Sideways News

Gwyneth Paltrow suggests that shampoo can cause cancer

Oscar-winning actress, Gwyneth Paltrow, claims on her website, goop.com, that products such as shampoo cause cancer.

She writes that children and babies are unable to break down the toxins and chemicals used in many products, and that diagnosis of cancer and autism was growing "exponentially".

Professor Pennington, Aberdeen University Bacteriologist, has rubbished Paltrow’s claims. “It’s a load of nonsense. Shampoo is perfectly safe, unless you drink it in large quantities.”

Cancer Research UK has confirmed the number of children with cancer has not changed in the last 10 years and there is no known environmental cause for the disease.

Paltrow is known for her super-healthy lifestyle and is raising her children (Apple and Moses) on a macrobiotic diet, suggesting her views are be too extreme for many to take seriously.

However, one look at the internet - awash with dire warnings, accusations and assumptions about the ingredients found in many beauty products - suggests Paltrow is not alone in her views.
 
The baddie of beauty product ingredient nasties is surfactant Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS). The National Institute of Health's "Household Products Directory" lists over 80 commonly used products that contain sodium lauryl sulfate. Some soaps have concentrations of up to 30%, which a report by the American College of Toxicology called "highly irritating and dangerous".

According to the Natural Health Information Centre, once SLS is absorbed into the body it mimics the hormone oestrogen. Oestrogen is connected to fertility levels and female cancers such as breast cancer, hence the claim that the two are related.  

However according to Rick Havemann, brand manager Avea Organics, there is often little scientific evidence to substantiate these claims: “I would love to agree with Ms Paltrow as we sell only organic products,” he said. “However any claims made against commercial products should be backed up by hard scientific research and data.”

Furthermore, vilifying one particular product has the adverse effect of companies using other, sometimes untested surfactants, in their attempt to substitute SLS.

What we need to avoid, according to Havemann, is Nano refined ingredients. Nano technology has reduced the size of particles to the point where they can be absorbed by the skin, and therefore absorbed into the body.
 
“The problem, and I suspect this is where Ms Paltrow is coming from, occurs when ingredients find their way into our bodies through the skin,” said Havemann.

“Obviously this is not a good thing, even in the case of organic ingredients which build up and will eventually become as toxic as their commercial counterparts.”

Nano-refined ingredients often occur in beauty products, sunscreens and even some foods. However, many organic companies do specifically avoid nano-refined ingredients.

Paltrow’s cancer claims may be unsubstantiated, the internet chat-rooms simply scaremongering and beauty product vendors biased by their need to sell products. However, there are plenty of organic products available and, with a bit of research, it is possible to avoid chemicals that we don’t need to expose our, or our children's, bodies, to.

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