Understanding "Transdermal Toxicity"
The so-called transdermal toxicity is that toxins enters our body through the skin, and dissolves, accumulates, and spreads in the circulation and lymph system. When chemicals from toiletries, detergents, cosmetics, mosquito repellants, and drugs come into contact with our skin, about 0.5% thereof will penetrate into our skin through the keratinocyte gap, sweat glands or hair follicles, and some toxins may remain in the subcutaneous tissue, or even enter the circulatory system through blood vessels and lymphatic vessels and deposit into our body, causing damage to the body and endangering our long term health. This process is called "Transdermal Toxicity".
"Transdermal toxins" are completely different from toxins that enter through the mouth!
Nowadays, people are more careful about what they eat and tend to choose their food carefully. We all know that our liver helps us in detoxification, and if we have a healthy liver, more than 90% of the toxins that enters into our stomach orally can be metabolized and decomposed.
However, people are less alert to toxins that could penetrate through breathing and through our skin. Studies show that only around 10% of the toxins that penetrate via those channels can be be excreted from the body, and even so, it takes a long time to do so too. Therefore, it is more often the case that, the skin has been continuing to absorb additional toxins we are in contact with, before we are able to "metabolized" the initial doses, and therefore causes the accumulation.
This is why we often encounter situations where somebody who has been very concerned about his diet, avoiding "artificial" food but only light, low-salt and low-fat food, but unfortunately still could get seriously ill all in a sudden, which is likely caused by the accumulated "transdermal toxins". This has been the biggest worries in the recent years.
The most direct reaction of the human body to transdermal toxins is "skin allergy", such as redness, itching or acne. Although the initial impact on the human body is small, the long-term cumulative effect could be damaging. In addition, because the chemical substances penetrate into our system through the weakest part of the stratum corneum, if those toxins are in contact with the relatively thin skin area such as our mucous membranes or the reproductive organs, the absorption rate could be as high as 30 to 40 times of the other parts of our skin.
Absorption via the skin is invisible and are therefore easily ignore, or neglected. For example, when we apply anti-itch ointment or apply a sore patch on our skin, the symptoms release within minutes. This is because the drug in the product penetrates into our skin, and absorbed into our system via the subcutaneous tissue.
What can be the "Transdermal Toxins" in our daily life?
We are exposed to a large number of chemicals in our daily life, some of which can cause skin disorders and some are even carcinogenic. For example: exhaust gas emitted by automobiles, food utensils that release toxicity after heating, long-term use of cosmetics and skin care products that cover the skin, etc.
Some of them are called "environmental hormones". Environmental hormones, which are called endocrine disruptors or hormone mimics in scientific terminology, is a generic term for chemical substances that enter the body and mimic hormones, thus disrupting the functions of hormones naturally secreted by the body. They can be found for example in colorants and dyes, pesticides, cosmetics, plastics, and in pharmaceuticals. Examples include "dioxin" which is a highly toxic compound produced as a by-product in some manufacturing processes, notably herbicide production and paper bleaching, "phenols" and "parabens" were associated with altered reproductive and thyroid hormone levels during pregnancy.
In addition, "fluorescent agents" might be added to our laundry products, "surfactants" in cleaning products, "silicones" in some shampoos, "flavors" and "fixatives" in perfumes or hair sprays" , "triclosan", "formaldehyde" might be added in the process of toothpaste or facial cleanser, these chemicals are also some of those regarded as "transdermal toxins" that could come into contact within our daily life.
The invasion process of "transdermal toxins"
The skin is the outermost protective layer of the human body, and its structure is divided into the outermost "epidermis", "dermis" and "subcutaneous tissue". The "subcutaneous tissue" contains a lot of fat, which sometimes accumulates chemicals that are absorbed into the body through the skin. The outermost layer of the "epidermis" is the "stratum corneum". The skin itself will continue to metabolize, and the skin cells produced underneath will gradually push up and become flat, and finally turn into the "stratum corneum". The "stratum corneum" has the function of a protective layer, and is covered with "lipid" secreted by the body. .
But even so, the skin still cannot completely block all foreign substances, and 0.5% of the contact substance will penetrate into the skin (in addition, some studies have found that fat-soluble substances are easier to absorb than hydrophilic substances, which is also what why most medicines is made in the form of a paste), and these substances will enter the circulatory system through our lymph or blood vessels, and some of them will be stored in the subcutaneous tissue, and as mentioned, it takes a long time to gradually eliminate them from the body.
Compared with other absorption routes, the metabolism of "transdermal toxicity" takes quite long. Therefore, if you are exposed to harmful substances every day, the accumulation of the toxins will cause a certain degree of burden, and long term adverse effect on the body
Three easy ways to avoid from Transdermal Toxins
Using all-natural products: When purchasing body washes, shampoos, facial masks, cosmetics, skin care products and other products that come into contact with the skin, read the ingredient labels clearly, and try to choose all-natural products.
Patch test before use: Everyone has different reactions to different products. You can try it on the inside of your arm before use. After a few minutes, see if there is any allergic or uncomfortable reaction. If you experience symptoms such as redness, swelling, itching and discomfort, you should stop and consult a dermatologist.
Pay attention to the application time: Pay attention to how long the product stays on the skin and how often it is used. The product description generally mentions the contact time. For example, the time of a normal mask should not be too long (usually 10-15 minutes) unless otherwise specifies, and the frequency should also be noted (1-2 times a week).
-------
Source：
1. 台灣愛健康網站
2. 台灣健康醫療網
3. 海能量生態家
4. Phenols and Parabens in relation to Reproductive and Thyroid Hormones in Pregnant Women
5. Environmental toxins and the impact of other endocrine disrupting chemicals in women's reproductive health
6. Transdermal toxicity of topically applied anticoagulant rodenticide warfarin in rats
Comments