Showing posts with label toxicity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label toxicity. Show all posts

Thursday, July 2, 2015

Rose Water and Rose Products


I will be adding to this post.


A problem in identifying a reaction to a product or ingredient can be labeling, which can have different names for identical ingredients. A significant problem is company, quack use of preliminary, and older animal, and questionable human studies to make false or misleading claims, with no cautions. 


With the "jury still out" on health benefits, safety, and dosage, there is NO reason to ingest a rose water drink at all, and cautions are warranted with other products!


Current

"International Fragrance Association"
Click on "Methyl eugenol"
http://www.ifraorg.org/en-us/standards#.Wz0JlfZFzJq
then scroll down here,
http://www.ifraorg.org/en-us/standards-library/open/23617#.Wz0LRvZFzJo
to "Note Box" under it highlighted for current restrictions.
"Critical effect ... CARCINOGENICITY"
& "frequently asked questions"
http://www.ifraorg.org/en-us/frequently-asked-questions#.Wz0PAPZFzJo

"METHYL EUGENOL"
http://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/index.cfm?fuseaction=search.details_v2&id=87815&back=2 "(d) Other leave-on products and oral products ..."Maximum concentration in ready for use preparation ... (d) 0.0002% ... v.3"

"EF Cosmetics Safety Problem and unsafe ingredients" EU

http://www.efchemicalconsulting.co.uk/unsafe-cosmetics.html "Methyl eugenol is a suspect carcinogen ... Rose oil or absolute is the most common culprit ... "Products containing mostly rose water can also fall foul of the regulations"
http://www.efchemicalconsulting.co.uk/eu-cosmetic-regulations.html

2015

"Rosa damascena as holy ancient herb with novel applications", color and bolding added by me
"Rose essential oil may cause sensitization in sensitive persons. ... R. damascena infusion ... may have hepatotoxic effects at extraordinary high doses. ... Although, many studies demonstrate the medicinal applications of rose in vitro and in animal models ... other large preclinical and clinical studies are needed for evaluating its potencies on different patients." = UNPROVEN therapeutic benefits in people! 

2014 

"Assessment report on Rosa gallica L., Rosa centifolia L., Rosa damascena Mill., flos", color and bolding added by me
"In conclusion, traditional herbal medicinal products containing Rose flower ... can be registered in the following indications: 1) Traditional herbal medicinal product ... mild inflammations of the oral and pharyngeal mucosa ... 2) relief of minor skin inflammation ... in the absence of sufficient data ... use is intended only in adolescents, adults and elderly ... not recommended during pregnancy and lactation ... no available data on genotoxicity, carcinogenicity, reproductive and developmental toxicity on Rose flower" See also "The indications adopted by HMPC" "The use in children under 12 years of age is not recommended."

2014 

"Essential Oil Chemical Diversity of Forty-Four Rosa damascena Accessions from Iran"
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/272790309_Essential_Oil_Chemical_Diversity_of_Forty-Four_Rosa_damascena_Accessions_from_Iran 
"Results showed that the essential oils of these accessions had considerable variabilities for major and minor components."

2013
"A preliminary study on some potential toxic effects of Rosa damascena Mill", a study on dogs, bolding added by me
"Recent studies suggest a wide variety of therapeutic effects for R. damascena ... little is known regarding potential toxic effects of this herbal medicine ... results suggest minimal nephrotoxic or hepatotoxic effects for the infusion of R. damascena ... however, the medication may be hepatotoxic at extraordinary high doses ... Further research is needed to identify the potentially toxic ingredients
Interesting and honest

1991

"Contact dermatitis from geraniol in Bulgarian rose oil", color added by me
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1600-0536.1991.tb01726.x/abstract
"at approximately 20% in Bulgarian rose oil" 

"GERANIOL"
https://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/search/a?dbs+hsdb:@term+@DOCNO+484
"In human patch test gerianol ... 32% concn was severely irritating ... 1979"

2002

"Allergic contact dermatitis following exposure to essential oils.", full text, color and bolding added by me
"Keywords: Bulgarian rose oil; hand dermatitis; lavender oil; natural therapist; occupational skin disease; ylang ylang oil ... Allergic contact dermatitis from the topical use of essential oils is not widely recognized as an occupational hazard. Four cases of allergic contact dermatitis to essential oils occurring in three aromatherapists and one chemist with a particular interest in aromatherapy are described ... Case 2 exhibited
sensitivity to geraniol" And from "Table 1 Results of patch tests" all 4 Cases tested positive (sensitivity) to Bulgarian rose oil. 

