Parabens - estrogen mimetics in cosmetics; and herbal extracts for skin and hair care.

I found a beauty product while picking up litter and discuss its ingredients both beneficial and potentially harmful.

Too situationally funny not to share - I found a beauty product for itchy scalp or skin while picking up litter. The bottle was closed and still half full, hmmmm. I read the label, interesting ingredient list. I sniffed it - it smelled good. I tried it on my hands - it felt good. Later I tried some on my itchy scalp. The next morning it felt better.

(HollywoodBeautyProducts.com)

The brand….Hollywood Beauty. I visit their site…

Who wants moisturized, manageable and jaw dropping hair everyday? We do.
#hollywoodbeautymixologist #hollywoodbeautyherooils

You can have it, and Hollywood Beauty® wants to help. Whether curly, coily, wavy or straight, you have your "personal" hair care plan. Our many products are used individually, together and with others to ensure you start with a healthier scalp, clean hair and moisturization. While our products are great for all hair types, textures and styles, you will use less for straight hair styles and more for coily, tight textured and protective hairstyles. Remember to follow key tips of hydration:

1. Drinking enough water

2. Eating green leafy vegetables

3. The key is moisture no matter your hair texture. Conditioning, Cleansing and Moisturizing your hair and scalp on a schedule is a must. Using Hollywood Beauty®’s Tea Tree oil, Hair Retention and Growth Vitamin E Leave In fortified with Coconut Oil, Aloe Juice and Argan and Growth Oils will make all the difference. - Personal Care DIY Solutions, HollywoodBeautyProducts.com.

I am a fan of drinking water for hair and skin health. Want healthy hair - drink water and eat green leafy vegetables! Yeah! Adequate protein and trace minerals also helps. Green leafy vegetables are a good source of phospholipids which we need to make cannabinoids which are involved in sebaceous gland function. Lack of cannabinoids can lead to overactive sebaceous glands which end up feeling like an enlarged itchy spot on the scalp. Fennel seed oil or extract us supposed to be good for scalp health.

The product I found is called Tea Tree Oil Sin & Scalp Treatment. It includes soybean oil, Tea tree oil, safflower seed oil, Rose hips fruit oil, Sweet almond oil, peanut oil, BHT (preservative), Vitamin E, Sunflower seed oil. The list of herbal extracts is long:

1. Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract - aloe is helpful for skin aiding wound or scars to heal thoroughly.

2. Chamomilla Extract, (Recutita Matricaria), soothing, anti-inflammatory, may help age spots (so might pomegranate peel extract). ebanel.com/6-benefits-of-chamomile-flower-extract-for-your-skin.

3. Arnica Montana Flower Extract, “Mountain arnica flower extract is excellent for acne, rashes, tired and aching muscles, bruises, and sprains. It is analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-microbial. When applied to the skin, arnica helps improve the local blood supply and accelerate tissue healing.” (inci.guide).

4. Rosemary Leaf Extract, (Rosmarinus Officinalis), “It contains numerous hair and scalp-healthy benefits, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, it helps to prevent premature graying, helps to heal dry itchy scalp as well as prevents dandruff.” (melaninhaircare.com - products are currently sold out but are pure and look beneficial and “No parabens” is high-lighted. (hair oil blend))

5. Sage Leaf Extract, (Salvia Officinalis), anti-inflammatory, may help acne and eczema. Pure essential oil needs to be diluted first. Little Known Benefits of Sage for the Skin (herbneden.com)

6. Pinus Palustris Leaf Extract, anti-inflammatory, used in cleansers more than other types of cosmetics, not frequently used in cosmetics (0.4% of products in this company’s database skinsort.com).

7. Burdock Root Extract, (Arctium Minus), anti-inflammatory, used for acne, eczema and psoriasis, may also have anti-aging benefits for skin.

8. Lemon Peel Extract, (Citrus Medica Limonum), astringent, helps with exfoliation.

9. Ivy Extract, (Hedera Helix), “Hedera helix extract is an emollient that keeps products blended together and is a moisturizer that helps keep the skin soft. […] Research finds that the extract can also inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and E. coli.” (puracy.com)

10. Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract, anti-inflammatory, reduce itching.

11. Indian Cress Extract, (Tropaeolum Majus), “antimicrobial, skin conditioning, tonic” (incidecoder.com) < that site finds products by an ingredient. This is a paraben free product that contains Indian Cress Extract and other beneficial extracts: (devita-aloe-vera-moisture-cleanser)

12. White Nettle Flower Extract, (Lamium Album) - anti-inflammatory, anti-itching.

Other ingredients in the HollywoodBeauty product: Isopropyl Myristate, Fragrance, Phenoxyethanol, Methyl Paraben, Isopropulparaben, Isobutylparaben, Butylparaben, D&C Yellow #11 (CI 4700).

