Synthetic Musks
People are up for anything that has the capacity to make us sexier, and for centuries, natural musk from the male musk deer was regarded as an aphrodisiac. Nowadays, that musky scent is artificial and comes from a laboratory. “Nitro musks” and “polycyclic musks” are very commonly used, both in scents people wear and the scents used in laundry products. In the 1990s, it was demonstrated that some kinds of synthetic musks can build up in the body to the point that they are toxic and damage tissues.
This research prompted a lot of manufacturers to use less musk. But since safety studies of musk are a work in progress, many companies are continuing to use synthetic musks in laundry soap, fabric softener, and perfume and cologne.
Look for the trade names Tonalid and Galaxilide, which refer to types of polycyclic musk. However, musks are often lurking on the label as just “fragrance.” You may write to manufacturers for complete listings of their products’ ingredients, or just use fragrance-free choices.
The Cosmetic Database lists ingredients of products. Or the Skin Deep website, courtesy of the Environmental Working Group, has a searchable database that can direct you to safer products, which are either free of, or contain much less of, toxic ingredients.
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