalates

• What are they? Phthalates are common chemicals that have been linked to endocrine disruption, developmental and reproductive toxicity, and cancer. They have been banned from cosmetics in the EU, but are still legal in the US

• How to identify them: Phthalates in beauty products can be found in products that contain the ingredient 'fragrance' or 'perfum' (this chemical helps the fragrance chemical bind to the product).

What products will be included in this move?

As we mentioned only the store brand beauty products which include CVS

CVS brand Essence of Beauty will soon be a lot less toxic Health, Beauty 360, Essence of Beauty, and Blade lines.  

Well established mainstream brands like L'oreal, Maybelline, Neutrogena et al are not included

CVS representatives mentioned that customer feedback drove this move to eliminate parabens, phthalates and the most prevalent formaldehyde CVS brand Beauty 360 donors.  CVS worked closely with  Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families (SCHF) coalition and its Mind the Store campaign  (http://saferchemicals.org/mind-the-store/ ), an organization working to reduce the use of toxic chemicals in consumer products, strengthen the understanding of chemicals of consumer concern and inform opportunities for retailers to advance chemical safety in consumer products.  They recently worked with Target, among other major retail stores.