Men's Product Safety

Men are faced with daily cosmetics products themselves. From hair shampoos, hair gels, shaving creams, colognes, aftershaves and etc. What majority of the men population fail to realize is that some of those products contain chemical substances that can be harmful to male reproductive health. The problematic formulas found in men’s every day product use are:
·         Diethyl phthalate (DEP): found in fragrance-containing products such as cologne, aftershave, shaving cream, shampoos and deodorants (recent human studies link DEP to sperm damage in adult men, abnormal reproductive)
·         Lead acetate: found in men’s hair and beard colorants
·         Coal tar: found in dandruff shampoos such as Neutrogena T-Gel Shampoo
·         Triclosan: found in antibacterial soaps and deodorants such as Old Spice Wide Stick Deodorant, Speed Stick deodorants, Dial anti-bacterial soaps and Edge Advanced Shaving Gel, Ultra Sensitive ( linked to hormone disruption)
·         Formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane: found in many leading shampoos and body washes (can trigger skin rashes and other allergic reactions.)

What will companies have to do?

According to Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011, the cosmetics companies will have to:

·         Register the company and its products with the FDA; companies with under $2 million in annual sales are not required to register;

·         Fully disclose ingredients in products (businesses that have signed the Compact for Safe Cosmetics have already agreed to do this, and hundreds of companies are already fully disclosing all ingredients, including those that make up "fragrance");

·         Pay a registration fee based on total annual sales to ensure the FDA has the capacity to evaluate the safety of ingredients; companies with under $10 million in annual sales are exempt from fees; and

·         Share safety data about product ingredients and ensure that all ingredients in the company's products have been assessed for safety. Safety data can be requested from ingredient suppliers or accessed from existing data on a publicly accessible database administered by the FDA.