What's the deal with the Methylparaben's & propylparabens?

[Stroker]

I have seen in the posts, negative remarks about these Parabens. Are they THAT dangerous and if they are wouldn't they be taken off the shelves?
I have these in some shave creams I use so, am I going to grow another arm out of my cheek or something?

 

[luvmysuper]

You know, no matter what you want to do in life, there will ALWAYS be chicken littles telling you the sky is falling.
There are a select group of people on this earth that think that anything "chemical" is bad and that everything "natural" is good. They are not happy to live their own secluded and cloistered life, but insist that everyone else does too.

Just live your life, buy the products you like, do the things that please you, ignore the doomsday prophets, and try not to do anything to excess.

Secret to a happy life in a nutshell, right there.

 

[Patriot45]

you know, no matter what you want to do in life, there will always be chicken littles telling you the sky is falling.

Just live your life, buy the products you like, do the things that please you, ignore the doomsday prophets, and try not to do anything to excess.

Secret to a happy life in a nutshell, right there.

+1

 

[baba]

just live your life, buy the products you like, do the things that please you, ignore the doomsday prophets, and try not to do anything to excess.

Secret to a happy life in a nutshell, right there.

+1,000,000

 

[cvac]

They are supposedly safe in the quantities used, but who knows. At this point, I haven't seen anything saying that they are the equivalent of asbestos or anything. Remember the quantities used are very, very small in toiletries. And some of the paraben alternatives (like grapefruit seed extract) are not nearly as natural and good for you as some would like you to believe. One big reason manufacturers are removing parabens from products is because if they don't, they will lose sales compared to other companies that have already gone paraben free due to the recent fuss over it...so they really have no choice.

 

[cheerwind]

A few minutes googling parabens tells me that they're probably not good news. At the same time, neither are the preservatives in McDonalds, the plastics leeching out of your water bottle, brake dust coming off the subway train, the fumes from your deck sealer... Who knows.

 

[Stroker]

You know, no matter what you want to do in life, there will ALWAYS be chicken littles telling you the sky is falling.
There are a select group of people on this earth that think that anything "chemical" is bad and that everything "natural" is good. They are not happy to live their own secluded and cloistered life, but insist that everyone else does too.

Just live your life, buy the products you like, do the things that please you, ignore the doomsday prophets, and try not to do anything to excess.

Secret to a happy life in a nutshell, right there.

I thought it was some kind of doomsday thing. I'm an artifical sweetner junky so my life is doomed anyway!

 

[Stubblefield]

I have seen in the posts, negative remarks about these Parabens. Are they THAT dangerous and if they are wouldn't they be taken off the shelves?

Would they be taken off the shelves? Not necessarily. Only if we had absolute proof, combined with Oprah telling us how bad they are.

The associated risk with using them is minor, but there is still a very slight risk. Will it affect you? maybe, but maybe not. However, there are far more harmful substances in our food (for example: soy, trans-fats, corn syrup), I think it makes sense to worry most about compounds/chemicals that have proven and known health risks.

And while I'm on my soapbox, the thought that we are taking tallow (a perfectly benign material) out of soap and substituting palm oil simply boggles the mind.

/rant off/

 

[luvmysuper]

the thought that we are taking tallow (a perfectly benign material) out of soap and substituting palm oil simply boggles the mind.

+eleventy-seven.

I still am unsure if this trend is due to the vegetarian influence / pressure or the misguided "don't hurt animals" influence. Or even possibly some purported chemical reason, though I can't see how that would stand up in the light of day.

Anyway, anyone who thinks that the harvesting of palm oil is kinder and gentler to animals and the environment ought to take a trip to Malaysia and watch the process from the trees forward. Ha!

 

[Drubbing]

I'm with Phil all the way on this barrow-push - I think the effort expended to avoid everything that is potentially harmful to you is far more likely to shorten your life, than the potential hazards themselves.

There are already enough stresses in modern life without adding uneccesary ones. Quite often the doomsday predictions are made by those selling an alternative.

 

[jmit]

I blame it on Hippies, they don't want the rest of us to be clean shaven and smelling nice.

 

[John Kreiner]

Living is dangerous - never heard of any who survived...

 

[memoryleak]

And while I'm on my soapbox, the thought that we are taking tallow (a perfectly benign material) out of soap and substituting palm oil simply boggles the mind.

/rant off/

You can thank Prince Charlie and his empty headed eco-weenie army for that.

 

[Drubbing]

You can thank Prince Charlie and his empty headed eco-weenie army for that.

Internet myth, I'm afraid. None of our UK members ever heard anything about this. Besides, the last time the Royal family had any voice or power, they were lopping heads off. These days they're a tourist attractions, and Di's boys are red carpet distractions.

 

[HIT]

Im posting what I did at another Thread (probably is what you read)

I quote from the site fda.gov

"FDA believes that at the present time there is no reason for consumers to be concerned about the use of cosmetics containing parabens. However, the agency will continue to evaluate new data in this area. If FDA determines that a health hazard exists, the agency will advise the industry and the public, and will consider its legal options under the authority of the FD&C Act in protecting the health and welfare of consumers."

It is true that in the 50's-60's everyone was claiming that smoking wasnt harmful for your health. After several years the opposite was proven.

Concerning mobile phones companies claim that they are not harmful at all, however dont tell me that you would speak each day for 1-2 hours from your cell phone without using your handsfree?

Maybe Im over-reacting. Ok its just me. But I dont think I would buy products with paraben.

 

[Unknownsoldier]

You can thank Prince Charlie and his empty headed eco-weenie army for that.

Utter drivel! Charles is against the use of palm oil as it involves destroying the rainforests.

Never 'eard such poppycock guvnor' ;-)

Tom

 

[mark3d]

Like everything in life, using parabens is a non-zero risk. It's up to you to decide whether it's a necessary or acceptable risk. there are non-paraben alternatives out there (musgo vs proraso), Just like there are alternatives to non-stick (i.e. plastic coated) cookware, such as a good old cast iron skillet.

all things being equal, why not err on the side of caution?

.

 

[andrew98]

It's not just you, HIT. I don't buy anything with parabens. Luckily, I prefer to use soaps instead of creams, but I do like that soaps have fewer ingredients in general. As someone who used to work on chemically contaminated sites, I do try to limit my exposure to chemicals in general.

It's not that you should worry about the tiny amount of parabens in your shaving cream. It's the long-term, combined exposure to a lot of different chemicals that have come onto the scene in recent decade that we're not equipped to handle. That's the wild card. If you bother to learn about what you're exposed to and care to reduce your exposure, it could reduce your risk of developing a serious health problem later in life. An extreme case of exposure would be a welder that smokes and lives in a house with a radon problem. His lung cancer risk would be much greater than the average person because if his career, habit, and environment.

"All things in moderation" indeed, but using products with a bunch of different chemicals is something I try to avoid. I smoked for 10 years, for instance and decided 3 years ago that it would be best if I didn't. I definitely don't stress out over it, though, and it all comes down to personal choice.

-Andy

 

[DFrancis]

You can't stress out about things like this it will only drive you mad.

 

[beyboo]

You know, no matter what you want to do in life, there will ALWAYS be chicken littles telling you the sky is falling.
There are a select group of people on this earth that think that anything "chemical" is bad and that everything "natural" is good. They are not happy to live their own secluded and cloistered life, but insist that everyone else does too.

Just live your life, buy the products you like, do the things that please you, ignore the doomsday prophets, and try not to do anything to excess.

Secret to a happy life in a nutshell, right there.

Way too cool !!