Fart Smelling

Jeff Weasely

March 19th, 2012

Environment & Society

Chemical Crisis

The communities in which we live are generally considered to be safe places. However, that assumption may not be true at all, with the reasons for that falsehood found only at the molecular level. Harmful chemicals are all around us. Hazardous waste sites can be found throughout the U.S., many of them close to residential areas. These dangerous chemicals are also found inside the home. I go about my daily morning routine without thinking about the ingredients in the products I use, and I bet most others do the same. Unfortunately, many common hygienic products are filled with dangerous chemicals. Gillette Fusion After Shave Gel, a product I use after every shave, is one such product I learned to be potentially harmful. The government needs to limit companies’ use of hazardous chemicals in both the manufacturing process and final produced products. The public’s health is at risk because of these chemicals, and the majority of people are oblivious.

A chemical called retinyl palmitate, found in Gillette Fusion After Shave Gel, is one of those dangerous chemicals. According to EWG.com (2012), the FDA classified retinyl palmitate as a “known human reproductive toxicant” in 1995. When retinyl palmitate is exposed to ultraviolet rays from the sun, the compound can break down, resulting in gene mutations and damaged DNA, both of which can lead to cancer (EWG.com, 2012). Sunlight exposure could also “speed the development of skin tumors and lesions.” (EWG.com, 2012). I put this chemical on my face every time I shaved, which led to it getting immediate sunlight exposure whenever I went outside. I have to wonder how much damage has already been done to my DNA. Retinyl palmitate also “Produces excess reactive oxygen species that can interfere with cellular signaling, cause mutations, lead to cell death and may be implicated in cardiovascular disease.” (EWG, 2012) How many of my own...