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- Scientists are starting to learn more about the effects of manmade chemicals on our bodies.
- Though some chemicals have been increasingly associated with cancer and various adverse health effects, others have been falsely labeled as "unsafe."
- Evidence suggests there’s little reason to be worried about artificial sweeteners or sulfates in your shampoo.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more.
While consumers have become more savvy about chemicals in food, clothing, and household products, it’s often hard to distinguish speculation from science.
Some chemicals have known associations with cancer, autism, and reproductive issues, but others have been falsely linked to adverse health effects.
As with any chemical, the toxicity of a substance depends on the dose and how often a person is exposed.
The following chemicals are sometimes considered "toxic" or "unsafe," but don’t actually seem to present a risk to human health.
Aspartame (artificial sweetener) was once thought to cause cancer, but scientific evidence suggests it’s not a health risk.
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Aspartame has gotten a bad rap over the years for the wrong reasons.
Most of the public concern surrounding the artificial sweetener has to do with rat studies that linked aspartame to blood-related cancers like leukemia and lymphomas. Both the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) have discredited these findings, saying that aspartame is safe to consume.
The real issue with aspartame is that it’s found in diet sodas, which aren’t necessarily healthy. Research has shown that diet sodas can intensify your sugar cravings and may even lead to obesity.
Saccharin was once rumored to lead to cancer, but there’s little cause for concern.
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Another rat study prompted a similar association between saccharin, a zero-calorie sweetener sold under the brand name Sweet’N Low, and cancer. In the 1980s, products with saccharin were required to carry a warning label saying that the sweetener was "determined to cause cancer in laboratory animals."
The study was later debunked after scientists discovered that the rats were prone to bladder cancer to begin with. Dozens of other studies have also found no association between saccharin and cancer. In 2016, the National Toxicology Program removed saccharin from its list of cancer-causing ingredients.
Aluminum in your deodorant isn’t going to give you breast cancer.
Cheng Cheng
In the late 1990s, a viral email suggested that the aluminum in antiperspirants might be giving people breast cancer. The claim was backed up by preliminary research, but has since been proven false.
Both the European Commission’s Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety and the American Cancer Society find no clear link between breast cancer and aluminum-containing antiperspirants. Evidence suggests that our bodies only absorb small amounts of aluminum from antiperspirants — not enough to be considered dangerous.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
See Also:
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- ‘Forever chemicals’ have been found in bottled water brands sold at Whole Foods and CVS, and it’s part of a larger contamination problem
- Venice, the Great Barrier Reef, and other World Heritage Sites are threatened by rising seas, massive storms, and extreme heat. Take a look at the damage.
SEE ALSO: 7 toxic chemicals hiding in your waterproof, stain-resistant, and wrinkle-free clothes
Source: Business Insider – feedback@businessinsider.com (Aria Bendix)