[csssphx] FW: Popular shampoos contain toxic chemicals linked to nerve damage (fwd)

[Guest guest]

Subject: [csssphx] FW: Popular shampoos contain toxic chemicals linked to nerve

damage

Cancer is currently listed as 1 in 3 and I read recently that it is

being changed to 1 in 2 at the end of this year. There is no where

to go from there but 1 in 1. There are hundreds of brands of safe

shampoo, body soap, lotion, etc. available on the market.

From www.newstarget.com/003210.html

Wednesday, March 16, 2005 Commentary | Home

Popular shampoos contain toxic chemicals linked to nerve damage

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have found a

correlation

between an ingredient found in shampoos and nervous system damage.

The

experiments were conducted with the brain cells of rats and they

show that contact with

this ingredient called methylisothiazoline, or MIT, causes

neurological

damage. Which products contain this chemical compound MIT? Head and

Shoulders,

Suave, Clairol and Pantene Hair Conditioner all contain this

ingredient.

Researchers are concerned that exposure to this chemical by pregnant

women could put

their fetus at risk for abnormal brain development. In other people,

exposure

could also be a factor in the development of Alzheimer's disease and

other

nervous system disorders.

The chemical causes these effects by preventing communication

between

neurons. Essentially, it slows the networking of neurons, and since

the nervous

system and brain function on a system of neural networks, the

slowing of this

network will suppress and impair the normal function of the brain

and nervous

system. These finding were presented December 5th at the American

Society for Cell

Biology annual meeting. I have frequently warned readers about the

dangers of

using brand-name personal care products. The vast majority of these

products

contain toxic chemical compounds like MIT that contribute to cancer,

liver

disorders and neurological diseases. In fact, this chemical, MIT, is

just one of

dozens of such chemicals that are found in personal care products.

Why are

these dangerous personal care products allowed to remain on the

market? Because

the FDA, which is responsible for regulating these products, spends

almost no

time, money or effort actually investigating the safety of such

products.

Instead, the FDA spends the vast majority of its time approving new

prescription

drugs rather than protecting the public against the dangers from

such drugs or

personal care products like shampoos, soaps, deodorants and

fragrance products.

In fact, it may surprise you to learn that manufacturers can put

practically

any chemical they want into shampoos, even if it is a hazardous

chemical listed

in the RTECS database of toxicity and even if it is considered a

toxic waste

chemical by the EPA. The FDA allows all sorts of chemicals to be

used in these

products, including chemicals that are known carcinogens and that

contribute

to liver failure and nervous system disorders. How's that for

protecting

public health? If you thought prescription drugs were dangerous,

just take a look

at the toxic chemicals found in personal care products used by

virtually all

Americans every single day. Americans bathe themselves in toxic

chemicals and

they do it by buying and using products made by brand name companies

that have

premier shelf positioning at convenience stores, grocery stores and

discount

clubs. One of the more curious personal care products on the market

is Herbal

Essences Shampoo by Clairol. Personally, I think this product is a

joke because

it's trying to exploit the word " herbal " to imply that the shampoo

is healthy,

even though it is primarily made with the same ingredients as other

popular

shampoos. The first three ingredients, for example, are: water,

sodium laureth,

and sodium lauryl sulfate. Big deal, huh? You can find the same

three

ingredients in 99-cent shampoo at Wal-Mart. Plus, the product

contains all sorts of

other ingredients that I personally would never allow to touch my

skin (like

methylchloroisothiazolinone, if you can believe there's actually a

chemical with

a name that long). Think the color of the shampoo is from the herbs?

Think

again. Three other ingredients in the shampoo are Yellow #5, Orange

#4 and

Violet #2. In other words, this is a shampoo product purchased by

naive consumers,

in my opinion. People who really know herbs and natural products can

only

laugh at a product like this. Want a real shampoo? Buy Olive Oil

Shampoo from

Heritage Products, available at most natural health stores. The

bottom line to all

of this, though, is that every week, it seems like we see a new

announcement

about some toxic chemical found in personal care products that is

related to

either cancer or neurological disorders. And yet week after week

these products

are being sold by retailers and consumed in large quantities by the

American

people who remain oblivious to the real damage these products are

causing to

their health. Once again, the solution here is to protect yourself

by learning

the truth about these products and switching to products made with

safe

ingredients. There are safe shampoos, safe soaps, safe laundry

detergents,

dishwashing liquids and even deodorant products. You don't have to

expose yourself to

toxic chemicals to take care of personal hygiene, because whether

you agree

with it or not, these disease-causing chemicals are going to remain

quite legal

in the use of personal care products for many years to come. Why?

You can bet

that the manufacturers of these products will fight against any

attempt to

regulate or outlaw these toxic chemicals. That's because the

chemicals are

convenient for such manufacturers. It's much the same way in which

food manufacturers

use sodium nitrate in bacon and other packaged meats. It's all about

their

convenience rather than protecting your health. So, here's the idiot

test for

today: if I was standing on a street corner with a bottle of colored

liquid, and

I told you that liquid contained a toxic chemical that caused

neurological

disorders, Alzheimer's disease and birth defects, would you buy that

product

from me and scrub it into your scalp under warm water? Of course

not. But if

you're buying these popular shampoo products, that's exactly what

you're doing

right now. Such is the power of brand marketing in America.

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