Healthy Living Blog: The EU Banned 1,300 Skincare Ingredients. The U.S. Banned 11. Here’s What You Need to Know with Brian Vaszily

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If I told you that the moisturizer sitting on your bathroom counter right now might be doing more harm than good — especially during menopause — would you believe me? I’ll be honest: a few years ago, I probably would have rolled my eyes too. But the more I’ve dug into this topic, the harder it is to ignore.

I’m Natalie Jill, and I’m 54 and in menopause. I’ve spent years trying to figure out what to actually put on my skin. And I want to be upfront with you before we even get started: I am not perfect. I still color my hair. There are products in my bathroom that aren’t clean. I’m not here to preach an all-or-nothing approach. What I do take seriously, though, is something called toxic load — the cumulative buildup of everything we put on and in our bodies every single day. That’s the lens I look through. Reduce where we can. Be smarter where we can. Not perfect.

And that’s exactly why I sat down with Brian Vaszily, one of the most respected voices in natural health and longevity with over 25 years of research under his belt. He’s the founder of the Art of Aging with over 500,000 members, has hosted summits heard by over 2 million people, and is the founder of Purity Woods, a USDA certified organic skincare line. What he shared stopped me in my tracks — and I think it’ll stop you too.

The Number That Should Shock Every Woman: 11 vs. 1,300

Here’s the stat that opened my eyes and honestly made me a little angry: the European Union has banned or seriously restricted over 1,300 ingredients in personal care products. The United States has banned 11.

Eleven.

That gap isn’t a rounding error. It’s a regulatory failure that has been building since 1938, when the FDA essentially told the cosmetics industry to self-regulate. Since then, it has been, in Brian’s words, a wild west. There are now roughly 10,000 different chemicals allowed for use in cosmetics and personal care products in the U.S., and the average woman uses about 12 of these products per day — exposing herself to an average of 168 different chemicals daily.

The reason this disparity exists has a lot to do with the fact that the U.S. has historically been a treatment-focused healthcare system, not a prevention-focused one. Other countries, particularly in the European Union, are more oriented around cause — understanding why people get sick rather than simply managing symptoms after the fact. Add to that the enormous lobbying power of the chemical companies that essentially fuel the beauty industry, and you have a system that has very little incentive to change.

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Your Skin Is Not Just a Covering — It’s an Organ That Eats

One of the most important reframes Brian offered is one I think we all need to hear: your skin is not a barrier that keeps everything out. It is an organ — the largest organ in your body — and it absorbs what you put on it.

When you eat something, your body has multiple layers of filtering: stomach acid, the liver, the digestive process. When you put something on your skin, especially in thin and sensitive areas, those filters essentially don’t exist. Molecules small enough to penetrate the skin go directly into the deeper layers of tissue and, in many cases, into the bloodstream, where they can be transported to organs and stored.

Brian made a point that stuck with me: he’d rather eat some of these products than put them on his skin — because at least then his body would have a fighting chance at filtering them out.

This is especially significant when it comes to thin-skinned areas of the body. The skin beneath the eyes is paper-thin. The skin under the arms, where we apply deodorant daily, is thin and sits in close proximity to breast tissue. These aren’t abstract concerns — they’re anatomical realities.

And beyond absorption, there’s another layer of impact: your skin has its own microbiome, just like your gut. The trillions of microorganisms on the surface of your skin play a role in immunity and overall health, and they do not respond well to a constant barrage of synthetic, petroleum-derived chemicals.

The Compound Effect: Why “A Little” Adds Up to a Lot

One of the most common defenses of questionable skincare ingredients is that any single ingredient is present in such a small amount that it couldn’t possibly cause harm. And if you used that one product once a month, that argument might even hold up.

But that’s not how most women use personal care products. It’s a deodorant in the morning, a face wash, a toner, a serum, a moisturizer with SPF, a foundation, a concealer, a lip product, a hand lotion throughout the day, a body lotion after a shower, an eye cream at night. Twelve products. 168 chemicals. Every single day. Year after year.

