What Does Fragrance Free Mean?

I see a lot of talk on the web about this. As well as hear a lot of different comments. Some comments are about the fact that a product has an odor of any kind.

So, what do I mean by Fragrance Free?

It’s the addition of artificial fragrance that I mean when I talk about fragrance added to anything. You can call it “fragrance”, “masking fragrance”, “perfume” or even “parfum” (for that French feel). They are all the same. A bunch of chemicals that likely haven’t been tested on humans. Probably some have, but the fragrance industry doesn’t what to tell you about that. So they hide behind their “trade secret” claim.

You have to be careful when shopping. It isn’t enough that the front of the label says “Unscented” or “Fragrance Free”. There’s no FDA regulation about this. Or any regulation anywhere. If it’s a personal care product (shampoo, lotion, makeup, etc), then turn it over and read the ingredients. I know it’s more work, but if you’re sensitive, it’s necessary. Read the whole list. Fragrances are usually listed near the end, but don’t rely on that. I even read the ingredients when the front says “No Added Fragrance”. If you’re sensitive to fragrances, you can’t be too careful.

And if it’s a household product, it’s trickier. There’s no regulation that requires them to even list their ingredients. Sometimes it can be trial and error. Here are some clues: If it says “Fresh Clean Scent” or “Ocean Fresh Scent” or anything else that implies a certain scent, then don’t buy it. It has fragrance of some sort in it. Some products say “No Added Fragrance”. I trust these cautiously. Your best bet (although nearly impossible to follow 100%) is to only buy household products that list their ingredients.

And yes, a fragrance free product is likely to still have a ‘odor’ to it. Some chemicals have an odor. So you’ll still be able to smell something. Some people find the chemical odors objectionable. Which is why you often see “masking fragrance” in your ingredient list. To me, a masking fragrance is as bad (or even worse) than other added fragrances. I say worse because it can fool you without that fragrancy smell to it.

If you still want a product with a nice smell, consider purchasing a bit of an essential oil and adding it to your products. Don’t add a lot, a little goes a long way. And some of your ‘greener’ products have essential oils added. I’ve become so sensitive to odors that I stay away from these too. But you might want to give them a try.

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Household Products Database

I found a link recently to the Household Products Database. Created by the National Library of Medicine, it provides health & safety information on household products.

You can look up information by product or ingredient. For example, enter Fragrance in the ingredients search and you get this long list. I didn’t read the entire list, but I did look through it.

I learned some interesting things. For example, did you know you could buy Cologne for your pet??? I knew that if you took a pet to be groomed that they put stinky stuff on them. But worse - Crest Toothpaste is on the list as containing fragrance??!? What in the world? Why? Oh, sorry, probably cannot apply logic to this…

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From My Inbox

I receive emails via my other web site, Fragrance Free World, as well as from visitors to this site. I thought I would post some comments from a recently received email:

If exposed for more than 15-20 minutes can be under the weather, unable to sleep and depressed for 3-4 days thereafter

Air frsheners or fabric conditioners cause chest to tighten and breathing difficult

Sometimes feel that am tasting soap in my mouth and throat for hours afterwards

Have made my home free of chemicals and am well as long as I can avoid contact with V.O.C’s

Have followed development of REACH in the European parliament an am disappointed to see that 7 - 10 years will pass before chemical manufacturers need o show awareness and stringen safety controls so would just like to hear that someone out there is creating a greater awareness…..

I had not heard of REACH before so I thought I would do a bit of research.

Firstly, REACH is an acronym for : Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals. This is a law that went into effect in Europe on June 1, 2007. The overall goal appears to be to protect human health and the environment from toxic chemicals. Prior to this law, chemicals that were in use prior to 1981 were sort of ‘grandfathered’ - i.e. they were not subject to the same regulations as newer chemicals. You can read more about REACH on this web site. While it is true that industry has up to 11 (eleven!) years to comply, it is encouraging to know that more is being done about this issue.

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Non-Rebel Fragrance Fan

The poor people that come up with these things. If they only knew that the fragrances have affected their brains to the point that they come up with CRAZY products. Just what the world needs is a fan that spews fragrance.

This came from an email ad sent out by my least favorite kitchen, bath and bedroom shop. The one that goes BEYOND the necessary in stinking up their store with fragrances. The fragrance fan is from that “Non-Rebel” candle company and is touted as “Flame-free fragrance!”

(No, no, I don’t get email ads from that company. I have spies. )

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Asthma On The Rise

This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who is truly “aware” , but last month our local newspaper reported on the increase in asthma in children. That was something I’ve noticed over the past few years just from personal observation and reading. But it seems the media isn’t really paid to think so they just found out.

The report citedreally information from the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America and said that San Antonio ranked No. 11 this year (2007) on its list of “asthma capitals”.

The article was written from the standpoint of what it is costing the schools. As in, they get their state funding based upon attendance. Plus the schools now have a supply of nebulizers in their nurse’s office.

It did mention some of the things that the school districts are doing to try to help the children with asthma. Mostly removing these asthma triggers and agents that can harbor asthma triggers: stuffed animals, pillows, pets, deodorizing sprays, aerosols, candles, carpeting. But it likely isn’t near far enough.

