Breast cancer has impacted the lives of many women worldwide. There are few people who have not either had this cancer themselves, or had a close family member or friend who has been affected by this type of cancer. It has long been suspected that a common preservative that is contained in many cosmetic products has been a contributor to the development of breast cancer in women. A recent study actually showed that 99 percent of breast tissue samples of women that had to have a mastectomy procedure because of breast cancer contain this chemical. An astounding 60 percent of these breast tissue samples contained at least five varieties of this specific chemical. What is this common cosmetic ingredient that has been found directly in breast tumor and the other breast tissue of women who have had breast cancer?

The answer is the common cosmetic preservative called paraben. There are many varieties of parabens, but it seems like all of them can contribute to breast cancer, from the conclusions of this study. The suspicion that these chemical preservatives were dangerous has not kept American cosmetics companies from continuing to use them in their cosmetics formulations. There are many several alternative cosmetic preservatives, but many cosmetic companies choose not to use them because it may cost them a few more cents per batch of cosmetics to use. I find this fact extremely disturbing.



What can you do? Do you have to stop wearing cosmetics to prevent breast cancer? No. There are cosmetics companies that sell cosmetics with no parabens in their formulations. You just need to do a little searching to find these companies. Also, read labels at the drugstore. These formulations are harder to find, but they do exist. Any cosmetic product that is labeled organic or all-natural most likely will not contain these parabens, as well as any brands of mineral cosmetics.