Fragrance chemicals today are used in an astronomical number of products including; body wash, shampoo, conditioner, perfume, hand cream, body cream, diaper cream, soap, air fresheners, all sorts of cleaning supplies, school art supplies, stickers, toys and so much more.

If you dont pay close attention to what you use at home- you could literally be living surrounded by fragrance chemical every single day.

Let’s say there are three types of products : those with synthetic (man made) fragrances, those that use essential oils as a source for fragrances and products that do not contain any fragrances. Which should you choose for your family? Lets take a closer look

1. Synthetic Fragrances

Hands down- this is something you want to avoid. In fact, avoiding fragrance chemicals are an important step to take in your non-toxic living journey.

The reason?

• A company can legally use over 400 ingredients under the single term ‘ fragrance’

• Most companies can choose to not disclose the chemicals they use in their products and claim it is for “ proprietary reasons”… there are no legal requirements

• Even well known personal care companies that make “ natural” products for babies and kids can and do keep their formulations secret.

• In my experience, talking directly to these companies through my consulting work, I have found that sometimes the company itself doesnt even know what is in their product- Fragrance houses design a special fragrance for them but don’t disclose all the ingredients 🤯

• Common fragrance chemicals can lead to allergenic reactions like headache, sinus inflammation, itchiness, runny nose, but can also lead to more serious effects like hormone imbalances.

• A 1991 study by the US EPA found acetone, benzaldehyde, benzyl acetate, benzyl alcohol, camphor, ethanol, ethyl acetate, limonene, linalool, methylene chloride as well as phthalates, stearates, and parabens in perfumes it tested

• 95% of chemicals used in fragrances are synthetic compounds derived from petroleum. some of these chemicals have been linked to cancer, birth defects, central nervous system disorders and allergic reactions.

  Until things change its up to you to read that label and opt for companies that fully disclose their ingredients.
  
  Here is what to look for and what to avoid:
  1. Avoid: ingredients listed as ‘ fragrance’ ‘perfume’ ‘parfum’
  2. Avoid ‘ unscented’ this can mean that fragrance chemicals are being used to hide the scent

So: if synthetic fragrances should be avoided…. what about natural fragrances- ie essential oils?

2. ESSENTIAL OILS

Better fragrance options include essential oils. Natural organic essential oils that are properly harvested and transported (heat and other factors can affect the quality of an essential oil) can be a better, safer alternative to synthetic fragrance. High quality essential oils can have multiple and amazing beneficial health effects… however you should proceed with caution. I know there are many essential oil fans out there but, even though they have been around forever, essential oils havent all been strictly tested for safety and - as with anything in life- in excess some could potentially be harmful. Read on……

• Some essential oils can cause allergenic reaction. Essential oils rich in aldehydes (e.g., citronellal, citral) and phenols (e.g., cinnamic aldehyde, eugenol) may cause skin reactions… if using these you should always dilute prior to skin application

• Some essential oils are even suspected of being endocrine disruptors

  - Lavender and tea tree oil have been linked to abnormal breast development in males and premature breast development — without other signs of puberty — in girls younger than eight years of age.

  - Among the cases that have been cited linking lavender and tea tree oil to endocrine disruption : One girl who was bathed with a soap containing lavender oil since infancy showed breast development by one year of age. Another girl showed signs of breast development after one year of exposure to a lavender oil diffuser that ran all day on the nearby teacher’s table. Among the one boy and three girls with case reports, breast tissue regressed within six months after they stopped being exposed to the lavender fragrance products.

  - more large scale studies are required, but in the meantime it is prudent to avoid daily exposure to products that contain high concentrations of lavender and tea tree essential oil products especially during pregnancy and early childhood.

• While 2 drops of an essential oil in a bathtup full of water will probably not cause any ill effects, more care should be used when using pure un diluted essential oils during pregnancy and childhood.

• For products that contain essential oils I like to ask the manufacturer what percentage of , for example, lavender, is used in the composition of the product. Ideally stay under 1%

3. Fragrance Free

YEs, the ideal is to stick to fragrance free products. This way you are 100% sure that nothing has been added - fragrance wise- that could result in allergic or other effects.

The reality is that the more you avoid fragrances the more sensitive you will become to the plethora of fragrance chemicals used in so many products (if I walk by the perfume section of a large store I usually get headaches and a stomach ache…. ) . I like to think this is your body warning you that it is being exposed to some potentially harmful chemicals.

Buying everything Fragrance free is, admittedly, kind of boring. so for those items that you want to enjoy a soft fragrance choose low levels of organic essential oils .

One last thing: Avoid products that are labelled as ‘ unscented’ this can mean that fragrance chemicals are being used to hide the scent

SOURCES

Ramsey JT, Li Y, Arao Y, Naidu A, Coons LA, Diaz A, Korach KS. 2019. Lavender products associated with premature thelarche and prepubertal gynecomastia: case reports and EDC activities. J Clin Endocrinol Metab; doi:10.1210/jc.2018-01880 [Online 8 Aug 2019].

Dornic N, Ficheux AS, Roudot AC, Saboureau D, Ezzedine K. 2016. Usage patterns of aromatherapy among the French general population: a descriptive study focusing on dermal exposure. Regul Toxicol Pharmacol 76:87–93.

Henley DV, Lipson N, Korach KS, Bloch CA. 2007. Prepubertal gynecomastia linked to lavender and tea tree oils. N Engl J Med 356(5):479–85.

Neurotoxins: At Home and the Workplace, Report by the Committee on Science & Technology, U.S. House of Representatives, Sept. 16, 1986. (Report 99-827)

https://cfpub.epa.gov/si/si_public_record_report.cfm?dirEntryId=44765&Lab=NERL

Rudazki, E., Grzywa, Z., & Bruo, W. (1976). Sensitivity to 35 essential oils. Contact Dermatitis, 2(4):196-200. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0536.1976.tb03026.x

Sugiura, M., Hayakawa, R., Kato, Y., Sugiura, K., & Hashimoto, R. (2000). Results of patch testing with lavender oil in Japan. Contact Dermatitis, 43(3):157-160. doi:10.1034/j.1600-0536.2000.043003157.x

https://naha.org/index.php/explore-aromatherapy/safety