Perfume, deodorant, laundry detergent, hand lotion, soap, shampoo, dryer sheets, hand sanitizer, potpourri, scented candles, air freshener. What do these products have in common? Artificial fragrance made from endocrine disrupting chemicals.
Olfactory Trespassing
For those of us with autoimmune disorders or Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS), the products above can do more than just ruin our day. They can ruin our health.
The Toxicity of Everyday Products
Most of these chemical fragrances contain endocrine disrupting chemicals which may lead to cancer and interfere with immune system function too.
I’m a Hugger
I love hugging people. I’m a hugger! But there’s nothing worse than hugging someone and having the chemical fragrance from their perfume of cologne stay with you all day. It stains my clothes and doesn’t come out in the dry cleaning. The stuff has staying power.
Losing our Sense of Smell is Making us…
All of these scented and perfumed products are so strong that we are losing our sense of smell. It’s like listening to loud music blasting through a speaker. Soon one cannot discern softer sounds.
Lose our Sense of Taste
What is the most integral component of our sense of taste? It’s our sense of smell. If you can’t smell, you basically can’t taste your food. This can lead to food cravings, a lack of satiation, and unsatisfied hunger.
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Solutions for Scented Times
The soap provided in most, if not all, of the alternative practitioners’ offices, that I go to is perfumed with artificial fragrance. Even the exercise studios I go to do not provide unscented soap. Because of this, I carry a bottle of hand sanitizer with me.
Traveling Scent Free
When we travel and stay in a rental, I bring my own hand soap, dish soap, dishwasher detergent, shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream, laundry detergent, and cleaning products. This provides my family with a scent free environment.
Why Can’t We Smell Like Humans?
I’m trying to figure out what our cultural obsession is with not smelling like humans –what do you think?
Is Your Home a Scent-Free Zone?
What’s the point of eating all of this organic food while slathering our bodies in layers of chemicals? Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts!
McAnulty Olga says
I don’t have allergies but I cannot breathe when I go down the detergent isle. My husband uses aftershave and body spray/ deodorant and he knows it bothers me when it’s freshly applied but he uses it anyway. The older I get the more it bothers me. I don’t get it. He says he likes to smell nice. Yes, why can we just smell like humans!
Elana says
McAnulty, thanks for sharing your story here, so sorry that you have to live in your own house with this :-(
Mary Ann says
Thanks for another insightful article. You’re absolutely right about the negative impacts of all these artificial fragrances that bombard us from every direction, even when out walking, because of fragranced dryer sheets and heavily scented laundry detergents. Although I buy most of my clothing from thrift stores, I find they, too, are full of an artificial scent that is incredibly difficult to get out, often taking several washings and airing-outs before they’re suitable to wear. I’ve even noticed that a lot of new clothing comes pre-scented with some sort of Febreze-like product, which is again difficult to remove. If anyone knows any tips or tricks for expediting the removal of these scents from clothing, I’d love to hear about them.
Elana says
Mary Ann, someone said in an earlier comment that they use a product called “Stink Bomb” to remove chemical odors from clothing. I’ve ordered it and will report back. Feel free to ping me here with another comment if I don’t follow up in a timely fashion. There are 80,000 comments on the website (for real!) and I sometimes get a bit behind :-)
Elana says
Mary Ann, I bought the Stink Bomb spray and sprayed it on a blazer that I bought used from a consignments store. I did not notice any difference in the perfume smell on the blazer before vs after spraying, so cannot recommend that product :-)
Janet Howard says
I also struggle when clothing from the store comes “pre-scented.” My fix which often has to be repeated is to soak the clothing in plain vinegar and baking soda. I use equal parts of each and just soak in the machine. Recently, it took 7, all-day soak and rinse, repeat cycles. Then a soap cycle then air dry and test. Sometimes this works and sometimes the clothing is consigned to the outdoors for sun + outgassing.
A friend who does environmental consulting calls synthetic fragrance the new secondhand smoke. The health risks are real, just not studied or evaluated. I avoid these fragrances and also carry my own hand sanitizer for use when needed.
Elana says
Janet, I LOVE the idea of calling synthetic fragrance the new secondhand smoke –someone else mentioned that here and I think it’s brilliant.
Cate says
I can no longer wear perfume, though I did love it when I was younger and didn’t know better. It now makes me congested and my eyes water. The worst for me are gardening stores with bags of pesticides…overwhelming. And the laundry aisle in the grocery store…yuck.
“Of the more than 80,000 chemicals currently used in the United States, most haven’t been adequately tested for their effects on human health.” The Natural Resources Defense Council
No matter what we as individuals choose to use or not use or how much we “green” our own homes or products, the majority of people are exposed to these chemicals through drinking water (and showering/bathing water), soil (and therefore food), our rivers and oceans (and the fish we eat from them), the air we breathe, the houses we live in, the schools children attend, the buildings where we work & shop, etc.. Honestly, it feels like a losing battle!
