{"id":41485,"date":"2026-08-12T19:35:59","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T14:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=41485"},"modified":"2026-08-12T19:35:59","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T14:35:59","slug":"hidden-chemicals-in-85-of-personal-care-products-like-shampoo-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=41485","title":{"rendered":"Hidden chemicals in 85% of personal-care products like shampoo: study"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div xmlns:default=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n<p>It\u2019s good practice to check the label on products you put on your body. <\/p>\n<p>But what if the label doesn\u2019t tell the whole story?<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/ehnea2\/article\/doi\/10.1021\/envhealth.6c00181\/5252510\/Hidden-Hazards-Nontargeted-Chemical-Analysis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">new study<\/a> suggests that ingredient lists on labels are almost always incomplete. Researchers found 98% of personal care and cleaning products they tested had chemicals in them that weren\u2019t disclosed.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><button class=\"button button--modal-trigger\" aria-label=\"Open the image in a modal.\" data-modal-image=\"40302000\"><br \/>\n\t<default:svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"icon-plus\" fill=\"#fff\" viewbox=\"0 0 1033 1000\" width=\"1em\" height=\"1em\"><default:path d=\"M380 364V0h273v355h380v290H653v355H380V645H0V355h380v9z\"\/><\/default:svg><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<img style=\"aspect-ratio:1.49926794;display:block\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-modal-image=\"40302000\" width=\"885\" height=\"590\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Woman with closed eyes washing her hair with shampoo in the shower.\" class=\"wp-image-40302000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 6720w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=300,200&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 300w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=768,512&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 768w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=1024,683&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=1536,1024&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=2048,1365&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 2048w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=600,400&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 600w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=878,585&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 878w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=744,496&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 744w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=720,480&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 720w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=576,384&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 576w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=457,305&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 457w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=440,293&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 440w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=424,282&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 424w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=389,260&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 389w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=360,240&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 360w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=340,227&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 340w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=320,213&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 320w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=314,209&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 314w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=306,204&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 306w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=280,187&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 280w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=260,174&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 260w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=246,164&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 246w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=234,156&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 234w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=195,130&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 195w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=180,120&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 180w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=171,114&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 171w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=160,107&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 160w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=144,96&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 144w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=107,71&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 107w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=93,62&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 93w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=84,56&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 84w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=60,40&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 60w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=105,70&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 105w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=81,54&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 81w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=200,133&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 200w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=231,154&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 231w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=322,215&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 322w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=662,441&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 662w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=90,60&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 90w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=120,80&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 120w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=1200,800&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1200w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=1038,692&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1038w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=87,58&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 87w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/haircare-concept-woman-washing-hair-137171188.jpg?resize=50,33&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 885px) 100vw, 885px\"\/><figcaption>A number of shampoos were shown to have harmful chemicals in them that weren\u2019t listed on the label. <span class=\"credit\">Home-stock \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Authors say some of it is accidental contamination that happens during manufacturing. But other ingredients such as fragrance enhancers were likely added on purpose and simply left out on the label, they claimed.<\/p>\n<p>These sneaky additions aren\u2019t necessarily harmless.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>Of the products they tested, 85% had at least one chemical that can harm your health, authors said. These included chemicals shown to cause cancer, impair child development or affect the endocrine and reproductive system.<\/p>\n<p>What\u2019s worse, 26% of products specifically labeled \u201cnon-toxic,\u201d \u201cfragrance-free\u201d or \u201chypoallergenic\u201d actually contained the very things they claimed to avoid.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople shouldn\u2019t need a chemistry lab to know what they\u2019re bringing into their homes or putting on their skin,\u201d author Jenny Hua said. \u201cThe next generation of product safety must look beyond the label and test what is actually there.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignright\">\n\t<\/aside>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What researchers found<\/h2>\n<p>Researchers tested 113 products from major stores like Target, Amazon, Walmart and Dollar Tree.<\/p>\n<p>These products included shampoo, hair styling products, sunscreen, lotion, baby care products, intimate products, body oil, hand and body wash, deodorant and lip balm, oral care, ingredient oils, such as essential oils, and cleaning products, including laundry detergent.<\/p>\n<p>Each label listed 16 ingredients on average. Testing revealed the actual average number of chemicals in each product was 51, more than three times higher.<\/p>\n<p>On average, there were four unlisted harmful chemicals per product. These chemicals included fragrance components, botanical components, phthalates and parabens.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What do these chemicals do to the body?<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Fragrance components can have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.safecosmetics.org\/resources\/health-science\/fragrance-disclosure\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a broad array of effects<\/a>, from irritating the skin to harming the respiratory and endocrine system.