Hormones in Personal Care Products
CATEGORY: IARC Known, NTP Known
USED IN: Cosmetics
Placental extracts, probably with high concentrations of progesterone (Rudel, 2007) and estrogenic chemicals (Tiwary, 1998), are sometimes used in cosmetics and hair care products, particularly products marketed to women of color. Addition of hormones and extracts is advertised to promote growth and thickness of hair. However, research indicates that use of these products on infants and children may also be linked to precocious puberty or early sexual maturation (Li, 2002; Tiwary 1998, 2003). Early puberty is a risk factor for breast cancer later in life (Hsieh, 1990). Scientists have proposed that use of these products might be contributing to the increased incidence of breast cancer, especially among young African American women (Donovan, 2007).
Hormones, especially estrogens, are also regularly added to topical anti-aging creams, because of their effectiveness in raising collagen count, as well as skin hydration. Together, these two factors are thought to decrease wrinkling of the skin (Draelos, 2005), but they can also increase women’s total lifetime exposure to estrogen.
