Unreasonable Risk How to Avoid Cancer and other toxic effects from cosmetics and personal care products: The Neways story

By Dr. Samuel S. Epstein, M.D.

According to recent daily use estimates, three personal care products are used on infants and children, men use ten personal care products, and women use six cosmetics and 13 personal care products; some producs are used several times daily

Assuming mainstream industry products each contain only two carcinogens, this results in daily exposure to six different avoidable carcinogens for infants and children, 20 for men, and 38 for women.

While ingredients are listed on product labels, there is no warning as to the cancer risks from any of these ingredients.

It is UNTHINKABLE that women would knowingly inflict such exposures on their infants and children, let alone on themselves, if products routinely used were labeled with explicit warnings of cancer risks.

It is UNBELIEVABLE that the powerful multibillion dollar global mainstream industries continue to inflict such risks on unsuspectic consumers, especially as safe alternative products are available.

It is equally UNBELIEVABLE that regulatory agencies worldwide still deny citizens their inalienable right-to-know of information on avoidable cancer risks from common consumer products

It is even more UNBELIEVABLE that the "charitable" American Cancer Society and federal National Cancer Institute and "cancer establishments" worldwide remain recklessly silent and fail to advise consumers, Congresses and Parliaments, of the scientific evidence for these avoidable cancer risks.

This book explains how to recognize carcinogens on product labels, boycott such products, and shop for safe alternatives from non-mainstream industries and thus reduce your avoidable risks of cancer. This is critical as we are losing the winnable war against cancer, which now strikes on in two men and one in three women in their lifetimes.

Dr. Samuel S. Epstein is professor emeritus of environmental medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, and Chairman of the international Cancer Prevention Coalition. He is the author of 270 scientific publications, and author or coauthor of 12 books. These include the prize winning 1978 The Politics of Cancer, the 1995 The Safe Shopper's Bible , and the 2005 Cancer Gate: How to Win the Losing Cancer War. He is recipient of multiple awards, including the 1998 Right Livelihood Award for incomparable contributions to cancer prevention (The Alternative Nobel Prize), and for leadership role in warning of the dangers of rBGH milk, the 2000 Project Censored Award, and the 2005 Albert Schweitzer Golden Grand Medal for Humanitarianism, and International Contributions to Cancer Prevention.