2009
"Allergic Contact Dermatitis to Cosmetics", color and bolding added by me
"In our series, we found 55 positive patch test results to perfumes ... 33 fragrances that caused sensitization from the specific series were geraniol (7 cases), hydroxycitronellal (4 cases) ... oak moss absolute (2 cases), eugenol (2 cases), Bulgarian rose oil (2 cases)

"PATIENT SHEET ROSA DAMASCENA EXTRACT", bolding added by me
"Your patch testing results indicate that you have a contact allergy to ROSA DAMASCENA EXTRACT ... important that you familiarize yourself with this chemical and take steps to avoid coming in contact with it ... can be identified by different names, including: Absolute bulgarian, Rose Oil, Rose De Mai oil, Attar of Rose, Rose oil, Bulgarian, Rose leaf oil ... This may not be a complete list as manufacturers introduce and delete chemicals from their product lines." 

Updated 2016

"Fragrance mix allergy", color and bolding added by me
"Fragrance mix is a mixture of 8 individual fragrances that is used to screen for fragrance allergy. The 8 listed are the most common allergy-causing fragrances that are used across many products for their fragrant and flavouring properties ... Geraniol ... Sweet floral odour of rose ... Constitutes a large portion of rose and palmarose oil, geranium oil, lavender oil, jasmine oil and citronella oil ... Present in over 250 essential oils"  

Related

2015
"Contact Dermatitis: A Practice Parameter - Update 2015", bolding added by me, @AAAAI_org
"These parameters are not designed for use by the pharmaceutical industry in drug development or promotion ... Botanicals” (such as tea tree oil, propolis, and other essential oils) are plant extracts ... increasingly used as additives to skin care products and are potential causes of CD. It is important that patients who are allergic to fragrance also be made aware of the potential dangers of cosmetic products that may contain plant extracts and patients should also be counseled that “natural products” does not equate with safety."

2015

"Essential Oils: A Poor Choice for Asthma (and a few other things)", color and some bolding added by me, @chadhayesmd  
http://www.chadhayesmd.com/essential-oils-are-a-poor-choice-for-asthma-and-a-few-other-things/
"Asthma can also be triggered by “volatile organic compounds,” one example of which would be essential oils. Advising parents to treat asthma by diffusing essential oils is dangerous and irresponsible, and it demonstrates a tremendous lack of understanding about the disease. ... promoting unproven treatments for serious medical conditions amounts to practicing medicine without a license, which is illegal as well as dangerous ... As a physician, it scares me. ... because there are people out there treating serious conditions that they know nothing about with treatments that have no data to show that they are safe or effectivebecause our children’s health is at risk." 

2013

"Allergic Contact Dermatitis to Plant Extracts in Cosmetics", bolding added by me 
"Specific botanicals implicated in causing cosmetic contact dermatitis include ... tea tree oil, peppermint, lavender, lichens, henna ... many plant extracts ... reported to cause allergic contact dermatitis through cosmetic use in one or a limited number of reports. These include Aloe vera ... Azadirachta indica oil (neem oil) ... Curcuma longa (tumeric) ... Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice) ... Hamamelis virginiana (witch hazel) ... Olea europaea oil (olive oil) ... Ricinus communis oil (castor oil plant) ... Rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) ... Simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) ... Thymus vulgaris (thyme)" Note: "tumeric" should read turmeric.

2001

"Occupational Acute Anaphylactic Reaction to Assault by Perfume Spray in the Face", bolding added by me
"no history of rashes, wheezing, allergies, or reactions to fragrances, soaps, or perfumes, and there was no history of asthma or eczema ... anaphylactic reaction and respiratory distress as a result of a deliberate assault with a perfume spray ... many organic compounds present in perfumes have been documented to cause or exacerbate asthma, eczema, or dermatitis. This case represents an incident of acute asthmatic symptoms in a person with pollen allergies when exposed to a large amount of perfume"

Monday, November 24, 2014

Neem Oil (Margosa Oil) Safety and Uses


I will be adding to this post.

Neem, 2018 
"inadequate clinical trials to support specific therapeutic doses … poisoning … infants … oral … oil … seizures, coma, hepatoencephalopathy, and death … Management of poisoning … largely symptomatic … no specific antidote available"

hepatic encephalopathy
https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/000302.htm
"Loss of brain function occurs when the liver is unable to remove toxins from the blood … Causes … include … Poisoning by different toxins or medicines"


2014
"Neem Oil Poisoning as a Cause of Toxic Encephalopathy in an Infant"
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12098-013-1327-x/fulltext.html
"Poisoning is usually accidental by nasal or oral administered to infants and children for cough and cold, pain abdomen, and deworming; or rarely suicidal ... Even small doses can cause toxicity include vomiting, drowsiness, generalized seizures, coma, and severe metabolic acidosis especially in infants and young children ... Prognosis is usually good, however, delayed milestones, long term neurodeficits, recurrent seizures, abnormal ... (EEG), and deaths have been observed ... Since neem oil is commonly used as traditional medicine in India, its poisoning is not uncommon. ... pediatricians should be aware of this condition and public should be educated regarding the safe use of neem oil."

