Turby and John

photo credit: tanakawho

Until a few days ago, perfume had always been a guilty pleasure of mine.  I successfully traded in most of my old health and beauty products for safer (and consequently, more expensive) alternatives…but perfume was kind of a hard habit to break. I’d spray just a little on top of my clothes instead of directly on my skin and hope for the best. I kept telling myself that I would make a change as soon as I finished my bottles of  Heavenly (from Victoria’s Secret) and Hot (by Ralph Lauren).  After reading the articles below, however, I can’t put it off any longer. I’ll be taking both bottles to the thrift store the next time I make a donation. In case you’re tired of me talking about articles and don’t feel like reading these, I’ll give you a short list of the high points:

• The basic formula for all perfumes is this: water+alcohol+fragrance oils+chemical compounds
• Fragrances are protected as trade secrets. For this reason, it’s nearly impossible to know how few or how many chemicals make up our favorite scents.
• Some of the most common chemicals found in perfumes are: benzaldehyde, benzyl alcohol, camphor, ethanol, ethyl acetate, linalool ,acetaldehyde,a-pinene, acetone, a-terpinene, methylene chloride, styrene oxide, dimenthyl sulphate, a-terpineol, limonene
• Side-effects from these chemicals can range from something as simple as eye irritation to much more serious things like cancer.
• “Fragrance Oils” or “Fragrant Oils” are not the same things as “Essential Oils”.
• The absence of an ingredient list should cause suspicion.

Still interested? Here are the sources:

The Toxic Effects of Perfume

Perfume Ingredients- What’s in a Scent?

Filed under: guilty pleasure, health and beauty, homemade, physical well-being, vanity
Tags: article, cancer, carcinogen, chemicals, essential oils, eye irritation, fragrance oils, fragrant oils, perfume, questionable ingredients, trade secrets