Ingredients in allergy-causing cosmetics

  • Ingredients in allergy-causing cosmetics

In traditional cosmetics, the mixture of methylchloroisothiazolinone and methylisothiazolinone, fragrances (parfum), paraphenylenediamine (PPDA) and acrylates, are responsible for the fact that in the year 1996 to 2013, the prevalence of contact dermatitis in cosmetics has gone from 10% in the period from 1996 to 2004, to 14% in the period from 2005 to 2013, that is, in 15 years this skin problem has increased in Spain. The above figures are the result of a follow-up carried out by the Dermatology Unit of the General University Hospital of Valencia (Spain).

Therefore, dermatology is and will continue to be one of the branches of medicine most in demand and with the most future. And it is that the consultations for allergies in adults and children, do not stop increasing. And what is the reason? Fragrances in cosmetics for boys and girls. The "parfum", as long as they are of synthetic origin, can cause allergic reactions both at the respiratory level and on the skin. According to a review published by the department of dermatology of the General University Hospital of Alicante, fragrances are the second cause of contact dermatitis in our environment. In fact, there are 26 must-mention substances on product labels for this reason; are substances that should appear at the end of the ingredient list, among them are: linalool, geraniol, citral, limonene etc. These compounds are also naturally part of the essential oils that are used in many organic cosmetic products, so it should not surprise you to see them in these products, although it is rare that they are formulated with them in products for children or for sensitive skin.

If we review traditional cosmetics, the use of fragrances with proven allergens in products for children and babies is common.
In 2016, the Spanish Research Group on Contact Dermatitis and Skin Allergy (Geidac), updated the standard series of diagnostic tests for contact eczema, adding and modifying them for a series of common compounds in conventional cosmetics and with evidence allergenicity: methylisothiazolinone, diazolidinyl urea and imidazolidinyl urea. It also modifies the concentration of the methylchloroisothiazolinone / methylisothiazolinone mixture and the formaldehyde. In this way, it is updated for the detection of allergies to substances that are increasingly used in cosmetic products.



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