Phthalates, Hormones, Makeup, Yay!

 A Surprising Cause of Early Menopause more info from this blog.  (from k.snyder blog)
"A recent study, however, suggests a very surprising cause of early menopause: wearing too much makeup. Yes, it’s true! Makeup can affect your body’s sacred hormonal cycles. Who knew? Many types of makeup contain chemicals called pthalates – a family of chemicals also known as plasticizers. These chemicals are present in a number of petroleum products, and have been found in a number of articles humans use and absorb including makeup, nail polish, household cleaners, air fresheners and food packaging. Along with exposure to phthalates via makeup and household cleaners, packaged foods provide a significant source of phthalate exposure.
According to the study, women with the highest levels of phthalates in their urine went through menopause an average of 2.3 years earlier than their lower phthalates counterparts, and some women were going through menopause as early as 15 years prematurely.

Dangers of Phthalates

According to the Environmental Working Group, phthalates present a number of health hazards to humans, including:

• Disrupted endocrine function
• Reduced sperm counts in men
• Testicular atrophy
• Increased risk of liver cancer

Scary stuff. Further, the EWG states the effect of phthalate contamination in the human body is cumulative and the negative effects compound as levels increase. About 84 percent of the population shows phthalate contamination at any given time, according to the EWG. It’s so prevalent now that we’ve all most like had lots of exposure. Don’t let that dishearten you though, as there is lots we can do to prevent lots more future exposure (keep reading).