From shampoo to lotion: The safety of cosmetic products : Short Wave : NPR

Mar 20, 2025

By

Regina G. Barber

,

Marielle Segarra

,

Clare Marie Schneider

,

Meghan Keane

,

Rebecca Ramirez

Ever scan the ingredient list of your favorite personal care products like shampoos or lotions and think, what are these complicated chemicals? And are any of them bad for me? We definitely have. And our colleagues at NPR's Life Kit did one step better: They parlayed their anxiety spiral into a helpful guide on the safety of personal care products. So today, Short Wave host Regina G. Barber talks to Life Kit's Marielle Segarra about some of the top chemicals of concern, including parabens and phthalates.

Click here to hear the full Life Kit guide — including how to audit your go-to products.

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This episode was originally produced by Clare Marie Schneider and edited by Meghan Keane, with special thanks to Carmel Wroth. It was produced for Short Wave by Rebecca Ramirez. The engineer was Robert Rodriguez.