Staying away from the harmful chemicals present in the beauty and cosmetic products is the first step towards retaining your beauty for a long time. One of such chemical compounds are Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and Paraben, which are more often used in soaps, shampoos, detergents and toothpastes. Both of these chemicals are harmful to your health and may cause many health problems in our body, in due course of time.
Hence, let’s learn more about SLS and paraben and the side-effects they may cause in your body.
What is SLS and Its Effects?
Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) is an anionic detergent and surfactant found in many personal care and beauty care products. It is a very effective foaming agent and is thereby used a lot in those products which are supposed to “foam-up”.
SLS, in its pure state is known to emit toxic fumes in presence of excessive heat but when mixed into diluted concentrations, it can be bottled and sold. It is mostly used in beauty, household and industrial products because of its cleaning and emulsifying properties. Also being a foaming or a dispersal agent, it is extensively used in shampoos, face wash, soaps, toothpastes etc.
However, the use of Sodium Lauryl Sulfate causes lot destruction in your body. It is a known skin irritant. If you have dandruff, dermatitis or other irritated tissues on skin, it could be due to SLS. In fact, critics claim that sodium lauryl sulfate retains in the organ tissues like the heart, liver and brain and thereby, cause damage.
Since, SLS is a penetration enhancer; it can easily cross the membranes of a human body’s cells and hence, can enter your body. It is also known that if SLS remains in the eyes for too long then it may lead to the development of cataracts.
Furthermore, SLS is corrosive in nature, which affects your skin adversely. It can dry out your skin by removing the protective lipids from the surface and thereby, weakening the body’s natural moisture.
In children, SLS has been linked to eye irritation and poor eye development. Even if a product contains very low level of SLS, it may cause issues with eye health of a child.
SLS Free Products
SLS free shampoos and conditioners
Source: blogspot.com
SLS free soaps, Face wash and Body wash:
Source: mygreenkart.com
SLS free toothpastes:
Source: mygreenkart.com
What is Paraben and Its Effects?
Paraben are chemicals compounds of Parahydroxybenzoates and are used vastly as preservatives by cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. They can be easily found in shampoos, moisturizers, shaving gels, makeup products and toothpastes. They are also used as food additives.
They can be naturally found in blueberries and like, sodium lauryl sulfate, parabens are very cheap, which is why both of these products are used to such an extent. And, just like SLS, parabens too may cause a much damage to your body.
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It has been found that parabens can mimic the hormone estrogen, which is known to play a role in the development of breast cancers. Furthermore, researchers have found parabens in breast tumors and they believe that there is a relationship between parabens and tumors.
Parabens is known to cause skin irritations and contact dermatitis. In fact, grapefruit seed extract, which is promoted as a natural preservative is identified to be containing parabens.
Paraben Free Products
Paraben free shampoos:
Source: medplusbeauty.com
Paraben free sunscreen:
Source: mygreenkart.com
