'The skin on eyelids is the thinnest on the body, so anything applied to the eye area is easily absorbed,' says Bruce Moskowitz, an assistant clinical professor of ophthalmology at Mount Sinai in New York City. You might pay more attention to the ingredient list of the products you apply in larger amounts, but location matters, too. 'Both parabens and phthalates are suspected hormone disruptors, meaning they might interfere with the action of estrogen in women's bodies, which could impact reproductive development or be related to reproductive cancers,' says Harley.
In a recent study, Kim Harley, an epidemiologist and associate professor of public health at the University of California, Berkeley, found that people wearing eye makeup made with parabens and phthalates had significantly higher levels of potentially harmful chemicals in their bodies than those who did not. Because who doesn't love full, fluttery lashes? But, to that point, we have to talk about some of the other mascara wands you may be wielding.
Here at Allure, we're always testing new launches to find the best natural mascaras the beauty market has to offer.