Urgent health warning over Brits’ beloved soaps, shampoos and dental products
The House of Lords is to debate a law change as products including mouthwashes and hand sanitisers have been found to contain ‘biocides’ which can wipe out our healthy bacteria
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Popular soaps, shampoos and dental products contain chemicals which could be harming our immune systems, scientists warn.
A bill being debated in Parliament on Friday describes how so-called ‘biocides’ found in toothpastes and body washes wipe out good bacteria in our microbiome and can cause disease . The Mirror can reveal a host of popular products such as mouthwashes and hand sanitisers include ‘antibacterial’ ingredients that kill our healthy microbes.
Today we outline a list of significant biocides to look out for in the ingredients of your bathroom products. Research shows mouthwashes containing a common biocide called chlorhexidine can wipe out 90% of protective bacteria in the oral microbiome and increase high blood pressure .
Peer Natalie Bennett, the former Green Party leader, is tabling the bill, and states in its foreword: “What was your morning like? Maybe, singing cheerfully, you jumped into the shower, reaching for the antibacterial body wash, on special this week, with its loud label claiming “kills 99% of bacteria”. Afterwards you brushed your teeth with the heavily advertised new antibacterial toothpaste and used chlorhexidine-containing mouthwash.
“On your face, moisturiser. You’ve had that tube for several months, but it contains preservatives, so it is still fresh. You pulled on some new socks you got for Christmas , promising ‘extra antibacterial freshness’ from silver-infused material. You reached for a menstrual product promising to prevent odour and ‘guarantee freshness’, which also contains silver.
“Before you go to breakfast, you have subjected your microbiome – the tens of thousands of species of microbes that make you a holobiont – to a barrage of biocides, in other words poisons. We know that the microbiome is essential to life; our gut microbiome, about which we know most (although still very little) has significant impacts on mental and physical health. Exactly what impact that barrage has on it we have little information, yet, but it cannot be good.”
She added: “None of the products used in the hypothetical case I outlined above are necessary. They confer no benefit over non-biocidal products, yet they are damaging our human, animal and environmental health.”
Attention has so far focused on medicines, but biocide-containing cleansing products are now commonly sold over the counter and being ‘antibacterial’ or killing bacteria has become a big selling point.
The human body contains trillions of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, and fungi, which far outnumber human cells. This collection of microbes is called the microbiome and they exist all over our body including in our mouths, gut, lungs and on our skin. The balance of these microorganisms is vital to how our body and its immune system functions.
When ‘good’ bacteria and other microbes are depleted then ‘bad’ microbes thrive and take their place. Biocides wipe out bacteria or fungal microbes – good and bad – and which can lead to imbalances and the development of infections and disease.
Chlorhexidine is frequently used in cosmetics and personal care products and is used in over-the-counter mouthwashes. In 2020 research was published demonstrating that mouthwash containing chlorhexidine led to major disruption of the oral microbiome.
The biocide is found in the popular Corsodyl Daily Mouthwash as well as Boots Expert Chlorhexidine Dental Tape floss. The study showed use of Corsodyl Mint, which contains 0.2% chlorhexidine, for just seven days led to significant shifts in oral bacteria. Previous research shows oral microbiome disruption can increase blood pressure, especially in patients that already have high blood pressure.
Shower gels also contain biocides and one called Benzalkonium Chloride is found in Nilaqua No-Rinse Antimicrobial Body Wash Skin Cleansing Foam. The body wash is promoted by saying it “kills 99.9999% of germs”. Some hand sanitisers include biocides and Benzalkonium Chloride is found in Wet Ones Be Fresh Biodegradable Antibacterial Hand Wipes.
The Consumer Products (Control of Biocides) Bill being debated in the House of Lords at 11am on Friday would ban biocides from non-medical over-the-counter products unless strictly justified by evidence.
Biocides commonly found in some consumer products intended for human use:
Benzalkonium chloride (soaps, hand sanitisers)
Chlorhexidine (mouthwashes, body washes)
Triclosan (soaps, hand sanitisers)
DDAB
DDAC
Octenidine (body washes)
Dr Paul-Enguerrand Fady, expert at the Centre for Long Term Resilience, who was involved in drafting the bill, told the Mirror: “The current market for these products is like the Wild West. Rather than operating under the assumption that everything is fine, this bill would place the onus on the manufacturers to prove that it is. We want to take these products from being available on the shelves, like confectionary, to being something that you have to have at least minimal contact with a qualified professional to buy. We want to prevent people from unknowingly purchasing these biocides.”
Experts believe a ban is necessary to stop a “wack a mole” situation where one harmful biocide is identified by regulators and removed from products only to be replaced by a new chemical which later turns out to be equally or even more harmful.
Professor Andrew Seaton, President of the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, and Consultant in Infectious Diseases at NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, said: “Outside of healthcare, the benefits of biocides are at best speculative, but harms are potentially significant and irreversible. The indiscriminate use of biocides has the potential to drive antimicrobial resistance (AMR) by directly disrupting both the human microbiome as well as our fragile environmental ecosystem.”
Biocides can wash into our sewage systems and, even if treated, add to the build-up of AMR in our waterways. England’s previous chief medical officer Sally Davies has warned of an “antibiotic apocalypse” if AMR build-up continues, leading to a world where common infections and routine operations could become fatal.
Dr Emma Meredith, director general of the Cosmetic Toiletry and Perfumery Association, said: “Proposing to restrict the use of biocides in cosmetic products is unnecessary because strict UK laws covering the manufacture and supply of cosmetic
“Making already available medical devices, prescription based, would add a huge strain to an already suffering NHS, there’s no budget or time for GP appointments and prescriptions; for a previously available product. The answer is not to ban and punish, but to incentivise use of more natural based products, where it is a choice of the consumer to opt for the alternatives themselves. In short, this would have to be done very carefully with a focus on unnecessary cosmetics only.”
Boots and Haleon, which makes Corsodyl mouthwash, declined to comment. Edgewell Personal Care, which makes Wet Ones, had not responded to the Mirror at the time of going to press.
Source: The Mirror