Brian calls this death by a thousand cuts. It’s not one ingredient causing one problem in one instance. It’s the compound effect of daily, cumulative chemical exposure — and it’s one of the most underrecognized contributors to the kinds of mysterious, hard-to-explain symptoms so many midlife women deal with: brain fog, fatigue, sinus issues, skin rashes, anxiety, mood swings, and hormonal disruption.

If you have symptoms you can’t quite explain and your doctor has cleared you across the board, toxic load from personal care products is absolutely worth examining.

Why Midlife and Menopause Make This Even More Critical

Here’s where this conversation gets especially personal for a lot of us. During perimenopause and menopause, our hormone system is already under significant stress. Estrogen is declining. Progesterone is fluctuating. The entire endocrine system is recalibrating.

The last thing we need is an additional source of hormonal interference — and yet many common skincare ingredients are known endocrine disruptors. Phthalates, which are extremely common in personal care products, are among the more than 200 known hormone disruptors that are still permitted in U.S. cosmetics. These chemicals interact with the body’s hormone receptors, potentially amplifying the very symptoms — hot flashes, mood disruption, sleep problems, and weight shifts — that midlife women are already fighting against.

This isn’t a fringe concern. It’s documented. And while it may not be the only contributing factor to your symptoms, reducing your exposure is genuinely low-hanging fruit.

The Ingredients to Know and Watch For

Rather than trying to memorize thousands of chemical names, Brian suggests a few practical approaches. Here are some of the most important ingredients to be aware of:

• Fragrance (also listed as “perfume” or “scent”): This is Brian’s single biggest red flag. The word “fragrance” on a label is a legally protected trade secret, which means a company can hide dozens or even hundreds of undisclosed ingredients behind that one word. Research has found that what hides behind “fragrance” is often among the most problematic chemicals in a product. If you see it on a label, put it back.
• Phthalates: Endocrine disruptors commonly found in products with synthetic fragrance, plastics-adjacent ingredients, and many mainstream cosmetics.
• Parabens: Preservatives used to extend shelf life. Also known hormone disruptors.
• Formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing agents: Known carcinogens that find their way into numerous personal care products in various chemical forms.
• Sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate: These are surfactants used to create lather in shampoos and body washes. They have no real functional benefit to your health or hair — they exist purely to create the foaming effect consumers have been conditioned to associate with effectiveness.
• Triclosan: Banned from hand soaps in 2016 in the U.S. — but not from anti-aging creams and other products. That regulatory inconsistency says a great deal.
• Petroleum-derived ingredients (including mineral oil): Approximately a third of all synthetic chemicals in cosmetics are petroleum-derived. While mineral oil in isolated contexts may not be acutely dangerous, petroleum does not belong inside the human body on a daily basis, and many petroleum-derived chemicals are the most concerning on the full list.
• Retinol/Retinoids: Synthetic forms of Vitamin A that have become enormously popular in anti-aging skincare. Brian urges caution here — retinol is known to cause redness and irritation in many users, which is the skin signaling distress. Over time, it can weaken the skin barrier and may increase susceptibility to UV damage. If you love it and aren’t giving it up, that’s a choice you can make — but it’s worth knowing the full picture.
• Oxybenzone: Commonly found in chemical sunscreens. A known hormone disruptor that absorbs through the skin readily.
• Hydroquinone: A skin-lightening agent that Natalie herself discovered was affecting her liver numbers — a real-world example of how products we assume are topical can have systemic effects.

The Greenwashing Problem: “Natural” Doesn’t Mean Safe

This is where it gets tricky — and where a lot of well-intentioned women get burned. The word “natural” on a label means almost nothing. It is not a regulated term. A product can contain one organic ingredient amid 55 synthetic ones and still scream “organic” or “natural” on the front of the bottle because technically, it’s not false.

Brian calls this greenwashing, and it’s rampant. Companies have noticed that consumers are waking up to the toxicity conversation, and some are responding with smarter packaging rather than better products. Green bottles. Clean-looking fonts. Claims like “paraben-free” — which is true, but doesn’t tell you anything about the thousand other potentially concerning ingredients.

