Health – Lab Muffin Beauty Science

Factcheck: Low-Tox Sunscreen Swaps?

Michelle Wong — Fri, 13 Dec 2024 03:47:35 +0000

There’s been a few viral posts about how harmful chemical sunscreens are. The latest one is a post about “Sunscreen Swaps” from @a.glimpse.of.amelia (an Australian “low-tox” consultant) and @jordiepieface (a nutritionist from New Zealand), claiming that “some conventional sunscreens can do more harm than good”. Unfortunately, most of the post is inaccurate, and it’s likely scaring people away from using ...

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Is benzene in benzoyl peroxide a cancer risk?

Michelle Wong — Wed, 27 Nov 2024 11:58:37 +0000

There’s been a lot of stories about benzene contamination in personal care products over the last 4 years. This year, benzene was discovered in benzoyl peroxide, a staple acne treatment. How concerned should we be? Petition and original paper I’ve written about the background behind Valisure’s benzene analyses before, as well as questions about the accuracy of their data and ...

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Cyperus oil for hair removal: Is it safe and effective?

Michelle Wong — Sun, 20 Oct 2024 01:09:43 +0000

There’s been a lot of hype around Cyperus oil for hair removal, largely based on a study where it supposedly worked as well as laser. Unfortunately I don’t think it works, and if it did work, it would be a risky product to be using. For context, my PhD is in medicinal chemistry. Part of this involves looking at the ...

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Benzene in your products, Part 2: The story of Valisure

Michelle Wong — Fri, 27 Sep 2024 15:01:50 +0000

Here’s Part 2 of our deep dive into benzene contamination in your products. In Part 1, we talked about whether the experiments were “realistic” (no), and whether the cancer risk was described accurately (also no). This time, we’ll be discussing the wider issues around the private lab behind these findings, Valisure. This is adapted from the video version (which works ...

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DMDM hydantoin and formaldehyde in haircare

Michelle Wong — Sat, 20 Jan 2024 07:00:12 +0000

DMDM hydantoin is a preservative commonly found in shampoos. It started getting a lot of attention in 2021, thanks to a number of lawsuits surrounding hair loss – so let’s talk about the science behind it and whether it’s safe. (This post is partly based off a longer video about haircare misinformation on TikTok, which also covers sulfates, silicones, testing ...

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Sunscreen absorption and receptor binding: Debunking TikTok Misinformation

Michelle Wong — Wed, 22 Feb 2023 11:00:25 +0000

There’s tons of misinformation on the dangers of sunscreen on social media, and it seems like all of the myths make the rounds each time a new platform emerges. Currently the trending platform is TikTok. Even though sunscreen safety is a topic I’ve covered many times, it repeatedly comes up in many different flavours. I’ll break down the misinformation in ...

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Parabens, Fragrance, Colorants, Talc: Debunking Bobby Parrish’s TikTok misinformation

Michelle Wong — Fri, 17 Feb 2023 12:37:23 +0000

Bobby Parrish, a home cook and food influencer who goes by the name FlavCity, has made a number of viral TikTok videos recently about dangerous personal care ingredients. As you might expect, there’s quite a lot of misinformation in them. I debunked a couple of them in a recent YouTube video, along with some other TikTok videos – you can ...

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Barrier Repair, Rosacea, Sensitive Skin: Products & Tips

Michelle Wong — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 12:10:29 +0000

Irritated and sensitive skin can be tricky to deal with – whether it’s because your skin is innately sensitive, or because it’s messed up from harsh products or harsh weather. I recently sat down with my friend Hannah English to talk about our favourite tips and products for irritated skin. She’s a pharmaceutical scientist and skincare content creator who shares ...

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US Sunscreens Aren’t Safe in the EU? The Science

Michelle Wong — Mon, 14 Nov 2022 11:30:36 +0000

There’s been a lot of fearmongering about chemical sunscreens. There were scary-sounding new stories – sunscreen absorbing into blood, killing coral reefs, zinc oxide being toxic, benzene in sunscreens… Related Post: Top 7 Sunscreen and SPF Myths I’ve covered most of these before, and they’re largely just the media taking things out of context and sensationalising them, partly for views, ...

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You don’t need to freak out about benzene in dry shampoo

Michelle Wong — Wed, 26 Oct 2022 12:00:59 +0000

There’s been another beauty product recall because of benzene. This time it’s dry shampoos produced by Unilever, including products from; Dove TRESemmé TIGI Suave I’ve talked about benzene contamination in products before, specifically sunscreen. It’s a very similar situation this time. The key points: Benzene is not intentionally added to products. Rather, it’s a trace contaminant that’s accidentally found its ...

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