I actually graduated from one of the schools mentioned in the article. I was back there for an alumni event a few years back. There was a strong scent of fragrance that I believe came from the cleaners used in the building. I left there with a migraine. It’s no wonder there are more kids with asthma.

I suspect that the school districts may not realize that fragrances are in all those cleaners. I actually encountered such thinking when I still worked in the “real” world. This was after I began having migraines 24/7. I somewhat got the attention of management although their primary goal seemed to prove me wrong. I actually had one person tell me that the cleaners that were used did not contain fragrance. She showed me the label which did not list fragrance as an ingredient. Of course it didn’t. It wasn’t required by law to list fragrance. But, what exactly did she think “Fresh Clean Scent” on the label meant?

How is your children’s school? You may want to inquire about the chemical cleaners they use.

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A Fresh Broom?

Just when you think there’s nothing else they can add fragrance to:

This story was in our local paper the other day. In the “Life” section under the heading of Consumer’s Edge. (Consumer’s Edge seems to be where they advertise products by publishing info. from company press releases.)

It seems that two companies (who shall remain nameless so that I don’t give them any publicity) have gotten together and come up with a broom that has an air freshener attached. Their claiming it has a “fresh scent”. One of the company representatives was quoted as saying, “The (aforementioned, unnamed broom) brings true innovation to the broom category, with a clear understandable and detectable benefit to the consumer.” Oh, and it only costs $11.99!

True innovation? I don’t think so. It may be detectable, but it is neither understandable nor a benefit. Just another way to pollute your home environment.

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A Cry For Help

I received the following email last night - actually @ 2:11AM South Texas time. The author, who shall remain nameless, found my other site - Fragrance Free World - by searching on the phrase “fragrance and adhd” at Yahoo! It is most definitely a cry for help:

I’m a special education teacher with Seattle Public School District. One of my students wears hairspray and baby gel. I have had a strong reaction to both products. The ADHD kids in my classroom can’t stand the smell that this students gives off. The school district told me to submit a 504 because of my asthmatic reaction to this child. The Human Resources told me that I would have to take a medical leave of absent. They also told me that the child had a perfect right to wear the strong smelling products - no questions asked. The hell with the rest of us. I refuse to take a medical leave of absent. I need the name of a really good lawyer. Can you help me out here???? Thanks.

First, I have to say that I’ve had a theory for a long time that ADHD is caused by fragrances and other VOCs in our modern environment.

But this letter makes a good point. The right of a person to wear fragranced products should end where the breathing space of other people begins. It’s the same issue as smoking, when you get right down to it. Sadly, until the American Public really wakes up to this fact, there will be problems. It doesn’t help that the FDA doesn’t do anything about it. Probably too many contributions from the fragrance industry.

But, I digress. Let’s get back to the emailer’s problem. I don’t know from the email whether anyone has talked w/ the student wearing strongly fragranced products. It might be an idea. Although I know how defensive people can get.

But the author is correct. They shouldn’t have to take a leave of absence because of the inconsiderate behavior of a student. Sadly, the lawsuit option, or even the threat of one backed by a lawyer, might be an option.

Finding said lawyer could be difficult. The reaction of most people to this type of issue is often a roadblock. People don’t want to believe that someone could be allergic to fragrances or have health issues because of them. Probably b/c they don’t want to give up their own fragrances?

So, I know that in the past I’ve had readers who went the lawyer route. Is there anyone out there who can provide information on how you found a lawyer? If you have website links, or even searches you’ve done. Please leave a comment. Or if you have other information that could help this person - leave a comment.

Thanks!

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New Symptom?

Well, not precisely new. It’s just that I only recently realized this problem was related to my fragrance sensitivity. Here’s what happened:

Last weekend, I had a lot of problems. First, during the day, my legs were very restless. I couldn’t sit still, couldn’t really do much of anything. I’ve had this problem before, except usually it was because I was very tired. As soon as I would lay down, it would go away. But this time it wasn’t happening. Finally, I decided that if my legs wanted to move, I would take them for a walk. And it helped, for a while.

Sunday evening, we went out to eat. Nothing fancy, except once again everybody, everywhere is wearing their perfume in order to dress up for the holidays. (UGH!) By the time I got home, it was all in my clothes. So I changed into a t-shirt that had come from my father’s house. Then I decided I would sleep in that shirt.

But, I couldn’t sleep. I was exhausted, but couldn’t sleep. I was restless and tossed and turned. I finally went into the guest bedroom so as not to disturb by DH. That bed wasn’t made up, so I fished a blanket out of chest of drawers that came from my father’s house. After a while, I realized that I was smelling lots of perfume. It was in the shirt and the blanket. So I changed out of the t-shirt and ditched the blanket. Poof - problem solved. I was asleep in minutes.

As I think about this incident, I realize that there have been other times that I couldn’t sleep. Even without the migraine itself, the fragrances have been interfering with my health.

Some days it is very hard to cope with these issues. Becoming a hermit sounds attractive. Or maybe Thoreau was right. But I could never get through his book. And I tried many, many times.

