ARE YOUR OWN PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS KILLING YOU? Robert G Carlson, MD, FACS

ARE OUR OWN PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS KILLING US?
(A Xeno-Estrogen overview)
ROBERT G. Carlson, MD, FACS

I have always tried to remind people that while we can’t change everything in our environment, we can make simple daily changes that can and WILL directly affect the health quality of our future and that of our family. Of course I’m not asking you to go home and peel the paint off the walls or remove the carpet but...simply “Change What You Can”…i.e. personal care products. What, my personal care products? That’s correct!
The Sierra Club tells us that there are already approximately 200 chemicals in the average person’s body fat. It is not a question of ‘if’ we are carrying a burden of toxic compounds, but how much!
One third of all personal care products contain at least one or more ingredients classified as possible human carcinogens.
While it’s pretty scary to think about, experts tell us that most of us come in contact with over 200 toxic chemicals before we get dressed in the morning. That means we are bathing ourselves in toxins! Think about what you used this am…Got up…brushed your teeth (toothpaste), got into the shower (body soap or wash, shampoo, conditioner, shaving gels)…getting dressed (deodorant, body lotion, aftershave)…fixing hair (hair gels, styling gels, hairspray)…Not to mention facial creams, make-up, perfume. The list continues and that’s even before you walk out of the house!
So what is a Xeno-Estrogen? It is a chemical that unfortunately is often found in our daily personal care products, and will produce dangerous artificial Estrogens, not like normal healthy estrogens produced in our bodies. These Xeno-estrogens are ever present, but in some will produce dangerous side-effects. I often tell my male patients, since high estrogen levels in men is very dangerous in men, to avoid estrogens in our environment, like anti-dandruff shampoos, and the a large consumption of chicken and turkey.( They didn’t get large breast naturally?!). We are seeing young girls develop at a very early age, and should wonder what kinds of xeno-estrogens they are being exposed to on a daily basis. And women in their late 30’s and early 50’s who are plaqued with too much estrogen, and have very low levels of the amazing protective progesterone, and who now are being exposed to massive environmental estrogen, are at an increasing risk for developing breast and uterine cancers, as well as uterine fibroids and ovarian cysts.
What is the Risk Factor?
Many skin and personal care products contain carcinogens, fragrances, harmful preservatives and chemicals that can block the skin’s critical natural functions of absorbing oxygen and detoxifying the body. While these toxic ingredients may be present in miniscule amounts, some or all of these chemicals are absorbed through the skin into the fatty tissue and blood stream. Research has shown traces of these toxins are stored in the brain, liver, heart, kidneys, etc. The biggest problems occur when they are repeatedly applied over an extended period of time, which is the nature of personal and skin care products. These ingredients can impact your neurological health, create or worsen allergic reactions, and more acutely affect children and pets as the residue floats down to concentrate 12 inches above the floor where small children and our pets live and play.
According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 884 chemicals and synthetic ingredients commonly found in personal care and cosmetic products are toxic and known as irritants, allergens or carcinogens. While they are not prohibited (or have only minimal restrictions) for use in personal and skin care in the United States, in other countries like the Canada, European Union, and Japan, health concerns stimulated laws to ban many of these ingredients.
Most of us think of ‘aging’ as wrinkles that begin to appear on our face. But that word applies to all the diseases and conditions that impact our health . . . breast cancer, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, depression, etc.
What few realize is that skin care products and other topical personal care items we use are significant contributors to these diseases. The products applied to our skin to help us look younger actually contain Age Accelerators.
Linda Chae , an expert dedicated to creating products that have none of these nasty Aging accelerators in them, stated that, “Every day, we apply creams and lotions, use deodorant, brush our teeth, use perfume (or products with fragrance). . . and the small amounts of toxic, carcinogenic and hormone disrupting chemicals add up. In fact, scientific studies have shown these chemicals remain in our blood and fat tissue, and some have been found in breast cancer tumors. The specific chemicals are not in the air we breathe, the water we drink, or the food we eat. They are only found in the products which are then absorbed through the skin.”
I want you to pick up your skin and personal care products and look carefully at the ingredients. See if any of the below Aging accelerators are in your daily products.
The following are the worst of the worst, toxic, carcinogenic accelerators of aging and frightfully so they are commonly found in most skin and personal care products. Below is the brief list and I will go into more depth next week.
Benzoyl Peroxide:

