No PFAS Cosmetics Act – a bill that will protect us all!
Senator Susan Collins and Richard Blumenthal, and Representative Debbie Dingell, are introducing the bipartisan “No PFAS Cosmetics Act”, which will ban all the PFAS that are in makeup and many personal care products. This is a huge step in the right direction to protect us from these harmful chemicals that can cause cancer and harmful to our health.
On June 15, 2021, I was invited by ‘Made Safe’ to sit in on a press conference announcing the bill. Made Safe is a program of Nontoxic Certified, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. They provide America’s first comprehensive human health and ecosystem-focused certification for nontoxic products across store aisles, from baby to personal care to household and beyond. Their goal is to change the way products are made in this country to ultimately eliminate the use of toxic chemicals altogether. I strongly urge you to follow their work.
I am extremely excited that this bill is finally possibly going to happen. We should be able to trust that the products we are applying to our face, skin, and bodies. It can be hard for consumers to avoid PFAS chemicals because many brands do not list them on the labels.
These chemicals are getting into our bodies and extremely hard to get rid of. Even if you are a strict label reader like me, your makeup and personal care products may be exposing you to potentially harmful PFAS. These are chemicals you do not want to be putting on your body as they are absorbed into the skin and tear ducts. To help protect people from further exposure to PFAS, the bill would require the FDA to ban the addition of PFAS to cosmetics products.
PFAS are not only in cosmetic products but also contaminate drinking water and are tied to several illnesses including cancer, obesity, birth defects, thyroid disease, decreased immunity, hormone disruption, and potentially more severe COVID-19 effects.
3 ways to reduce exposure to PFAS in other areas of your life?
- Avoid stain-resistance treatments. Choose furniture and carpets that aren’t marketed as stain resistant.
- Avoid Teflon™ non-stick cookware.
- Filter your water – many regions have PFAS in their drinking water. Ask your water supplier for the levels of PFAS in your water.
- Shop in our Amazon store for healthier choices
