Many bath products like hair and skin care could be causing more harm than good.
The FDA has published data that shows people are reporting more negative effects to certain cosmetics. Those effects could lead to hair loss or skin irritation.
From 2015-2016 the number of reported cases more than doubled. A lot of those reported cases came from complaints about Wen hair conditioners.
But even skin creams or sprays you can buy at the drugstore could be harmful. The cosmetics industry is mostly self-regulated. Many products don't have to get approved by the FDA before they're up for sale.
Valley aesthetician Kimberly Smith says it’s so important for consumers to read the labels carefully.
Smith says, “There are a lot of other chemicals that your skin basically doesn't like. And so it's going to form a reaction against them and when it does that's an inflammatory reaction. When your skin is inflamed it basically can trap some things.”
She recommends using things like fruits, raw honey or coconut oil rather than drugstore items.
Smith says using the wrong sunscreen is a big mistake many Valley residents make. She warns consumers to be weary of complicated ingredients.
“When you turn that product over if the back of the ingredients don't say zinc or titanium dioxide I would not buy it because you're only going to be causing more problems for yourself in my opinion,” she adds.
And just because a product says organic doesn’t mean it won’t irritate skin.