Four different parabens. The vitamin E and BHT also act as preservatives and so does rosemary extract or tea tree oil. Why would the product need four different parabens?Parabens as preservatives aren’t good potentially being endocrine disrupting chemicals. Not ideal to rub that on your scalp everyday.

“Parabens can also interfere with the production of hormones. The U.N. Environment Programme has identified parabens as a group, including propyl- and butylparaben, as endocrine-disrupting chemicals or potential endocrine-disrupting chemicals (U.N. Environment 2017). The Danish Centre on Endocrine Disruptors has also identified butyl- and isobutylparaben as endocrine disruptors (Danish Centre on Endocrine Disrupters 2018).”

What Are Parabens, and Why Don't They Belong in Cosmetics? - EWG

This has turned out to be one of those products that might seem to be helping but are causing problems possibly due to too much of an estrogenic effect. This might be fine for a female who likes being female, but if she gets pregnant with a male baby then that fetus may develop gender dysphoria from excess exposure to estrogens during his fetal development.

We don’t think about our skin as being an absorptive organ of digestion and one of excretion but it is our largest organ and can absorb nutrients, make nutrients with sunshine, and excrete toxins in sweat. Giving women a beauty product that may increase estrogen receptor effects might increase feminine aspects of health but what else is it doing to their health or a growing fetus?

Noted in the advertising images - these products are being targeted at black women and are available at Walmart. The website is attractive but does not have images or any lists of all of those ingredients. I have it because it is on the back of the bottle.

(HollywoodBeautyProducts.com)

Personally, I will be throwing out the rest of the bottle of paraben contaminated herbal extracts. There may be a link to breast cancer from parabens, which are found in tissue samples of various parts of the body and cancer tissue, but research hasn’t reported a definite link.

“Recent studies have revealed that parabens can modulate local estrogen-converting enzymes, 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 1 and 2 and increase local estrogen levels. Also, parabens can crosstalk with the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) pathway and work with ER signaling to increase pro-oncogenic c-Myc expression in ER+/HER2+ breast cancer cells. Future studies investigating paraben mixtures and their crosstalk with other EDCs or signaling pathways both in vitro and in vivo in the context of breast cancer development are warranted.” […]

“The most commonly known modifiable risk factors for breast cancer are obesity, sedentary lifestyle, having a first child after 30*, post-menopausal hormone and oral contraceptives use, and xenoestrogen exposure [3].” […]

“The most common examples of EDCs are dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls, bisphenol A, and parabens found in products such as plastics, detergents, foods, toys, cosmetics, or pharmaceuticals [8]. Parabens are 4-hydroxybenzoic acid alkyl esters. Emerging evidence has now revealed the endocrine-disrupting propensity of parabens based on their adverse impact on development and reproduction from both in vitro and in vivo studies [9,10].” […]

“Parabens are distributed systemically once they enter the body through dermal or gastrointestinal absorption. Parabens have been detected in human tissues, blood, breast milk, placenta, and urine [14,15,16]. Among all the parabens that humans are exposed to, the four most common parabens detected in biological fluids are methylparaben (MP), ethylparaben (EP), propylparaben (PP), and butylparaben (BP) [11,15,17].” (Hager, Chen, Zhao, 2022)

*Aside: The risk from having a first child after age 30 is more that the woman didn’t have children earlier and breast feed for more years of her life than have monthly periods. Risk of breast cancer seems to be reduced with more time spent not menstruating and more months of life breast feeding.

Toxins are filtered out by the placenta but can be increased in breast milk - exposing the baby to more of toxin load than the mother is carrying in her body stores. Lactating is clearing toxins out of her body. Parabens have been found in the placenta and breast milk in addition to in blood and urine samples. ([14,15,16] cited by Hager, Chen, Zhao, 2022)

Why would a beauty product include four parabens and BHT and vitamin E? Are the parabens in it in order to promote estrogen in a female purchaser? And just are claimed to be an antimicrobial preservative? Many of the extracts themselves are antimicrobial and so is tea tree oil. It makes no sense to add unnecessary chemicals to an herbal product.

More estrogen might have a positive effect on symptoms as it is anti-inflammatory too, but I am concerned about pregnancies with baby boys.

And maybe breast cancer for the women later in life.

---

Addition - somewhat related podcast about what seems like society being used to attack women and traditional family structure.

Stream Podcast #181 - Jason Christoff - 8 Modern Attacks on the Female, by The Psychology of Freedom | Listen online for free on SoundCloud.com.

Disclaimer: This information is provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of Fair Use. It is not intended to provide individual guidance. Please seek a health care provider for individualized health care guidance.

Reference List

(Hager, Chen, Zhao, 2022) Hager E, Chen J, Zhao L. Minireview: Parabens Exposure and Breast Cancer. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Feb 8;19(3):1873. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19031873. PMID: 35162895; PMCID: PMC8834979. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8834979/