Ecotoxicological aspects of the use of parabens in the production of cosmetics

Parabens are synthetic preservatives that are used on a large scale in the cosmetics, pharmaceutical and food industries. Their task is primarily to prolong the shelf life of selected products – cosmetics, medicines or food – by maintaining their microbiological purity. Parabens protect products against deterioration and microorganisms, extending their durability by up to several months without interfering with their composition and operation. Parabens do not change the aroma, taste, density or other characteristics of cosmetic or food products. However parabens, which occur in most cosmetics with a creamy or liquid formula (face creams, body lotions, foundation, tonics, lipsticks, deodorants, perfumes), are becoming increasingly worse because of the prolonged list of side effects that they may cause. The presence of intact paraben esters in human body tissues has now been confirmed by independent measurements in human urine, and the ability of parabens to penetrate human skin intact without breakdown by esterases and to be absorbed systemically has been demonstrated through not only in vitro studies but also in vivo investigation using healthy human subjects.