What to look for instead: independent certifications. In the U.S., USDA Certified Organic is one of the most rigorous and trustworthy certifications available. It means that not only are synthetic ingredients excluded, but even the plant-based ingredients that are included were grown without pesticides, herbicides, or synthetic fertilizers. An equivalent certification in Europe is ECOCERT. These certifications require third-party verification — companies can’t simply claim them.

Turning a product around and scanning for the word “fragrance” takes ten seconds. Looking for an independent certification takes five more. Those fifteen seconds could make a meaningful difference in your long-term health.

What Actually Works: Nature’s Most Powerful Skincare Ingredients

Here’s the part I think you’ve been waiting for — because knowing what to avoid only gets you halfway there. The good news is that the natural world offers genuinely powerful, research-backed ingredients for skin health. And when formulated thoughtfully together — like a superfood salad rather than a single ingredient — they can outperform many synthetic alternatives.

• Maple Leaf Extracts (Red Maple and others): In 2018, researchers at the University of Rhode Island discovered that maple leaf extracts contain unique compounds — some not found anywhere else in nature — that block the activity of elastase, the enzyme responsible for breaking down elastin in skin. Elastin is one of the two key proteins (along with collagen) that keep skin firm and youthful. Blocking elastase breakdown is one of the most direct ways to reduce the appearance of wrinkles. These extracts have also been shown to have a powerful effect on age spots. Brian calls this the “plant-based Botox” — not his words, but those of the researchers who discovered it.
• Astaxanthin: Derived from red algae — the same source that gives salmon and flamingos their pink color — astaxanthin is one of the most powerful antioxidants found in nature. It has shown exceptional results for UV-damaged and weathered-looking skin, which is relevant for most women in their 40s, 50s, and 60s who spent years in the sun without adequate protection.
• Camu Camu Berry and Amla (Indian Gooseberry): Both are exceptionally high in Vitamin C, which is one of the most effective ways to support your body’s own collagen production. Rather than applying collagen topically (which doesn’t absorb well), feeding the skin ingredients that stimulate its own collagen synthesis is a far more effective approach.
• Aloe Vera and Cacao/Cocoa Butter: Nature’s most effective moisturizers, helping the skin retain hydration — something that becomes increasingly important as estrogen levels decline and skin loses its natural moisture-retention capacity.
• Tremella (Snow Mushroom): A powerful natural humectant with exceptional moisture-binding properties, helping maintain plump, hydrated skin.

The key insight Brian shared — and the one that reframed everything for me — is that a single star ingredient is not enough. Just like eating only blueberries isn’t a health strategy, using a product with one or two natural ingredients doesn’t make for complete skin nutrition. Effective natural skincare, like effective eating, requires variety, synergy, and the right combination of ingredients working together.

A Practical Starting Point: You Don’t Have to Be Perfect

I want to leave you where I started: this is not about perfection. I still color my hair. I still have products in my bathroom that aren’t fully clean. And that’s okay.

What matters is reducing your toxic load wherever you realistically can. Here are some practical first steps:

Start with the products you use on your face and under your arms — the areas with the thinnest skin and the most direct access to sensitive tissue. Swap out your deodorant. Look for products with third-party certifications rather than marketing claims. Put back anything with “fragrance,” “perfume,” or “scent” on the ingredient list.

Notice how you feel. Brian mentioned a simple experiment: reduce or eliminate as many conventional personal care products as possible for a few weeks. Many people report that unexplained symptoms — headaches, fatigue, brain fog, anxiety — diminish noticeably.

And if you’re going through perimenopause or menopause, know that your hormone system is already working hard. You don’t need the added burden of 168 daily chemical exposures on top of it. Any reduction you make is a genuine step forward — not just for your skin, but for your overall health.

 

Special offer for Midlife Conversations listeners: http://puritywoods.com/nataliejill and get up to 38% off ($5 off per bottle of Age-Defying Dream Cream)

The contents of the Midlife Conversations podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider. Some episodes of Midlife Conversations may be sponsored by products or services discussed during the show. The host may receive compensation for such advertisements or if you purchase products through affiliate links mentioned on this podcast.

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