Ep 22: What is fragrance, and is it disrupting your hormones?

It’s February, which is the month of love, and you know what I love? Things that smell good. I know that might be an unpopular opinion, but I prefer good-smelling things to bad-smelling things. One big way this is achieved is through fragrance. In cosmetics, it’s common for companies to add fragrance to their products. Sometimes this is done to create a sensory experience, shape how we perceive a product, or even evoke memories. Other times, it’s simply there to cover up the natural smell of the product’s base.

Either way, fragrance is everywhere - but there are also quite a few misconceptions surrounding it. Today, we’re going to chat about what fragrance actually is, the regulations that govern it, some of the most common misconceptions around fragrance, and the big question: should you be using products that contain fragrance?

What is fragrance?

According to the International Fragrance Association (IFRA), “a fragrance is a mixture of ingredients designed to produce a pleasant or distinctive smell.” Fragrances can help express your identity, improve your wellbeing and be associated with memories. For example, it’s become quite popular to wear a certain perfume for big events like your wedding, so when you wear that perfume again, you can remember your wedding better because the scent triggers the memory. Fragrances are made by combining ingredients in very carefully measured amounts. Some ingredients come from nature (flowers, spices, fruits) while others are made in a lab to make new or longer lasting scents. 

Also, please note that some people use the term “fragrance” and “perfume” interchangeably; for this episode, when I say “fragrance” I’m referring specifically to the raw material, not the overall product. 

How do humans smell things?

We have these nerve cells called olfactory sensory neurons inside our nose; there are a few million of these cells. When we smell an odor, we breathe in tiny molecules that bind to the neurons; a combination of these neurons are activated and that forms a coded message that’s sent to the brain and is perceived as a specific odor. Scientists aren’t fully sure how we smell complex odors, and some odors can mask the scent of other ones - and this happens not by overpowering the original odor, but by changing the way the cells respond to them. 

Fragrance Regulations

For fragrance, there’s an organization called the International Fragrance Association (IFRA). It’s for fragrance producers, and there are rules that their members have to follow – their members produce 80% of the global volume of fragrance. 

Another organization called the Research Institute of Fragrance Materials (RIFM) tests all of the fragrance ingredients, and all of their journals are published, so you can go look up the studies if you’re interested. In order to create the limits at which fragrance can be added to a product, they come up with a level where no allergens are introduced. This is called the “no adverse affect level” and this is designed so people won’t be exposed to any adverse effects in the first place (more on this later). Also this institution goes way further than the EU regulations do

In the EU, fragrances are regulated like all other ingredients. Perfume houses have to assess the safety of the fragrance; the fragrance depends on the type of products. In the EU, there are 26 allergens that must be listed on the ingredient list (and for the record, i think this is something that the US should start doing too)

I also do want to mention that larger brands are usually buying from the “big 10” companies that are all members of IFRA and therefore are following regulation. However, smaller brands and even people who do DIY products aren’t necessarily following those regulations, so there could be more harmful ingredients in those fragrances. 

Fragrance Fearmongering 

How is it safe to use a fragrance if you don’t know the ingredients in the fragrance?

A lot of people online are scared of fragrance because they think that if they don’t know exactly what’s inside the fragrance; but like, even if you did know the components, what would you do with that information? I wouldn’t know what any of that means, I’m not a toxicologist. Keeping fragrance blends proprietary protects the company that makes those blends, since fragrances are trade secrets. Chances are you don’t go into a restaurant, order a salad and ask for the breakdown of the dressing recipe - and even if you did, the restaurant probably wouldn’t give it to you because that recipe is proprietary. That wouldn’t stop most people from eating the food, so you don’t need to get so wrapped up in knowing every ingredient in a fragrance. 

Are fragrances toxic / harmful / allergenic?

We’ve mentioned the difference between allergens versus irritation in our surfactant episodes, but as a refresher, allergens and irritation are different; almost anyone can be irritated by an ingredient, but allergies develop over time. 

For example, sometimes when I overuse Tretinoin, my skin will get really red and then if I apply lotion over it, my skin feels irritated. It doesn’t mean that I’m allergic to the Tretinoin or the lotion, but my skin barrier has been compromised and therefore it’s irritated. 

Allergies, on the other hand, develop over time. Basically, your body reacts to certain foreign proteins (aka allergens) that are typically harmless for most people, and your immune system treats them like germs or foreign bodies. In response, the immune system creates IgE antibodies to fight these allergens because it thinks they’re harmful. It makes these antibodies when your body first comes in contact with the allergen, and then attaches to certain kinds of cells (this is called sensitization). If you’re exposed to the allergen again, the cells release chemical substances that can lead to allergic reactions like sneezing, coughing, rashes. Etc. So basically, sometimes you’re exposed to something over and over again, and then all of a sudden you’re allergic to it (this has become very common with gel nail polishes, especially if they aren’t being used correctly). 

