15-05-2025
Top breast cancer charity reveals full list of toxic chemicals in shampoos and face creams that carry tumour risk
Women are being warned to avoid toxic toiletries due to the potential risk that chemicals within the products could increase their risk of breast cancer.
Breast Cancer UK said millions of women are unaware products like shampoos and face creams carried what are known as endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs).
These are substances which interfere with the human hormone system and have been linked to breast cancer.
With breast cancer deaths in the UK set to soar by more than 40 per cent by 2050, the charity is urging women to rid their routines of these harmful chemicals.
Currently around 32 women die every day in the UK from breast cancer, with around 11,500 deaths a year.
But, an aging population is not just to blame for the surging rates. Now, Breast Cancer UK is looking at environmental stressors as a key risk factor for the deadly disease, as numbers sky rocket in under-50-year-olds.
As part of their Ditch The Junk Campaign, the charity explained: 'In our relentless pursuit of beauty, more and more synthetic chemicals have now been linked to adverse health effects including breast cancer'.
The charity have released a list of some of the most hazardous chemicals, and which products to find them in, in a bid to help women protect themselves against the common disease.
Breast cancer is the UK's most common cancer with almost 56,000 cases diagnosed per year
Make-up and nail varnish are believed to contain the highest amount of EDCs—which mimic the female hormone oestrogen and disrupt the normal balance of hormones in the body.
According to Breast Cancer UK, these products are likely to contain at least two of the top three chemicals to watch out for: parabens, phthalates and synthetic parfums.
Phthalates, which are commonly found in nail varnish, shampoos and hairsprays, are chemicals that are typically used to strengthen plastics.
However, when used in cosmetic products, the chemicals can seep through the skin, disrupting the body's natural production of, and response to, natural hormones like oestrogen and testosterone, increasing the risk of breast cancer.
According to the charity, these toxins are often listed as parfum or fragrance in ingredients lists as they are often used to help scents last longer.
Another category to be wary of are creams and moisturisers, that are likely to contain a high number of parabens.
Parabens—including methylparaben, propylparaben and ethylparaben—can penetrate the skin and trigger the production of oestrogen, which has been linked with an increased risk of breast cancer.
Whilst many parabens have been clinically shown to interfere with the hormonal system and therefore have been banned, many endocrine disruptors can still be found in everyday beauty products.
Finally, the charity urged women to avoid synthetic fragrances which are likely to contain high levels of musk ketone, benzyl salicylate and diethyl phthalate—all of which have adverse effects on the female reproductive system, increasing the risk of breast cancer.
In order to minimise the risk of exposure to these harmful chemicals, Breast Cancer UK advises women to keep their routines as simple as possible, using fewer un-fragranced products.
