Make a commitment to
reduce your risk - small changes can make a difference!
During the month of October, pink-ribboned Breast Cancer Awareness
reminders are everywhere- and with good reason; this year some 295,000 U.S. women
will hear the words: “you have breast cancer”. The odds of a woman developing breast cancer in a lifetime are 1 in 8.
If we are increasingly aware and are getting better at detection, then why is
this disease so prevalent, and what can we do to prevent it?
The answer is complex; it is known that approximately 10% of all breast
cancers are attributable to genetic factors, leaving some 90% unexplained. According to the non-profit Breast Cancer Fund, a foundation whose
focus is on prevention and thus on understanding more about causality,
environmental factors are thought to play a major role in triggering cell
changes that lead to breast cancer. A wide variety of chemicals, to which we are
exposed over years and from many different sources, are being linked more
directly daily as risk factors for breast cancer, among other adverse effects. Among
the suspects are chemicals found in the plastics in which our foods are
packaged, household items such as non-stick cookware, our dry-cleaning and the
cleansers used to sanitize our homes, the air we breathe, the food we eat and
the water we drink, and even exposures when we seek medical and dental
attention.
EWG’s SkinDeep Database
and Mobile App: A great tool to help you assess the safety of your
personal care products
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And finally, particularly troubling for women and teenage girls,
cosmetics and personal care products are increasingly linked to breast cancer,
hormone disruption and/or reproductive harm - from mascara to shampoo and
conditioner to body lotions. Given the
fact that the average women puts 12-20
different personal care products on her hair and skin daily, exposure to these
chemicals adds up daily, over years and decades. It is this cumulative and
additive exposure that is increasingly being linked to elevated breast cancer
risk.
Although the list of potentially
offending, health impacting toxins is thousands long, unbelievably, these
ingredients are completely unregulated
under US law. Among those widely present include[i]
Phthalates: endocrine
disrupting chemicals found in cosmetics like nail polish and synthetic
fragrances (perfumes and fragrance ingredients in other cosmetic products)
Phthalate exposure has been linked to early puberty in girls and a risk factor
for later in life breast cancer;
Triclosan: a
chemical used to prevent mold and bacterial growth in anti-bacterial soaps,
deodorants, toothpastes. Classified as a pesticide, and linked to hormone
disruption (impacting thyroid function and breast development); and
Parabens: a group
of compounds widely used as preservatives and antimicrobials in creams, lotions
ointments and many other cosmetics. They are absorbed through the skin and have
been found in biopsied breast tumor tissues.
The bad news – these chemicals are present in many, many unexpected
places.
The good news – there are simple
things we can do to cut our risk of exposure. We need to do for our personal care products
what most of us do for ingredient labels in our foods - become informed and proactive as possible and
select products that help to minimize the risk of exposure to these and other harmful chemicals.
In addition to online resources like the Breast Cancer Fund’s website (www.breastcancerfund.org), be sure to download the mobile app developed by the
non-profit Environmental Working Group (EWG) which can be found in your
mobile’s app store and online at www.ewg.org/skindeep. SkinDeep is the most
comprehensive database available of personal care products and gives ratings
from 0 (low risk) to 10 (highest risk) based on available toxicity,
allergenicity, carcinogenicity and reproductive harm data. The app will allow
users to scan bar codes on their favorite products.
And finally, an October Awareness Challenge
Until there is a cure (and even when that day
should dawn) we need to focus on prevention in our everyday lives. It has been
shown that the trigger for cancer is not likely a one-time event or exposure,
but a cumulative effect that results in cancer-related cell change. During Breast Cancer Awareness month, I
would like to challenge each of us to consider identifying one change (like
becoming more informed about environmental toxins) you can make to help
minimize your risk of breast cancer or that of those around you. Make a
commitment to make that stick, and share it with other women to consider as
well!
Riki (Ulrike) Szalay
has worked for the past 8 years in cancer research for two companies with novel
cancer therapies in human clinical trials.
She also holds educationally-based workshops on the connection between
toxins in personal care products and a variety of human health issues, notably
cancer. She is an Independent Consultant for Beautycounter, a company whose
mission is to get safe personal care products into the hands of everyone http://tiny.cc/BeautycounterStory. For more information, email
Riki at uszalay@verizon.org
