5 Simple Ways To Avoid Exposure To Cancer-Causing Chemicals In Your Home

Throughout our daily lives, we’re exposed to many chemicals that can increase our risk of developing cancer. Although these exposures generally happen in small doses, research confirms1 that they can add up and overlap to increase our risk of certain cancers in a big way.

Many chemicals that have been banned in other parts of the world regularly show up in food, cleaning products, and cosmetics sold in the United States. After spending years reporting on environmental toxicity, I believe that the U.S. needs to do a better job of regulating these chemicals. 

While we push our policymakers to pass chemical regulations that will protect us, there are also simple steps we can take in the meantime to lower our exposure to cancer-causing chemicals. 

Chemicals found in cosmetics and personal care products that can raise our cancer risk include heavy metals2, formaldehyde3, phthalates4, parabens5, 1,4-dioxane6, and PFAS (per- and polyfluoralkyl substances, a.k.a. “forever chemicals”).

Some of these chemicals, like parabens, may show up on ingredient lists, but others aren’t always listed. For example, formaldehyde often isn’t listed, but it can be released when other chemicals commonly found in hair products combine and are heated during styling. When “fragrance” shows up on an ingredient list, that product possibly contains dozens of unlisted chemicals (including phthalates, which can be used to make fragrance linger on our skin and hair for longer periods of time).

Thankfully, there are a number of third-party organizations that verify products as nontoxic and free of harmful ingredients, including the Healthy Living App, MadeSafe, and Clearya. 

Many of the pesticides used in the U.S. raise our risk of certain cancers, and research has found that people who eat more organic produce have lower levels of pesticides in their bodies7. 

Eating fully organic can be pricey, so it can be helpful to prioritize fruits and veggies that are most likely to absorb pesticides, including strawberries, leafy greens, peaches, pears, nectarines, apples, grapes, bell and hot peppers, cherries, blueberries, and green beans.

A 2021 study8 by researchers in Switzerland identified more than 10,000 chemicals used in plastics manufacturing, and found that about a quarter of them are “substances of potential concern,” for endocrine disruption, reproductive harm, organ damage, cancer, or environmental toxicity. 

More than half of the chemicals the researchers identified as potentially concerning are unregulated in the U.S., and 901 of those chemicals are approved for contact with food in the U.S. At least 1,000 of these concerning chemicals, including some carcinogens, are harmful even in very small doses. An additional 39% of the chemicals used in plastics manufacturing haven’t been studied enough to determine whether they’re hazardous, according to the study. 

When plastic containers are heated, toxic chemicals can leach into food and make their way into our bodies. When products are labeled “microwave safe,” that means they won’t melt or fall apart in the microwave—it does not necessarily mean they won’t leach toxic chemicals into food when heated. The same goes for things like plastic crockpot liners.

Contaminants in tap water that can raise our cancer risk include PFAS, arsenic, disinfection byproducts, and hexavalent chromium. Many of these chemicals are unregulated in the U.S., and the Environmental Working Group estimates that more than 100,000 cancer cases in the U.S. are caused by carcinogens in tap water.

Americans on average spend 90% of our time indoors, and carcinogens from our cleaning products, gas stoves, and outdoor air pollution can build up and linger in the air in our homes.