Allergies are being developed in big part because of people applying essential oils to their skin, which introduces allergens and their body builds up to it over time, then all of a sudden they’re allergic to it and therefore allergic to fragrances that contain components of the EOs, even though those were properly formulated (remember the “no adverse effect levels”? Yeah, those are determined for a reason)

Also, if your skin barrier is compromised (sunburn, Tretinoin irritation, eczema or acne breakout, etc) avoid using products with fragrance until your skin gets better, because you could potentially develop an allergic reaction and then never be able to use those fragrances again. 

Is natural fragrance better than synthetic fragrance?

Many people believe that natural fragrances are better for you than synthetic fragrances; but like we mentioned in our Natural vs Synthetic Episode, natural does not equal better. From an efficacy standpoint, natural fragrances typically don’t last as long and they can also give inconsistent results (a lot of the smell depends on the conditions of the plant, time of year, drought conditions, pesticides used, etc). They can also have a big toll on the environment, as harvesting plants to create fragrance typically takes more land and resources. 

Synthetic fragrances don’t typically have these challenges; they can be made the same every single time, and they take far fewer resources than natural fragrances. They also don’t have the same allergen risks as natural fragrances do (for a deeper dive on that, please refer to our Natural vs Synthetic episode). There are also different types of synthetic fragrances; some are fully synthetic, others have blends of natural and synthetic elements to create the scent. 

Essential oils are probably the most common product that comes to mind when we mention natural fragrance, but they actually aren’t usually all-natural. These oils are extracted from the plant’s “essence” either mechanically or through distillation; after they’re extracted, they’re added to a carrier oil (like sunflower, jojoba, etc) and then bottled. Like we mentioned, EO’s tend to lead to a lot of allergic reactions; whether you use them is up to you, but please know that they are not necessarily better for you than synthetic fragrances are. 

Are fragrances endocrine disruptors?

First and foremost, let’s remember that it is VERY hard for your endocrine system to be disrupted - that’s why birth control is basically overdosing your system to change your hormones. There’s this huge misconception that cosmetics are able to disrupt your hormones, but the studies that show this were badly done and not representative of real life. Let's also remember that it’s very hard for things to absorb through your skin; your skin’s entire purpose is to keep things out of your body, and if it absorbed things easily, it would be pretty bad at its job. There’s also something called the “500 dalton” rule (dalton being a measurement of size) that says any molecules bigger than 500 daltons struggle to penetrate the skin barrier, and most fragrances fall within this category. Basically, they stay on top of your skin instead of penetrating it and entering your bloodstream or other parts of your body. Try your hardest not to inhale perfume when you apply it, and you will be just fine. 

This episode of The Eco Well Podcast does a great job at explaining endocrine disruption in cosmetics, I highly recommend listening to it if endocrine disruption is something you're worried about!

I also do want to mention the idea of “aggregate exposure” which is another thing that people cite when talking about cosmetics ingredients; basically, it’s the idea that if you apply a bunch of different products with fragrance, over time those will build up to high levels and cause issues. Toxicologists take this into account when they create safety thresholds, and they create thresholds that are significantly higher than anything you’d ever be exposed to on a daily basis. 

Should you avoid fragrances in your products?

1-3% of people in Europe are allergic to fragrance, so if you’re allergic to it you should obviously avoid it. Fragrances can also sometimes aggravate underlying skin conditions like eczema and can also trigger migraines. But if you aren’t allergic and don’t deal with these issues, you don’t necessarily need to avoid it unless it’s a personal preference. 

Bibliography

1. International Fragrance Association. This is a fragrance. IFRA. https://ifrafragrance.org/about-fragrance/this-is-a-fragrance

2. National Center for Biotechnology Information. Fragrance ingredients: Safety and regulatory overview. In Safety of Cosmetics. U.S. National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK447112/

3. Lab Muffin Beauty Science. Parabens, fragrance, colorants & talc: Debunking Bobby Parrish’s TikTok misinformation. https://labmuffin.com/parabens-fragrance-colorants-talc-debunking-bobby-parrishs-tiktok-misinformation/#Fragrance

4. Research Institute for Fragrance Materials. RIFM. https://rifm.org/

5. Refinery29. Perfume and fragrance: Hormonal effects explained. https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/perfume-fragrance-hormonal-effects

6. The Ecowell. Fragrance panel: What the numbers mean. https://www.theecowell.com/blog/fragrancepanel

7. National Institutes of Health. How the nose decodes complex odors. NIH Research Matters. https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/how-nose-decodes-complex-odors

8. PRIVÉ Label. The quick guide to natural vs. synthetic fragrances. https://www.privelabel.com/post/the-quick-guide-to-natural-vs-synthetic-fragrances

   1. Note: We do not endorse this company’s stance on parabens and “harmful chemicals.”