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ults
THE DETAILS: Whether a teenager is addicted to Axe or any of the dozens of other deodorant sprays on the market, getting him to back away from the spray isn't a bad idea. These fragranced body sprays contain synthetic fragrances that are in reality chemical cocktails made up of hundreds of chemicals, such as hormone-disrupting phthalates and synthetic musks, and the Environmental Working Group's (EWG's) Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database consistently rates Axe, Old Spice, and other commercial body sprays as moderate or high hazards. A recent analysis of popular perfumes, including Axe, Old Spice, and fragrances from popular chain stores, found that many contained chemicals linked to sperm damage. "Phthalates are anti-androgenic, or anti-testosterone," says Maida Galvez, MD, MPH, assistant professor in the department of community and preventive medicine and the department of pediatrics at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, referring to the fact that the chemicals lower the body's testosterone levels and boost estrogen levels. And, she notes, research has found that teenagers have higher phthalate levels in their bodies than adults do.
It's easy to imagine that these chemicals could have unknown long-term effects on the teens that use them, considering that they're in the midst of the hormonal upheaval that is puberty. A 2009 study from EWG found that teenagers may be particularly susceptible to hormone-disrupting chemicals like phthalates because of the way the chemicals influence the rapidly developing reproductive system. Animal studies have found that male rats exposed to phthalates during puberty had more testicular problems because of the way they absorbed and metabolized the chemicals. And of course girls-who are the ones that desire nice-smelling boys most of all (if you believe the advertisements for these products)-are undergoing changes in their mammary glands, and exposures to hormone-disrupting chemicals during this phase of their lives could trigger biological changes that may result in breast cancer later in life, according to a recent report from the Breast Cancer Fund.