5 Truly Scary Things Hiding In Your Every Day Beauty Products
(Photo: Getty Images; Art by Wesley Johnson)
One Super Bowl, author Patrick Di Justo’s friend held up an aerosol can of Easy Cheese and asked “Does anyone, even, like, know what’s in this stuff?”
There came the idea for Di Justo’s next popular monthly “What’s Inside” column for Wired magazine. “I realized I could look selectively and scientifically into the products we eat and use every day,” he said.
His new book This Is What You Just Put in Your Mouth?: From Eggnog to Beef Jerky, the Surprising Secrets is a hilarious take on the truth behind items we not only eat but interact with on a daily basis.
Here, his most surprising findings about what’s in our favorite beauty products.
Magnetic properties in mascara
Try this trick at home: hold a magnet up to a bottle of mascara. Cool, right? Though there aren’t microscopic magnets floating around in your tube of mascara, the chemicals bismuth oxychloride and dichromium trioxide respond to magnets. Why the need for these chemicals in your mascara formula? Bismuth oxychloride makes the lashes shimmer in the light, while dichromium trioxide creates that dark pigment. If you go into a cranial MRI machine (which uses magnetic fields to look inside your body), those two chemicals on your eyelashes can create a very dark splotch on the MRI right over your eyeball. Best to wipe off your mascara before your appointment or your doctor may misinterpret that splotch for melanoma on your eyelid!
Sunblock in perfume
We’re not suggesting you head to the beach in nothing but Chloé’s latest fragrance, Love Story, but the chemical compound diethylamino hydroxybenzoyl hexyl benzoate (what a mouthful!) in many perfumes does act as a pretty effective sunblock. To keep your pulse points tan-free? Not quite. “It’s simply there to keep sunlight from breaking down the perfume molecules,” says Di Justo. “Perfume works by evaporating off your skin and into someone else’s nose. It’s a chemical that prolongs that evaporation without adding any scent itself.” Still, be mindful of storing your fragrance bottles in a cool, dry, dark place—not on your windowsill.
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Antifreeze in bronzer
If you’re one to dab bronzer on your lips for a golden, matte sheen, you may want to reconsider. Many bronzers contain propylene glycol (AKA automobile antifreeze), for its moisturizing properties. “It’s not completely toxic, or they wouldn’t allow it in bronzer, but you certainly shouldn’t eat it,” says Di Justo. It’s relatively safe on skin, but definitely avoid the lip area. We might recommend avoiding the ingredient altogether—save it for your windshield.
Fish in limp-plumper
It’s time to get real about that mout (massive pout). “The first thing to note is that all lip-plumpers do is cause temporary edema, or water retention in the lips,” says Di Justo. “So they’re not permanently enlarged—they’re just retaining water.” Here’s where it gets sketchy: The most effective plumpers use marine-based atelo-collagen made with fish scales, skin, and bones as well as the shrimp’s outer shell. Lip plumpers may not be vegan (and, TBH, we’d rather just go for sushi than sport it on our face), but they arehypoallergenic according to most manufacturer labels.
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Acid in skin lotion
Any skin lotion that contains “alpha-hydroxy” really contains hydroxyacetic acid (which is just a less-scary name), and it’s present in some of your favorite brands. What does it do? It intentionally exfoliates the outer layer of your skin, which promotes new skin growth. “In doing so, it leaves you vulnerable to UV rays and the skin damage they cause,” says Di Justo. This is why most alpha-hydroxy-based face lotions must add SPF to the mix. Where else can you find this acid? In bathroom tile cleaners because it also corrodes soap scum—not just skin cells.
Which of these findings surprised you the most?
By Marissa Miller
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