Is Your Deodorant Safe Enough?
Aluminum salts may increase breast cancer risk
A new report raises the possibility that the aluminum salts contained in many underarm deodorants could increase a woman's breast cancer risk. Metals including aluminum salts and cadmium have recently been shown to exert estrogen-like effects, while some also promote the growth of breast cancer cells in the laboratory, Dr Philippa D Darby of the University of Reading in the UK noted. The research has shown that aluminum salts increase estrogen-related gene expression in human breast cancer cells grown in the laboratory.Given the wide variety of other substances that can mimic estrogen, including certain pesticides, cosmetics and detergents, it is possible that aluminum salts and other inorganic estrogen-related compounds called "metalloestrogens" can further disrupt normal hormonal signaling within the breast, Darby says. "There is no doubt that the human breast is now subject to a wide range of environmental estrogenic insults," she informed. What is particularly concerning about aluminum is the fact that it is applied to the underarm, close to the breast, and left on the skin. Deodorants also are frequently used after shaving, making it easier for aluminum salts to enter the blood stream. Studies also have demonstrated that aluminum salts can penetrate human underarm skin even if it is unbroken. Until recently, Darby notes, only organic chemicals were thought to be capable of exerting estrogen-like effects in the body, or otherwise disrupting the hormone's normal functioning. "The answer for aluminum is to cut down or cut out on application of antiperspirant under the arms and around the breasts," she points out. "I stopped using underarm cosmetics 10 years ago when I first starting thinking about it all. I wash with soap and water twice a day and no one has yet complained." Source: Journal of Applied Toxicology
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