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Scientists detected the preservative chemical parabens (such as Methylparaben and Propylparaben) in samples of breast cancer tumors.

Dr Philippa Darbre from the University of Reading, UK, in her latest study, published in the Journal of Applied Toxicology (24,5-13-2004), looked at 20 human breast tumors, measuring the concentration of parabens in the tissue. Her team found that the chemicals were present in a form suggesting that their route of entry was topical, through the skin, rather than oral.

Dr Darbre said: "Parabens are used as preservatives in thousands of cosmetic, sunscreen, food and pharmaceutical products, but this is the first study to show their accumulation in human tissues. It demonstrates if people are exposed to these chemicals, then the chemicals will accumulate in their bodies. Parabens have been shown to be able to mimic the action of the female hormone oestrogen and oestrogen can drive the growth of human breast cancer".

Margret Schlumpf and her colleagues (Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Switzerland) have found that many widely used sunscreen chemicals mimic the effects of estrogen and trigger developmental abnormalities in rats. In Vitro and in Vivo Estrogenicity of UV Screens, Environmental Health Perspectives Vol. 109, March 2001, pp 239-244).

Her group tested six common chemicals that are used in sunscreens, lipsticks and facial cosmetics. Five of the six tested chemicals (benzophenone-3 (Bp-3), homosalate (HMS), 4-methylbenzylidene camphor (4-MBC), octyl-methoxycinnamate (OMC), and octyl-dimethyl-PABA (OD-PABA), behaved like strong estrogen in lab tests and caused cancer cells to grow more rapidly.

Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide (physical sunscreens) are according to Schlumpf save active ingredients in sunscreen products. Physical sunscreen (mineral pigments) reflect the UV rays whereas chemical sunscreens absorb them.

Helen Tinwell and her colleagues (Syngenta Central Toxicology Laboratory, Cheshire, United Kingdom) confirmed these data in their report. Environmental Health Perspectives Volume 110, Number 5, May 2002.