All the ingredients used in cosmetic and hygiene products are allowed by the applicable regulation, measured and controlled to guarantee the safety of the consumers. Nevertheless, any regulation has its loop-holes. Some hazards linked to cosmetics applications are yet suspected, even feared. Some of them are now known. Many others are guessed; some concern many people, others concern very few users. However, the risk … of a risk can never be put aside, at least in our minds. Provided that we understand what is a risk …
What do the words "risks linked to cosmetics use" mean exactly? What is the target when one pillories this or that ingredient? Let us be more precise: these risks are undesirable effects, which may be very different or, depending on everyone’s opinion or sensitivity, may be considered as more or less important or serious.
Allergies
Fifteen to twenty per cent of people are said to get allergy-like reactions after cosmetics application. Eczema, itching, rash, scurf patch, hives, oedema … there are more than one undesirable reaction linked to these visible effects!
An allergy may appear, as a reaction to an allergenic molecule, sometimes after years of using products that contain it without any trouble. In this time lapse, bit by bit, the body has been sensitized.
When it is initiated, it is activated every time there is a new contact, be it direct (when a lotion/cream is applied on the skin) or indirect (a nail polish may induce eczema on eyelids), even by a proxy effect (when a mother’s hair colourant induces dermatitis on her baby…). Sometimes, the reaction is immediate; sometimes it comes up to several days after the contact.
However, it may be a king of handicap, day after …
