Thursday, October 15, 2009

Do antiperspirants cause breast cancer?

I had heard this before and a friend sent me this information via email so I researched it:

The leading cause of breast cancer is the use of anti-perspirant?!

Here's why - The human body has a few areas that it uses to purge toxins; behind the knees, behind the ears, groin area, and armpits. The toxins are purged in the form of perspiration. Anti-perspirant, as the name clearly indicates, prevents you from perspiring, thereby inhibiting the body from purging toxins from below the armpits. These toxins do not just magically disappear.. Instead, the body deposits them in the lymph nodes below the arms since it cannot sweat them out.

Nearly all breast cancer tumors occur in the upper outside quadrant of the breast area. This is precisely where the lymph nodes are located. Additionally, men are less likely (but not completely exempt) to develop breast cancer prompted by anti-perspirant usage because most of the anti-perspirant product is caught in their hair and is not directly applied to the skin.
Women who apply anti-perspirant right after shaving increase the risk further because shaving causes almost imperceptible nicks in the skin which give the chemicals entrance into the body from the armpit area.

However, researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), a part of the National Institutes of Health, are not aware of any conclusive evidence linking the use of underarm antiperspirants or deodorants and the subsequent development of breast cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates food, cosmetics, medicines, and medical devices, also does not have any evidence or research data that ingredients in underarm antiperspirants or deodorants cause cancer.

The scientific findings linking breast cancer and antiperspirants are inconclusive. Much of the data conflicts with one another, and not enough experiments have been properly conducted to definitively have an answer. As of right now, further research needs to be conducted in order to find if there is a link between breast cancer and antiperspirants, although even if there is a link, there are much bigger risk factors out there that people should be more worried about (such as their diet and family history).

Urban legend or fact? What do you think?

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