Words from a Reader

The “Writing Life Stories” e-mails I receive are such treasures. As soon as I see there is one in my inbox, I read it immediately. I look forward to them and never know how they will touch me. They can be interesting, informative, humorous, and/or touching.

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Does a Baby Need to Wear Perfume?

As everyone who knows me will tell you, synthetic fragrance such as air fresheners, Glade, Febreze  and others that companies have brainwashed our culture into believing we must use to "freshen" the air in buildings like our homes, our workplaces, our churches and schools can make me seriously ill.

Television ads for sprays that cover scents show outdoor scenes with sunshine and breezes blowing. But the truth is the products made by these companies contain very harmful chemicals, some that cause cancer and many that bring on asthma, especially in children and older adults. Childhood asthma has been on the rise in this country in recent years. Could it be because of the household products used in homes and schools? Could it be the personal care products used by mothers and fathers?

Recently a company in Italy decided that babies don't smell sweet enough. They are manufacturing perfume for little children. Read more here.
I have learned through my research that babies are often born toxic from the chemicals ingested by their mothers during pregnancy. These women who use perfume, body wash, shampoo, makeup, and soap filled with chemicals have no idea what they are doing to their unborn children. 

Small children and older people do not have strong immune systems and that is why this demographic falls victim to the flu, pneumonia, and other diseases. They should be protected from the pollution of the air they breathe because their respiratory systems are most vulnerable. 

Marcia, a young mother, told me that she often rushed her son to the emergency room when he couldn't breathe due to asthma.  Then  she told me that when he rode in the car with her, he opened a window and hung his head out. He hated her perfume, he said.
She laughed and said he would have to get used to it. She made no connection.

This mother is the type who would likely dab a chemical fragrance on a young baby. She had no idea that she was poisoning her own son with her perfume. She also used dryer sheets on her laundry. For that reason I could not have her come to my house. The chemicals used in dryer sheets like Bounce can easily bring on an episode of asthmatic bronchitis for me and others like me who have that sensitivity. Some people break out in rashes when they use dryer sheets. Often no one makes the connection and they spend hundreds of dollars on a cure for their rash when all they had to do was stop using the dryer sheets. (I find the little bumpy blue balls work fine in my dryer)

The Environmental Workers Group acts as a watch dog for all of us. They do the research on products the manufacturers don't want us to see. Because the FDA has not required manufacturers to list the chemicals in the fragrances they use, we, the public, do not know what we are buying or how much we can safely ingest through the skin or in our lungs. 

Tests have shown that our indoor air is more polluted than the outside air, and people in the work force have no recourse if others in their offices use perfumes, colognes, or air fresheners. 

If the public only realized that none of us want to infringe on the rights of others to wear perfume, just don't infringe on our health by wearing it in public places. Don't put perfume on that new baby who can't defend himself. What is sweeter than a clean baby with a little baby powder, or just plain mild soap?

Remember that what goes on the skin, goes inside the body, into developing organs - brains and lungs. 

Other articles on chemical fragrances






4 comments:

  1. This is a great post! I'm all for natural ways of being healthy. Some perfumes really get to me and the ladies seem to pour it on. I can't imagine perfume for babies, they already have their own sweetness.

    My laundry is line dried and I love the scent.

    FlowerLady

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  2. Excellent post, Glenda. I love perfume but quit wearing it after I realized how many people were annoyed by it.

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  3. Oh my gosh, this is so crazy...babies are the best smelling people in the world! Why would be want to "infect" children with artificial stuff? I totally agree with you!

    In fact, they should bottle that wonderful baby smell and sell it to stinky adults, LOL!

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  4. I am happy you agree with me. No perfume for babies.
    Not only is chemical fragrance annoying, Vicki, it is harmful. Before WWII perfume and cologne were made with flowers, musk, natural elements, but now each perfume or fragrance uses hundreds of different chemicals that are often toxic to humans. When our bodies can't throw off those toxins we become sick. That is the message I am trying to get out. It isn't that we don't like perfume or fragrance, but that it is detrimental to our health, extremely so, in some cases.
    Most people try to avoid "triggers" that cause an asthma attack, or bring on bronchitis,severe migraines, and more, but it is impossible to avoid the triggers of scented products in our world today. Check labels on anything you buy and it is likely it has fragrance, parfum, or something that refers to scents.

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