Phthalate free - can you tell a difference?

[dixiedragon]

Just ordered Ancient Sedona from Brambleberry, and I noticed it was recently reformulated in June 2014 to be phthalate free. Makes me nervous b/c all but one of the reviews were from before that. I really haven't had the chance to compare any FOs before and after a reformulation. Do you find that they are generally the same? Better? Worse? Different but still good?

 

[Atihcnoc]

There is a lot of Phthalate free F.O in the market.


Here is something about Phthalates:

Phthalates what are the health concerns?
Endocrine disruption: Two decades of research suggest that phthalates disrupt hormonal systems, which can cause harm during critical periods of development. Phthalate exposure in pregnant women, as measured by urine samples, has been associated with a shortened distance between the anus and genitals in their male babies, indicating a feminization had occurred during prenatal genital development [6]. Shorter anogenital distance is characteristic of female sex in both humans and animals. Other research in humans has shown that baby boys exposed to phthalates in breast milk had alterations in their hormone levels [7].
Developmental and reproductive toxicity: Research in adult human males has found exposure to some phthalates is associated with poor sperm quality and infertility [8]. Further research in male animals has shown that exposure to various phthalates causes birth defects of the genitals – such as hypospadias (an abnormal location for the opening of the urethra on the underside of the penis) and undescended or small testicles – resulting in low sperm counts and infertility [9]. Female laboratory animals exposed to phthalates also have been found to have alterations in sex hormones and experience fetal loss [10].
One of the ways that phthalates interfere with reproductive functioning is by reducing the levels of sex hormones, which are critical for development and functioning of the sex organs [11]. Additional research suggests that these same mechanisms may link phthalates to breast cancer [12,13]. Phthalates have also been shown to cause proliferation of breast tumor cells and renders anti-estrogen treatments, such as tamoxifen, less effective against tumors [14].


Read more about it here: http://www.cdc.gov/biomonitoring/phthalates_factsheet.html


If you have babies here:
http://www.babycenter.com/0_phthalates-what-you-need-to-know_3647067.bc

 

[dixiedragon]

I'm more curious about what role the phthalates play in the FOs, and if their absence is noticable.