<\/li>\n<li>Botanical ingredients come from plants, but that doesn\u2019t necessarily make them safe or gentle. They can cause allergic reactions, irritation and authors also say they can introduce things like pesticides, heavy metals or solvents.<\/li>\n<li>Phthalates are used to make soft plastic and <a href=\"https:\/\/pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/articles\/PMC8157593\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">have been shown<\/a> to have impacts on pregnancy, child growth and development.<\/li>\n<li>Parabens are used in cosmetics to prevent mold and bacteria, but <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ewg.org\/what-are-parabens\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">there are concerns<\/a> these chemicals could disrupt hormones, harm fertility, affect birth outcomes and increase the risk of cancer.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Many consumers already know about risks associated with these chemicals and go out of their way to pick products that specifically claim not to include these ingredients.<\/p>\n<p>Yet over a quarter of the products tested showed ingredients they were specifically marketed to avoid.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><button class=\"button button--modal-trigger\" aria-label=\"Open the image in a modal.\" data-modal-image=\"40302029\"><br \/>\n\t<default:svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"icon-plus\" fill=\"#fff\" viewbox=\"0 0 1033 1000\" width=\"1em\" height=\"1em\"><default:path d=\"M380 364V0h273v355h380v290H653v355H380V645H0V355h380v9z\"\/><\/default:svg><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<img style=\"aspect-ratio:1.49926794;display:block\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-modal-image=\"40302029\" width=\"885\" height=\"590\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"A black mother applying sunscreen to her daughter's nose at the beach.\" class=\"wp-image-40302029\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 6192w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=300,200&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 300w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=768,512&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 768w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=1024,683&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=1536,1024&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=2048,1365&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 2048w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=600,400&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 600w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=878,585&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 878w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=744,496&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 744w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=720,480&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 720w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=576,384&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 576w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=457,305&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 457w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=440,293&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 440w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=424,282&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 424w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=389,260&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 389w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=360,240&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 360w, 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https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=260,174&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 260w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=246,164&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 246w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=234,156&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 234w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=195,130&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 195w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=180,120&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 180w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=171,114&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 171w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=160,107&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 160w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=144,96&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 144w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=107,71&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 107w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=93,62&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 93w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=84,56&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 84w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=60,40&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 60w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=105,70&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 105w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=81,54&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 81w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=200,133&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 200w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=231,154&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 231w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=322,215&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 322w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=662,441&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 662w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=90,60&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 90w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=120,80&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 120w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=1200,800&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1200w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=1038,692&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1038w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=87,58&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 87w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/young-mother-applying-protective-sunscreen-137171183.jpg?resize=50,33&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 885px) 100vw, 885px\"\/><figcaption>Personal care products with unlisted harmful ingredients could affect the health of people of all ages. <span class=\"credit\">Rido \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Most commonly, products said they were \u201c100% natural\u201d but contained synthetic chemicals, authors said. The second most common were products that contained specific chemicals or chemical classes that were labeled as excluded from the product, including \u201cfragrance,\u201d phthalates, parabens, silicone and oxybenzone.<\/p>\n<p>They also found that so-called \u201cnon-toxic\u201d products had some of those aforementioned harmful chemicals and \u201chypoallergenic\u201d products had ingredients that were allergens and could cause irritation.<\/p>\n<p>Researchers believe all these chemicals could be coming into our products due to changes in manufacturing and gaps in regulation. With those gaps, they believe some companies are getting away with things like adding allyl cyclohexylpropionate on purpose to coconut oil to enhance its scent \u2014 while leaving it off of product labels.<\/p>\n<p>Interestingly, there was only one category that passed testing with flying colors: oral care. Authors believe this is because oral care products are regulated as over-the-counter drugs rather than cosmetics.<\/p>\n<p>For everything else, researchers say we need to bridge the gap to enforce better purity standards across personal care.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese findings reveal substantial gaps in product transparency and demonstrate that ingredient labels alone cannot reliably convey product safety,\u201d authors said. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s good practice to check the label on products you put on your body. But what if the label doesn\u2019t tell the whole story? A new study suggests that ingredient lists on labels are almost always incomplete. Researchers found 98% of personal care and cleaning products they tested had chemicals in them that weren\u2019t disclosed&#8230;.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":41486,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/newspress-collage-0dxngc4oi-1786541331162.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&1786526963&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-hub"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=41485"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41485\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/41486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=41485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=41485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=41485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}