Elana says
Cate, thanks for your wonderful comment and for sharing the quote fro NRDC! Yes, it is very sad and does feel like a losing battle :-(
Janet says
Elana, Thanks so much for sharing all the wisdom and for reworking and inventing gluten free, grain free, dairy free, nightshade free recipes so the sensitives among us can dine. Btw, I made the Pumpkin-Cranberry-Pecan (had to substitute the walnuts due to allergy!) Upside Down Cake for an Easter gathering. The gluten free crowd lined up for a slice and I introduced the whole bunch of them to your amazing site. Thank you!!! Rave reviews!
About scents and chemicals: Has anyone figured out a softening method without chemicals and fragrance? A vendor who makes tights claims that a wash with a scent-free fabric softener will make the tights fit. This gives me great pause because it would contaminate my washing machine. I could and would if it makes any sense hand wash using gloves. Wanted to know if anyone has a solution to this. Dodging scent and chemicals all day long is almost a full time job.
Many thanks. I love the new site design.
Elana says
Janet, thanks for all the parts of your fantastic comment! I haven’t worn tights in a while so not sure about how to soften them, but maybe someone else here has some ideas for you. Thanks for letting me know that my recipes get rave reviews and that you are sending people to my website :-)
KAREN SPIVACK O’QUINN says
Elana,
I have had MCS for many years and am appalled as well at the fragrance toxicity issue. After an unintentional exposure, I can sometimes be sick with flu symptoms for days!
I have a mini air purifier that I wear around my neck that helps, especially with larger particulate matter. Not as great with smaller particulates. It worked exceptionally well during our very smoky fire season last summer.
I was surprised to read you use a dry cleaner. I was under the impression the toxic chemicals they use are highly toxic and have not sent anything out to be dry cleaned in many years. Would you comment on commercial dry cleaning please?
Thank you again for reaching out to us with your good advice, recipes and experiences. I wish you well.
Elana says
Karen, we use a non-toxic dry cleaner and I rarely send things to it :-)
Donna says
My home is a fragrance free zone. I clean with vinegar and baking soda 99% of the time. My deodorant, skincare and makeup, soap, shampoo, laundry and dishwash detergent are all unscented and I can’t even tolerate most essential oils any more. I can smell people’s fragrance coming before I see them and long to ask visitors not to wear perfume in my home. As for smelly laundry products, I almost went home before a movie because the lady in our group who was going to sit next to me practically had visible fumes rising off her clothes.
And don’t get me started about shops with oil or fragrance diffusers!
We urgently need a massive reduction in the use of fragrances both natural and artificial.
Elana says
Donna, I agree! It’s totally out of control.
Tresa Rolando Salters says
This is great info, thanks for sharing! Just one more reason that I am so grateful to have dōTERRA essential oils and products that are all natural and plant based, the best smells come from nature, don’t you think?! I diffuse essential oils to help my home smell great and kill the germs in the air! Interesting now that I have been using these oils for 3 years, the artificial smells of perfumes actually affect me more than they even did before, I avoid them, need to be chemical free so we can live a long healthy life!!! thanks again for sharing!
Elana says
Tresa, you’re welcome!
linda says
Tresa, please reduce your diffusing because the oils are NOT benign, they actually add more VOCs to the air and create new pollutants, which can make you more sensitive to more chemicals! Clean has no smell!
Kathy says
I am really bothered by others strong perfume and dryer sheet and detergent scents left on people’s clothing. When I go outside my house I can smell the neighbors dryer sheets in the air. It’s so toxic to everyone. I purchased a tiny air purifier that is worn around your neck. It is really helpful when you are in a closed environment, but not helpful when outdoors if their is a breeze.
Elana says
Kathy, I totally agree about the scents coming out of dryer vents and I wonder what all of those chemicals in laundry detergent and dryer sheets are doing to our air and water quality in terms of adding a significant amount of pollution!
Becca says
Norwex has been s lifesaver for chemical-free cleaning in our home. No scents except diffusing pure essential oils. Not only has our food industry relied on processing, but we have become obsessed with anti-bacteria, anti-germ living. No wonder our guts are out of whack! I have shared your blog/cookbooks with many!
Elana says
Becca, thanks so much for your awesome comment and for sharing my blog and books with many people :-)
Gail says
I like to have my house smelling nice since two dogs live with us. I use organic essential oils with distilled water in a glass spray bottle. It’s a safe way to combat unpleasant odors without being unhealthy. Make sure the oil you choose agrees with your system.
I make hand soap with 2 oz of Dr Bronner’s liquid soap, 1/4 tsp E.O. of your choice then add distilled water into a foam soap dispenser.
Quality essential oils can be beneficial to our health.
Elana says
Gail, I love essential oils :-)