Become an ingredient seeker to better understand and learn about which ingredients in your products are fragrant and harmful for you and the environment.  

Ever been curious about that new trending beauty and wellness product? Have you ever caved and, after applying it all over your body as demonstrated by influencers on TikTok or Instagram, found yourself sneezing non-stop or staring at a constellation of hives on your skin?

Congratulations - you’re in the right place to learn about the ingredients that triggered the unwanted reaction. Our goal at The Fragrance Free is to help you learn how to identify, decode, and avoid fragrance and other harmful ingredients in beauty, home, and wellness products. We’re excited for you to join our community of product detectives and join the fragrance-free movement. 

No certifications will be earned, but the payoff of a healthier and cleaner lifestyle is tremendous.

Your Journey Begins Today

Many beauty and home products are formulated with chemicals, synthetic, and natural ingredients. Although chemicals have an altogether bad reputation, some are relatively harmless, like hyaluronic acid, and similarly, some natural ingredients, such as essential oils, can be highly triggering to the respiratory system. 

While we prefer natural ingredients, choosing a fragrance-free product with fewer synthetic ingredients is the first step toward a healthier and cleaner lifestyle. 

Why Are Fragrances Everywhere?

In major cities, it feels like there’s a perfume monster lurking behind every door - whether it’s an immersive multi-sensory art exhibit, a swanky boutique hotel lobby, or a curated shop of oddities. We are in the midst of a dark fragrance renaissance where scent has become synonymous with experience, thrust upon us almost one hundred percent of the time without consent. As someone with a fragrance allergy, I do not consent and after learning about the toxic tonics pervading your nostrils, you might not either.

The Problem with Fragrance

Manufacturers often label these ingredients simply as “fragrance” or “parfum” to protect their proprietary components. This vague labeling prevents specific ingredients from being evaluated using health and safety databases available to the public. As a result, the ingredient “fragrance” can be found in hundreds of personal care products, with no one aside from the manufacturer really knowing what it contains. These “fragrances” can include chemicals that weaken the immune system, cause chronic skin irritation, disrupt hormones, and trigger breathing and skin allergies, impacting overall health.

Read more in depth on The Perils With Fragrance in Beauty and Home Products.

Becoming Aware of Harmful Ingredients

As discussed earlier, the beauty industry is not highly regulated, and while there are movements to enact stricter regulations and testing, this will likely take time to be put into practice. So, for now, it is up to the health-conscious consumer and your trusted partner at The Fragrance Free, to be aware of which products to pursue and those to avoid.  

The beauty and home product ingredients that top the toxic-list are preservatives, parabens, and synthetic dyes, according to health agencies and the EWG. Preservatives are a known carcinogen or agent capable of causing cancer. On labels these appear as formaldehyde, paraformaldehyde, methylene glycol, or quaternium 15 (a formaldehyde releasing agent), and are commonly found in chemical hair straighteners, such as keratin treatments.

Parabens, known to disrupt hormones and harm the reproductive system, are listed as dibutyl phthalates, diethylhexyl phthalates, isobutyl and isopropyl parabens, and the long-chain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances known as PFAS or forever chemicals, which have been linked to cancer.

Synthetic and permanent hair dyes that contain M- and o-phenylenediamine, or coal-tar ingredients such as aminophenol, diaminobenzene and phenylenediamine, are irritating to the skin and linked to causing cancer.

How to Rethink Your Products and Eliminate Fragrance Toxins

Even small steps will make a vast difference - the first step is cutting out the main home offenders and products applied to the skin.   

Home top offenders are scented candles, air fresheners, diffusers, essential oils, laundry detergents, fabric softeners, soaps, and cleaning sprays. Take a look around your living room, bathroom and laundry areas to evaluate your current products. Make a list of those with a perfume and restrict the use of these fragranced products to ensure an emission-free home.

Removing The Toxins in Your Beauty Products

Beauty and personal care items also contain harsh and toxic ingredients. According to the Environmental Working Group, the average woman uses 12 products a day, containing more than 150 different ingredients. The threat of exposure to hazardous chemicals and toxins that lead to long-term health complications is a very real possibility. While some products only contain a trace amount of a toxin, repeated exposure to the ingredient due to high frequency use - think moisturizing in the morning and evening - and when layered with other products that also contain traces of the toxic ingredient, these products can significantly impact human health.

The safest and healthiest path is the removal and avoidance of the fragrance products. Remember that allergic reactions can occur regardless of a prior issue. The best choice is opting for “fragrance-free,” “free and clear,” and “sensitive skin” products to ensure fragrance exposure is avoided. While the conventional notion equates fragrance with clean, the purest and safest form of clean has no scent.

Tools to For Fragrance-Free Advice

Always scrutinize product labels carefully and seek out products that only contain minimal plant and natural-based ingredients, and those that are free of fragrance and dyes. In addition to The Fragrance Free product recommendations, there are some great tools to aid in your vigilance of a fragrance-free lifestyle. 

To identify harmful chemicals and discover safer alternatives, explore the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)'s website resources - safer products for people and the environment database, and The Environmental Working Group's (EWG), with databases on safer personal care goods and cleaning products.

Environmental Responsibility: Beyond Personal Health

Selecting goods that are effective at achieving their intended beauty and wellness goals and clean of synthetic and natural fragrances, as well as dyes, are the safest options for preventing health complications and emissions into the environment. By embracing your role as a product detective, you can make informed choices.

Your body and the planet deserve the best.