What is “fragrance”?
Fragrances are added to virtually everything from cleaning products to perfume to toothpaste and even orange juice. But fragrance isn’t just one thing, but rather a long list of ingredients that manufacturers aren’t required to disclose to the public [1]. Fragrances are used to enhance a consumer’s sensory experience of a product.What products are fragrances in?
Fragrance may be added to almost any product you can think of including incense, candles, perfumes, toys, personal care products, and juice [3]. The real question is, what’s in the fragrance? Some of the toxic chemicals that are commonly included in the toxic brew include formaldehyde, p-dichlorobenzene, and petroleum distillates [2].How to tell if a product has fragrances
Products typically will list one word, “fragrance” on a product label. The problem is that it’s nearly impossible to know the ingredients that actually make up a fragrance, because the one word “fragrance” can actually hide more than 100 different chemicals. Unfortunately the fragrance industry is primarily self-regulated, where safety testing does not have to precede product sales and fragrance cocktails don’t even have to be reviewed by regulatory agencies. Fragrances are considered trade secrets, meaning that manufacturers aren’t required to disclose the potentially hundreds of ingredients hiding behind the one word “fragrance”.Risks associated with fragrances:
Fragrance chemicals can pass through the skin and enter the blood stream. They are manufactured from petroleum and coal tar and are classified as carcinogens, hormone disruptors, neurotoxins, skin and respiratory irritants. Plus, many “natural” fragrance ingredients are as dangerous as the synthetic ones. Fragrance chemicals have been known to cause all kinds of nasty problems which is why the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention follow a fragrance-free policy in the work-place [3]. Common health issues caused by exposure to fragrances include:- Migraine headaches
- Hormonal disruption
- Asthma
- Cancer [2]