The bolding and color of text in all quotes is by me. The information speaks for itself. These are not studies. They are case reports. The information in this post is not new in that references of other case reports go back years! The question is Why is neem oil still being promoted with no cautions as if there are none? The short answer is it is not as profitable to include them. For those who promote health fraud, the lack of cautions does not surprise me in the least. They buy fake followers, reviews, and comments to stoke their ego, and further their agenda (sales), with no regard for consumers. However, they cannot buy credibility, and it cannot be faked. Credibility comes with reputable evidence, which they cannot produce about what they promote because it does not exist. It is also being reported in scientific literature, that within alternative therapy communities there is a lack of or underreporting of adverse events, that are nonetheless observed! 


2014

"A rare case of toxic optic neuropathy secondary to consumption of neem oil", Full text
http://www.ijo.in/article.asp?issn=0301-4738;year=2014;volume=62;issue=3;spage=337;epage=339;aulast=Suresha

2013

"A Systematic Review of the Reporting of Adverse Events Associated With Medical Herb Use Among Children"
"There is considerable need for improvement in reporting adverse events in children following herb use."

2013

"Neem oil poisoning: Case report of an adult with toxic encephalopathy", Full text
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3841499/

2013

Neem oil
"Herbal remedy is natural and safe"--truth or myth?"
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24974507
MYTH!

2013

"Hepatotoxic Botanicals - An Evidence-based Systematic Review", Under Margosa oil
http://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/JPPS/article/viewFile/17973/15135
"The hepatotoxicity of herbs was extensively acknowledged. ... Further scientific studies with high and good quality are needed to identify toxic compounds and understand the exact mechanism of hepatotoxicity-induced by herbs."
Table 1 lists the botanicals discussed in detail, Pages 402-404. Just: control f, type 402, and hit enter to access it quickly (you have to scroll up a bit to start at the Table beginning). A control f keyword or number search is a great way to find, or check if something you are looking for is in a long document. If what you are looking for is in the document more than once, hitting enter repeatedly will take you to all locations.


2012
"MARGOSA (NEEM) OIL POISONING"
"The easy availability of margosa oil and its promotion without proper warning of these life threatening side effects warrant legislative measures and active awareness. This is a potentially toxic chemical and should be used with vigilance." Amen to that!

2008
"Neem Oil Poisoning" - reference #6 in above link and heartbreaking!, Full text
http://medind.nic.in/ibv/t08/i1/ibvt08i1p56.pdf
"Exact toxicity level doses for humans are not known."

2015 - regarding skin, scalp issues - neem - STILL unproven effectiveness, and safety - neem aka Azadirachta indica, A. indica

"Antifungal activity by ethanolic extracts of medicinal plants against Malassezia furfur: A potential application in the treatment of Dandruff", color and bolding added by me
"Dandruff is one of the most afflicting problem confronted in healthcare and cosmetics. Malassezia sp. is an opportunistic pathogen on the normal skin flora which is a causative of dandruff under unfavourable conditions. Traditionally dandruff is treated using a large number of medicinal herbs but the complete cure is far from reach. The present investigation dealt with study of the potentiality of Evolvulus alsinoides, Lawsonia inermis, Hibiscus rosasinensis, Azadirachta indica and Murraya koenigii against Malassezia furfur. ... The work was also emphasized in determining the minimum fungicidal concentration of each plant extracts against Malassezia sp. to know the efficiency of the herbs in treating dandruff. The results obtained were promising that it would help in formulating a polyherbal mixture to treat dandruff and enrich hair growth." = UNPROVEN
Related
Neem, curry leaf extracts, against selected bacteria and fungus, also 2015, color and bolding added by me
"further studies need to be done ... for the fungal pathogen ... all 3 extracts of A. indica were ineffective"

When it comes to product safety BOTH short-term AND long-term safety data needs to be compiled, and confirmed - NOT just what was observed in one short study! For example, probiotics "the data on safety, particularly long-term safety, are limited", 2016, 

Natural Standard - neem oil uses - All grade C: "Unclear scientific evidence for this use" = UNPROVEN EFFECTIVENESS!

2011 
http://www.davidsnaturalmarket.com/ns/DisplayMonograph.asp?storeID=cf1d83c59a914deeb1f49f78c9be5747&DocID=bottomline-neem#EVIDENCETABLE