You probably already know that what you eat affects your hormones. You've heard it about alcohol, about sugar, about processed food. But your makeup bag? That one tends to fly under the radar.

Last year, we sat down with Emma Peters, founder of New Zealand-made beauty brand Aleph, and honestly, we left the conversation looking at our bathroom shelves very differently. Emma has been a professional makeup artist for over 30 years, and she has spent the last decade building a brand that puts people, planet, and animals at the centre of every single decision. She knows this industry inside out, and she is not here to sugarcoat it.

So let's get into it.

Your skin is an organ. It absorbs things.

This sounds obvious when you say it out loud, but most of us don't actually think about it. We slap on foundation, concealer, moisturiser, maybe a setting spray, and we move on with our day. The idea that those products are being absorbed into our bloodstream feels abstract, almost alarmist.

But it's not. As Emma puts it, the proof is already in your skincare marketing. That cream promising to reduce the appearance of fine lines? It works (to whatever degree it does) because it gets into the skin. The same logic applies to everything else you're putting on your face.

Which brings us to the problem.

Endocrine-disrupting chemicals are in more products than you'd think

Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that can interfere with the way your hormones function. Some mimic hormones like oestrogen, others block receptors or get in the way of normal hormonal pathways. The downstream effects can be wide-ranging, and for anyone already navigating hormonal conditions like endometriosis, PCOS, or adenomyosis, that ongoing interference can worsen symptoms over time.

Here's the thing though: the amounts found in any single product are usually considered "safe." However, our bodies don't experience products in isolation. We layer a moisturiser, then a primer, then foundation, concealer, setting spray. We do that once to twice a day, every day, for years. Some of these chemicals are bioaccumulative, meaning they don't pass through and out. They build up. So the question isn't really whether your concealer is safe on its own. It's what constant, compounding exposure looks like over a lifetime.

Here are a few places it shows up that might surprise you

Fragrance is the sneaky one

If there is one swap worth making first, it is this: ditch the fragrance. Not because smelling nice is a crime, but because "fragrance" or "parfum" on an ingredient list is essentially a black box. Under current regulations, it can legally contain dozens of undisclosed chemicals, including phthalates, with no requirement to break those down for consumers. A 2018 study published in PLOS ONE found that fragranced consumer products, including personal care items, emitted numerous potentially hazardous chemicals, many of which were not disclosed on the label.

If a product smells strongly and the label just says "fragrance" without listing individual essential oils or natural scent ingredients, that is your cue.

Phthalates: the hormone mimickers hiding in plain sight

One of the most common endocrine-disrupting chemicals to look out for is phthalates. They're used in a huge number of conventional beauty and skincare products, typically to make fragrances last longer and keep formulas pliable. The issue is that phthalates are known to mimic oestrogen in the body, interfering with hormonal signalling. Research published in Environmental Health Perspectives has linked phthalate exposure to disruptions in reproductive hormone levels. Because they're so often hidden inside "fragrance" listings, they're also one of the hardest to spot and avoid.

Microplastics are in your foundation (yes, really)

When most people think of microplastics, they picture the tiny beads that were banned from face scrubs a few years ago. But liquid plastic polymers, things like acrylates copolymers, styrenes, and vinyls, are found in the formulations of most conventional cosmetics. They create a film on the skin that gives that smooth, airbrushed finish. They are cheap, they are effective, and they are plastic.

The research into liquid microplastics specifically is still developing, but what we do know is that plastic polymers applied to the skin daily represent a form of chemical exposure we have very little long-term data on. A 2023 review in Science of the Total Environment noted that cosmetic-derived microplastics are an emerging area of concern, particularly given daily and repeated use patterns.

If you want to check your own products, the principle is straightforward: if an ingredient name sounds like a plastic, it probably is. Styrene, vinyl, acrylate, anything in that family. The Think Dirty app is also a useful tool for scanning products, though it's worth knowing that some apps have paid partnerships, so cross-referencing is always a good idea.

Parabens,

Parabens are a family of preservatives used widely in cosmetics and personal care products to extend shelf life. They've been more publicly discussed than phthalates, but they're worth including here because the mechanism is similar: parabens have been shown to weakly mimic oestrogen in the body. A study published in the Journal of Applied Toxicology detected parabens in human breast tissue samples, which sparked broader conversation about their role as environmental oestrogens. The science is not fully settled on the health implications, but given that they appear in so many products applied daily, they're another ingredient worth keeping an eye on.

Look for: methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben on ingredient lists.e.

Where to start if this is new to you

You do not need to throw everything out tonight. Start small.

Maybe that looks like replacing anything heavily fragranced first. That single change eliminates one of the most pervasive sources of hormone-disrupting chemicals in most people's routines.

From there, start reading labels, or shop brands who actively avoid using harsh chemicals like Aleph makeup, or Azurlis Skincare.

The bottom line

We are not here to make you paranoid about your bathroom shelf. But we do think this is a conversation worth having, especially in a community where so many of us are already working hard to support our hormonal health through food, lifestyle, and medical care. What we put on our bodies is part of that picture too.