DEA (Diethanolamine), MEA (Monoethanolamine), & TEA (Triethanolamine): Dioxin: .
DMDM Hydantoin & Urea (ImidazolidinylFD&C Color & Pigments: Fragrances: Fragrances can indicate the presence of up to 4,000 separate ingredients including phthalates, many toxic or carcinogenic.
Parabens: (Methyl, Butyl, Ethyl, Propyl) - used as preservatives and aren’t always labeled "parabens." They’re used in deodorants and antiperspirants and have been found in breast cancer tumors. Parabens, as xenoestrogens (hormone disruptors), may contribute to sterility in male mice and humans. Estrogen-like activity causes hormone imbalance in females and early puberty.
PEG (Polyethylene glycol)
Phthalates
Propylene Glycol (PG) and Butylene Glycol:.
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES): Detergents and surfactants that pose serious health threats.
Sunscreen chemicals: avobenzone, benzphenone, ,ethoxycinnamate, PABA are commonly used ingredients
Triclosan
Did I catch your attention? Go check your household personal products now and there will be more to come next week! Dr. Carlson.

Youthful Skin with Bioidentical Hormone Therapy Bio-Identical Hormones make you look younger

Youthful Skin with Bioidentical Hormone Therapy
Bio-Identical Hormones make you look younger

So how much control do you have over how quickly your face ages? You know, sagging cheeks, wrinkles and frown lines? The surprising answer is that you have more control over facial aging than you think. Factors such as divorce, smoking, and the use of anti-depressants dramatically accelerate facial aging. So what is beneficial in making women’s faces look more youthful? Hormone replacement therapy. Yes , a Case Western Plastic surgery study found that hormone replacement therapy made a big difference by reducing the aging process.

Aging, especially in the skin seems to accelerate after menopause in women. Aging faster with wrinkles spreading rapidly, skin quickly loses elasticity and smoothness are common features in postmenopausal women not receiving hormone replacement therapy. The basis for the use of topical estrogen therapy stems from the documented evidence of reducing diseases of aging, including heart disease, osteoporosis and cancer but also in the estrogen depleted chronological aging of our skin. To a large degree the features of aging skin seem to result from the decline in estrogen levels after the menopause. Of all hormones that decline with age, estrogens have the most dramatic effect on the skin. Estrogens are known to protect women from heart disease, and now it seems that they also slow down skin aging. Several studies indicate that postmenopausal women on estrogen replacement therapy develop less wrinkles and have better skin texture and elasticity than those not taking estrogens.
Studies in postmenopausal women have demonstrated significant decrease skin thickness with marked thinning of the epidermis (outer skin layer), loss of critical collagen resulting in deterioration of skin structures, deepening of wrinkles and widening of skin pores. The more rapid the collagen loss, which occurs in the first two years after menopause, the more dramatic the appearance of aging in these women. Studies have shown up to a 30 % loss of skin collagen immediately after menopause and the loss continues if there is no estrogen replacement received. This British Medical Journal study amazingly showed that women who then received topical estrogen therapy experienced an increase in skin collagen content 48 % higher than those who did not received hormone replacement therapy. Proper bioidentical hormone replacement with estrogen, progesterone and testosterone replacement is a complex decision requiring the analysis of one's medical history and a physician who has the knowledge to expertly balance a women’s hormones.
Women after menopause have been shown to have improved skin benefits using estrogen topical preparations. A University of Vienna study in postmenopausal women demonstrated a marked improvement in skin elasticity and firmness after only six months of therapy; wrinkle depth and pore size decreased by over sixty percent in both estradiol and estriol groups. Skin moisture and collagen synthesis increased significantly.
I believe that estrogen creams could also improve the signs of aging in premenopausal women as well although further studies are needed to confirm that. The Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery article showed that hormone replacement therapy dramatically reduced the appearance of facial aging in women. So not only does hormone replacement reduce your risk of heart disease, cancer , and osteoporosis, but it also makes you look younger. So now you have European and American studies that support the benefits of Hormone Replacement therapy on the skin. The benefits of Hormone replacement therapy on the heart, bones, memory and cancer are being clearly documented in the medical literature. So, it’s about time we took the fear out of HRT and provide women with a safe and healthy approach to wellness. Now that sounds like a great idea to me.
Robert Carlson, MD, FACS