Essay Example on What are cosmetics?

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What are cosmetics A cosmetic product is any material intended to be placed in direct contact with skin or teeth e g make up products toothpastes deodorants soaps and sun protection creams The history and use of cosmetics Cosmetics are in no way a new invention existing for thousands of years e g in 10 000 BC when Egyptians would use fragranced oils and ointments to clean themselves cover body odors and soften their skin Through time trends have changed with certain cosmetic trends being questionable In the middle ages lead and arsenic were commonly used for skin whitening as it was seen as more privileged to be pale like the aristocrats rather than suntanned like the lower class workers out in the fields Today cosmetics are used for a number of different reasons and even though fragrances and skin paling ointments are still popular and widely used ingredients have changed some for both good and for bad Today cosmetics are used for hygiene as colors fragrance protection and appearance Exposed parts of the body are the skin hair and scalp lips nails Exposures happen orally dermally and by inhalation In a study conducted by Biesterbos et al it was found that over 50 of their 516 participants use 24 cosmetics similar to facial cream deodorant and mascara every day whereas the results from a study by Sandanger et al showed 54 7 of the 332 women in the study was shown to use facial cream once every day 



Sandanger et al also detected 45 of the population to apply cream on the whole body once or more every day This further proves that even though the demand for cosmetics is already high it is still increasing In Europe the cosmetic market value has increased 27 EU countries Norway and Switzerland In Norway only it increased with 1 8 in the same time period values based on retail sales prices The use of cosmetics is very individual and large scale population based studies like the Norwegian Women and Cancer study NOWAC 71 are therefore needed to increase knowledge on exposures to chemicals in such products Yet not much research exists on the usage patterns of cosmetics Two studies did however study gender and age differences 6 7 and both identified a higher prevalence and frequency of cosmetic use for most cosmetic products among women compared to men Still according to one of the studies men had a higher use frequency for at least shampoo and bath gel 6 According to Elsner 2012 there is an increasing number of men using cosmetic products However cosmetics are also used by groups considered more sensitive to EDCs which are endocrine disrupting chemicals A new study determined that a combination of suspected endocrine disrupting chemicals EDCs in make up and personal care products may pose a risk to your health 



The use of only one EDC may not be of much concern but the combination effect of several hormone disrupting substances together is considered dangerous For instance a frequent use of cosmetics has been reported in infants and children where girls were shown to have a higher use frequency than boys 6 The same study did also investigate correlations of cosmetic use between parents and children 6 When interpreting the spearman correlation coefficients rs non parametric test as suggested by Pallant et al 2007 73 moderate correlations p 0 05 were detected for different cosmetic products 6 Another study showed mostly low and moderate correlations p 0 01 when investigating Spearman correlations between mothers and children s urine concentrations of phthalates phenols and parabens High correlations where only detected for benzophenone 3 and triclosan p 0 01 74 The results indicate differences between parents and children s use of cosmetics 25 Humans are exposed to EDCs through different types of cosmetics but some cosmetics cause a higher exposure to EDCs than others 



Shower gel sunscreen body lotion etc gives a higher exposure than for example mascara and eyeliner as they are applicated to larger areas of the body 75 The daily exposure mg kg bw day of individual products have been calculated to be 1 12 mg and 0 57 mg for liquid body soap and cleansing products respectively and 268 33 mg and 17 43 mg for body lotion and roll on antiperspirant respectively 76 This shows that leave on products contributes to a larger relative daily exposure than wash off products And the larger the area applicated the larger is the exposure To be able to assess risks of EDC exposure through cosmetics adequately it is necessary to map usage patterns and to use biomonitoring Usage patterns are mapped by identifying exposure history and by for instance using questionnaires while biomonitoring can be conducted by measuring chemical concentrations in blood and urine In summary usage patterns of cosmetics are very individual but some population groups have a higher use than others Studies indicate a higher use among women than men and a higher use among girls than boys 6 Correlations do however indicate differences between chemical exposures in children and their parents 74 As some populations use more cosmetics than others they are likely more exposed to EDCs The use of cosmetics in more sensitive groups is however most concerning Endocrine disrupting chemicals


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