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A Chicken and Egg Question

Because of my allergies and chemical sensitivity, I have totally given up on makeup. I wear lipstick and that is all.

This was a gradual process. I used to wear foundation, powder, blush, eyeshadow, mascara, the whole thing. The problems started with foundation. First, I never found it comfortable. It felt like my skin couldn’t breathe. The same as the feeling I get when I wear polyester. As my allergies got worse, most of them caused me to itch, and created red splotches. That was if I could find fragrance free makeup. Mascara was next, then eyeshadow. There’s nothing worse than when your eyes are itching. Eventually, I decided not to buy anymore more makeup, period. Lipstick is all I buy. It’s amazing how much faster I can get dressed now!

And it really fits in with my over all nature. I’ve always gone for natural in most things - If I wore makeup, I went for a more natural look, I rarely do much to my hair, I love natural fabrics, etc.

More than once in recent years, I’ve had people say to me “You have such a nice complexion. You’re lucky, you don’t need makeup.” And I’ve wondered, “Which came first? Do I not need makeup b/c I have a nice complexion? Or do I have a nice complexion b/c I don’t wear makeup?” I’ve thought about this quite a bit and I suspect that the cosmetics industry may have women believing that they need makeup when they really don’t.

My cleansing routine is very simple. I was my face while in the shower. I use the same soap that I use for the rest of my body - Kiss My Face Olive Oil Soap. That’s all. No special cleansers. No astringents. No special creams. Maybe a little moisturizer during the winter.

I had someone tell me this past week about my nice complexion. I mentioned that my allergies sort of forced the no makeup thing. She proceeded to tell me that she had allergies too. And that she had real problems with her eyes. She even admitted that her makeup was probably part of the problem. But she was too vain to give it up. (Her words, not mine.)

The cosmetic industry really has a hook in women, doesn’t it? They play on our vanity. And the fact that we all have to look young. Which means no wrinkles, no gray hair, etc. So they sell us more and more creams and lotions and makeup. They convince us we need to dye our hair to cover our gray. They even convince some of us to have Botox injections.

All for what? Who are we fooling anyway? It’s pretty easy to tell most of the time that a person (even a man) has dyed their hair. For one thing, people don’t always keep it up as often as they should. Plus, the colors never look natural and often look harsh.

So many Americans spend far too much effort trying to change how they look. Too much time, energy and money goes into trying to look younger. Yet you can’t really fight your age, and you look less natural when you try. But the biggest thing to me is that we believe all the hype from the cosmetics industry. So we wind up with a not-so-nice complexion that is probably caused by all the stuff we put on our face to begin with.

If you dare, try going without all that makeup for a while. Take some time off from it. It will probably take a while for your skin to recover. But you just might find that you have a nice complexion too!

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Benefits of Magnesium

We were all taught growing up that, if we ate a balanced, healthy diet then we would not really need vitamins and other nutritional supplements. The reality of it is that this is not true at all. In fact, in the US it hasn’t been true at least as far back as 1936. The reasons - chiefly soil depletion caused by not rotating crops and dead soil caused by weed killers. The problem is made worse because most of us don’t eat a balanced, healthy diet. Processed foods are lacking in magnesium, fluoride added to water binds with magnesium making it unavailable, inefficient digestion and absorption which results from America’s addiction to antacids, plus blocked absorption caused by some foods and drugs all help to deplete magnesium. From Carolyn Dean, M.D., N.D., in her book The Magnesium Miracle

the typical American diet, which is rich in fat, sugar, salt, synthetic vitamin D, phosphates, protein, and supplemented calcium, not only is deficient in magnesium but actually increases the need for magnesium in the body.

Magnesium is involved in hundreds of activities in the human body, especially in these areas: enzyme catalysis, energy production and transport, protein synthesis, nerve signal transmission and muscle relaxation. Hence, magnesium deficiency has a huge impact on how your body functions. In her book, Dr. Dean has a long list of conditions that are likely to result in magnesium deficiency. Magnesium deficiency has been implicated as contributing to symptoms for MCS, Fibromyalgia, CFS, Migraines, to name a few. I’ve also read that it functions as an anti-oxidant and can be important in detoxification.

I first learned about the importance of Magnesium from this book: What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause. I began having severe PMS symptoms. I would just break down in tears for absolutely no reason. Sometimes it was as simple as trying to decide what to eat for lunch. It was very frustrating, for myself and those close to me. I happened upon this book and read about the role that magnesium played in PMS. So, I gave it a try. After all, if I went to a doctor, they were likely to prescribe Prozac or some such. And I was pretty sure my problems were not a result of a Prozac deficiency.

That was about 10 years ago, and I’ve taken Magnesium daily ever since. My experience has also made my husband a believer in the magic of magnesium. I can’t say just how much the magnesium has helped with my migraines and chemical sensitivity. But, I do know that I am healthier and feel better because of the magnesium supplements.

If you have symptoms of MCS, you may want to investigate supplemental magnesium. We’re all deficient without supplements and it can’t hurt you if you take recommended dosages.

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