There's been a lot of press about this lately, so I thought I would address it in today's vlog. How in the world is benzene ending up in our beauty products?
Well, the study being released is definitely alarming. But sometimes in today's age of nonstop news coverage and social media people try to create panic to get clicks. The truth is benzoyl peroxide doesn’t become benzene until it's heated to 158–176 degrees Fahrenheit.
If you look at the press release, here's what they said - Incubation of a Proactiv product at the temperature of a hot car (70°C) resulted in the detection of benzene in a compact car’s volume of air at ~1,270 times the Environmental Protection Agency’s (“EPA”) calculated threshold for increased cancer risk by long-term inhalation exposure to benzene.
What?? So when I first saw this, I needed to look that up. And that's when I realized that 70°C is 158°F. So now that I've shared this knowledge with you, what do you think? Do you think it's fair? Maybe we should look at how these products are stored and where they're kept? In my mind, the truth is you probably need to expose these products to very high heat for a few weeks and this isn't really very reflective of your everyday life is it? I think we all know not to leave an acne product in a super hot car in Florida or Texas for a few weeks. I wouldn't use that and hopefully you wouldn't either. I would urge people to read the labels because most of them say that you should store it at room temperature.
So if you’re like most people and you buy a product and you put it in your bathroom and use it, you probably aren’t in danger of coming into contact with benzene.
My final take home point is when you buy something online, it’s a lot harder to be sure about the conditions it was stored in so I would definitely make sure to buy skin care from more reputable resellers or of course the best option is to buy your skin care products directly from the company itself.
Dr. Sam Speron
When I first published The 7 Critical Questions to Ask Before Letting Any Surgeon Touch You, I had no idea that it would be so popularly received. Since its publication, this brief guide has helped thousands like you to more safely navigate the world of cosmetic surgery. The 7 Questions have been updated and a bonus section, Applying the 7 Questions, has just been added. Be my guest to read, learn and share.
