An antibacterial ingredient, present in personal and household hygiene products, is associated with a risk of bone demineralization.
Triclosan is a preservative and an antibiotic agent that is added to common consumer products such as deodorants, hand soaps, toothpastes and mouthwashes, disinfectant cleaners, and even clothing. As wide as its uses are the suspicions about its harmful effects on people’s health.
Triclosan was known to be an endocrine disruptor, to be found in breast cancer samples, to be allergenic, to alter the intestinal microbiota, to damage neurons, and to favor the emergence of bacteria resistant to antibiotic treatment.
TRICLOSAN IS AN ENDOCRINE DISRUPTOR AND SUSPECTED OF BEING CARCINOGENIC
Now, a study conducted at Hangzhou University in China has found that it is also linked to osteoporosis in women. The researchers found that women with higher levels of triclosan in their urine had lower bone density in the femur and spine. And the risk of osteoporosis was higher in menopausal women.
Previous studies had proven that triclosan affected bone mineralization in laboratory animals, but this study led by Dr. Yingjun Li is the first to corroborate this in humans. However, the authors specify that it cannot yet be stated that there is a cause-effect relationship.
The use of triclosan is of little benefit. Studies have shown that including triclosan in personal and household hygiene products has no advantages over simply using soap and water. Therefore, only the possible risks remain.
LOOK AT THE LABELS AND CHOOSE ORGANIC PRODUCTS
To avoid this substance in personal hygiene products, you just have to read the list of ingredients or choose products with a natural or organic certification (all recognized certifications, such as Ecocert, Cosmebio, Vida Sana, BDIH or Cosmos, prohibit it).
It is more difficult not to be exposed to triclosan through clothing, carpets and other utensils because these products are not required to declare on the labels the treatments they have undergone. You can always ask the manufacturer if they have used triclosan. In principle, you can be suspicious of any product that is presented as “antibacterial”.
