Eight Hormone-Disrupting Chemicals to Avoid

Seeing results on paper is believing. I can remember when a friend suggested I not get grapes from Mexico because they were high in pesticides. But they were 99 cents a pound and I kept buying them because I saw no impact on my body. After my cancer journey, my doctor slowly slid my test results across the table. Here’s the shocker. I had six of these eight hormone-disrupting chemicals we all need to avoid at high levels in my body! The European Union does not allow many of these chemicals. But our good ole USA is the Wild Wild West when it comes to regulation of chemicals in cosmetics and personal care products. So we must become the sheriff!

Here are eight hormone-altering chemicals or endocrine disruptors we must avoid:

Phthalates – These chemicals are used to make plastic more flexible and as a stabilizer in fragrance. They are associated with problems of the respiratory and reproductive systems, and your liver and kidneys. Phthalates are hidden in many fragrances and found in a wide variety of personal care products. Just read the labels. I prefer to see “contains no phthalates” on the label.

Parabens are chemicals used to preserve food and many personal care products such as cosmetics. They can disrupt hormones in the body wreaking havoc with your reproductive organs causing fertility problems and raising the risk of cancer. You must read all labels carefully and look for long words containing “paraben.” Parabens and phthalates are now in so many products that some manufacturers are saying “no parabens or phthalates” on the front label.

Percholate is used in rocket propellants, fireworks, munitions, vehicle airbags, signal flares, and matches. Imagine the shock when I discovered that rocket fuel was at high levels in my body. But these chemicals can build up in soil and as a result can show up in drinking water and food. Just another reason to filter your drinking water. Percholate can disrupt your thyroid system and reduce thyroid function.

PFAS or forever chemicals are used for making products resistant to heat, oil, grease, stains, and water. It’s also an ingredient in firefighting foam. PFAS have been shown to cause birth defects, liver damage, fertility issues, hormone suppression, and cancer. Some studies suggest they reduce vaccine efficacy. If you buy stain and water-resistant clothing, and bedding and curtains, you’re exposed to this chemical. If you use non-stick cookware and utensils, these are loaded with PFAS. Click here for my video, Choosing the Best in Healthy and Nontoxic Cookware.

Heavy Metals such as aluminum, lead, and mercury are showing up in more and more people—including me. These are also found in many personal care products such as lead in lipstick, eyeliner, and nail polish. You can avoid these by purchasing your cosmetics from a clean cosmetics company such as Juice Beauty or Beauty Counter. Aluminum can be found in deodorants and personal care products and as an adjuvant in vaccines to illicit a better immune response. Mercury is found in fillings, in vaccines as a preservative (called thimerosal), and in many large fish. Needless to say—all three of these chemicals were found in my body at high levels.

BPA or other alternatives are found in the lining of canned foods and in water bottles, baby bottles, thermal receipts, sippy cups, and pacifiers. These chemicals can cause learning and behavioral problems, cancer, diabetes, and changes to our DNA. I rarely use canned foods, but when I do I look for the BPA-free label. I avoid heating food in a microwave using any plastic containers and I only store my food in glass containers.

Oxybenzone is a chemical found in many sunscreens. This UV chemical filter can be absorbed into the body after a single application, but higher levels are detected after several applications. Oxybenzone can actually interfere with our endocrine system at the cellular level and is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer and endometriosis. I talk about this chemical and several others in a video called Five Strategies for Keeping Safe in the Summertime. But this is an easy fix. There are two UV filters that are not harmful called titanium dioxide and zinc oxide that are found in safe sunscreens and you can make your own sunscreen, too. There’s a recipe for an easy to make sunscreen in this same video above.

And Pesticides! These chemicals are used for controlling pests and weeds on nonorganic crops. These pesticides may affect the hormone system with impacts on fertility, nervous system damage, and even cancer. Ask me, the gal with both glyphosate (most dangerous) and a pesticide contained in Agent Orange in my body at high levels! Not good. When I showed my chemical profile results to my oncologist, he said, “I did not know you were a Vietnam vet!” I’ve never been to Viet Nam and these chemicals are used on most of our crops unless labeled organic. Now you know why I eat organic as much as possible.

Talk about lessons learned the hard way from the School of Hard Knocks. Fortunately, after much hard work, my chemical levels are now at minimal levels. And again, these chemicals are not allowed in the European Union and for good reason. In this country, we must protect ourselves to be healthy!

Evidently, I did not do such a good job before my cancer diagnosis. I’m much more careful now, and praise God my levels are significantly lower.

Do you know if you have a high toxic load? If you don’t know, it’s wise to avoid as many of these as possible.

As for me and my house, there’s a new sheriff in town, and that sheriff is me!

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Eight Hormone Disrupting Chemicals to Avoid

For Your Health,

Ginny

Ginny Dent Brant is a speaker and writer who grew up in the halls of power in Washington, DC. She has battled cancer, ministered around the world, and served on the front lines of American culture as a counselor, educator, wellness advocate, and adjunct professor. Brant’s award-winning book, Finding True Freedom: From the White House to the World, was endorsed by Chuck Colson and featured in many TV and media interviews. Unleash Your God-Given Healing: Eight Steps to Prevent and Survive Cancer was released in May 2020 after her journey with cancer and was recently awarded the First Place Golden Scrolls Award for Memoirs, a finalist in Serious Writers Book of the Decade, and Second Place in both Selah Awards for Memoirs and Director’s Choice Award for Nonfiction at the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writer’s Conference. It recently received the Christian Authors Network’s (CAN) Gold Award for Excellence in Marketing for reaching 62.5 million people with a message of cancer prevention and survival. It was written with commentary from an oncologist and was featured on CBN’s Healthy Living Show, Atlanta Live, and CTN’s Homekeepers along with over 75 media outlets. Learn more and cancer and wellness prevention blog and book information at www.ginnybrant.com. Ginny is on YouTube