Phthalates ... does anyone understand this issue clearly?

[birdcharm]

Hi All,

I've been using bath & body safe scents for
years and when I first heard the term
"phthalate-free" ... to be honest, I didn't
have the time to try to figure out what
they were talking about.

Now, I am making products "as natural as I can get" ...
and I'm not sure if my current scent inventory is
going to be alright here. I also have e/o's, so
those would be fine, and unscented, of course,
is fine, but in regard to this other issue, I have
found myself a bit confused. Most of the scents
I have came from three different suppliers, so I'm
going to contact them to see what they say.

My confusion is about the types of phthalates
that are considered unsafe. In some references,
I see that Diethyl Phthalates (DEP) are not
considered unsafe and that this may be the
only type in most of the common body-safe
scents, then I see in other references that
it's grouped with the ones that are definitely
considered unsafe, which another source
says that the harmful ones have never been
used in the industry.

Which brings me to the question of ... if the
DEP type is considered "okay," then are the
"Phthalate-free" marketers selling something
just because of the "buzz word" or is there
merit to it?

I'm trying to sort this out a bit, so, if you
have done any reading and would like to
confuse me any more, please do!!

Kathy

 

[birdcharm]

Okay ... here's a little bit of a follow up to my own question ... although I must say, I am not any less confused! ... as, I do not know what this means! :roll: "maximal daily exposure of 78 μg/kg bw/d was determined for DEP" ... BUT, I see that whatever it is, it is a higher safe-exposure rate for the DEP than the other types of phthalates.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21315328

"Based on these values, daily dermal exposure dosage to five phthalates was estimated for three age groups, female adults (60 kg); toddlers (0.5-4 years) and infants (0-6 months), through the use of cosmetic and personal care products. The exposure estimation, however, was based on existing products use pattern data, instead of probabilistic model based population use distribution. For female adults, the maximal daily exposure of 78 μg/kg bw/d was determined for DEP. The maximal daily exposure was much lower for the other four phthalates (DEHP, 0.82 μg/kg bw/d; DnBP, 0.36 μg/kg bw/d; and DMP, 0.03 μg/kg bw/d). The exposure for DiBP was not calculated due to its very low levels (<10 μg/g) in products. Toddlers and infants in this case had a maximal daily exposure to DEP of 20 and 42 μg/kg bw/d, respectively."


What I am thinking is that if it is only DEP that is commonly in the scented oils that are not making a claim to be free of these substances, then it would seem that most likely casual uses of this component with products that include very low percentages are considered safe on their own and most likely much safer than, for instance, perfumes and colognes. Of course, not everyone is concerned about these anyway, although some of them are potent hormone disruptors, but the DEP, from what I am reading, does not seem to be one of the most harmful.

Anyway, I have written a couple of suppliers and I will see what they have to offer ... just wanted to follow up on this topic in case others are interested in it.

Kathy

P.S. I believe the measurement figures have something to do with "per kg (kilo) of body weight") ... it may be micrograms per kg b/w.

 

[Genny]

The EPA doesn't have DEP on it's list as possible toxins
http://www.epa.gov/oppt/existingchemica ... lates.html

That's my limited knowledge of Phthalates LOL In all honesty it's not something I've really looked into since all the companies I happen to buy FO's from state that there FO's are free of phthalates.

I might have to visit personalcaretruth.com and search on phthalates to see what all the fuss is about.

 

[Jan Johnson]

phthalate free

While the FDA does not regulate the use of phthalates in cosmetics, they say that at the present time that phthalates do not pose a safety risk. I think that a growing number of consumers looking at the evidence against phthalates have come the conclusion that they are dangerous and they don’t want them used in their cosmetics. So much so that there seems to be a general distrust of any product that has “fragrance” on the label whether it contains phthalates or not. As far as the different types of phthalates, some studies have shown all of them used at high levels to cause health issues. I think that in response to that, the industry is making a very expensive reformulation of a great number of their fragrance oils in an effort to get ahead of the expected backlash. I don’t feel that at the amount of fragrance oil that we tend to use is dangerous, but since we have so many other things in our environment that contain phthalates, why add to it. I have clients that want only the most “natural” unscented or eo scented soap that they can buy and others that don’t care at all, as long as it smells good. So, I try to provide a phthalate free product for the fragrance group and “as safe and natural” as I can for the others.
Jan

 

[birdcharm]

So, I try to provide a phthalate free product for the fragrance group and “as safe and natural” as I can for the others.

I agree ... in researching this, I have found too many studies and references about the fact that we are over-exposed to these chemicals ... now, many of us are completely unaffected on a day-to-day, but some of us may have hormonal issues with these ... and, they are certainly endocrine disruptors, which end up in our water supplies, besides not being good for the environment. I still have lots of scents that are what I am now calling "traditional" (have phthalates), but I'm going to switch over, without delay.

The DEP type may not come with any warnings, but, in reading some of the studies, it can have an effect on hormone levels, which is certainly a consideration for some people.

Thanks for your input ... I think I have some of this sorted out now!

Kathy