  A word of advice: if you have the choice to buy your little girl a "spa set" like this or a bat and ball, get her the bat and ball. Why? Come on; a million reasons. A bat and ball gets her outside. It gets her moving and playing with her siblings and peers.
And it doesn't come with an increased risk for early puberty or cancer. Spinning this gift set around to read the back label, there is a clear, large warning that reads: "This product contains a chemical known to the State of California to cause cancer." Did that make you pause? This warning is now required due to the progressive legislation in the State of California aimed to protect human health. (Track the legislation efforts and progress in your state at the Safer States website here.) Let's look a little deeper into two of the ingredients in these adorable little pink tubes and bottles. Fragrance All the items in this set have fragrance on their list of ingredients. As I have reported before, fragrance is one word to describe a mix of synthetic chemicals and odor masking agents. In the name of not disclosing "proprietary" blends of ingredients, companies generally do not report the chemicals used in their fragrances. So, let's take diethyl phthalate, a common chemical included in fragrance formulations. We know that diethyl phthalate interferes with thyroid hormone regulation (animal studies) and is an immune system toxicant and allergen (human studies)...not to mention its toxicity to wildlife and the environment (1). Click here for more information on Fragrance. Butylated Hydroxytoluene (BHT) in the lip gloss BHT is a toluene-based ingredient used as an antioxidant (preservative) and scent masking agent in products. Toluene is a highly volatile petrochemical solvent and paint thinner (2). Very high levels of exposure (much higher than in the use of these products) can damage the nervous system, skin, eyes, respiratory system and kidneys. A woman's exposure during pregnancy can result in birth defects and abnormalities in child's development and growth…[in addition to] spontaneous abortion (3). And toluene has been linked to malignant lymphoma (2). BHT, which comes from toluene, is in the lip gloss your daughter is putting on her lips. So why do we give our kids these products?! Our little girls' bodies, at every stage until adulthood, are still growing and developing, so why in the Lord's name do we buy these products and give them to our children...to apply to their lips and skin? Science is documenting that environmental factors play a role in early puberty and hormone-related cancers. Let's just quit spending our hard earned money on products like these. And if you're not sure the origin of a product, such as the adorbs little blue lip gloss given out at the fast food place, just toss it in the trash. 'Cause we both know our preschoolers are not only going to apply the lip gloss but ingest it too. The Bottom Line The minute we refrain from buying toxic personal care products and instead go for brands with fewer chemicals (...or decide NOT to buy body wash for an 8 year old at all), companies will take notice. Large corporations like Walmart and Target are already making huge changes to the chemicals policies on a voluntary basis. Even though it's baby steps, I applaud this wholeheartedly! These are promising steps toward offering safer products, but they need to see an unwavering shift in demand from consumers. So save the money on toxic personal care items for your little girl, and instead promote her physical fitness, confidence and team-player attitude with a good old fashioned sports gear! The bottom line is: if we stop buying it, stores will stop selling it and instead focus those dollars on something else (perhaps signing up for the Chemical Footprint Project or taking steps to contract with product suppliers who have responsible chemicals policies). And we get to see our kids grow up living the healthiest life they can! References: 1.https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ingredient/702512/FRAGRANCE/ 2.https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ingredient/706577/TOLUENE/# 3. OSHA: https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/toluene/health_hazards.html 4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3065309/
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