Why perfume-free?

A scent is so much more than just a scent. It triggers memories, evokes emotions and can affect how we feel. As consumers, we are very scent-driven, an attractive scent is often at least as important as the function of the product when we shop. Some stores spray scents that are supposed to make us feel connected to the brand. Letting the scent of cinnamon buns waft through a store increases sales as most people associate it with something wonderful. Some stores that sell baked goods even spray cinnamon bun perfume outside the store to attract passing customers.

Today, perfumes are used in so many more products than they were originally intended for. We find perfume in almost all of our daily cosmetic products such as shower gel, deodorant, hair care, body lotion, makeup, shaving foam, etc. And it doesn't stop there, there is also perfume in dishwashing detergent, laundry detergent, cleaning products, etc. Perfume is a substance that everyone is exposed to, more or less daily.

For many of us this is not a problem, but for some it causes problems in the form of allergies, breathing problems and skin rashes. We have therefore collected information about the problems perfume can cause and give tips on the benefits of perfume-free products. We also have some advice on how to handle perfumes so that you can still enjoy a good scent.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF USING FRAGRANCE-FREE PRODUCTS?

Avoid a dry and irritated scalp:
You might think that the white flakes that fall down your shoulders are dandruff, but in most cases it's a dry scalp. There are several reasons for this, but switching to perfume-free hair care often helps. Perfume contains a lot of alcohol, which can dry out your skin and scalp.

Reduces the risk of developing skin allergies:
Perfumes are one of the most common causes of skin allergies and/or contact dermatitis. A perfume allergy is not something you are born with, but something you risk developing when you are exposed to perfumes. You therefore reduce the risk of developing a perfume allergy if you avoid perfumed products. Even if you have small children, you should be careful as the immune system develops relatively slowly and the risk of developing an allergy is greater in children.

You contribute to cleaner air:
About 6% of Sweden's population currently suffers from hypersensitivity in the respiratory tract when in contact with perfume. Living with a fragrance allergy that affects breathing is often very limiting as perfume is present in most public environments. It can be a problem to participate in, for example, morning meetings (where many are freshly perfumed), take public transport or be in certain social contexts. So even if you are not sensitive to perfume yourself, you make it easier for people around you to be in public environments by choosing perfume-free.

Avoiding hormone-disrupting substances - Phthalates are often added to synthetic perfumes to enhance or prolong the synthetic perfume. These substances can have an endocrine disrupting effect and can damage, among other things, the semen and thus reproductive capacity, increase the risk of fetal malformation and are also considered carcinogenic. Many phthalates are currently banned in the EU, but in perfumes in particular they are difficult to control as they do not appear on the list of ingredients, the risk is that they are already included when the producer purchases the perfume.

IF YOU STILL WANT TO USE PERFUME, HERE ARE TIPS ON HOW TO DO IT:

- Avoid having "cheap" synthetic perfumes in all sorts of different products that you wear, but instead choose fragrance-free as much as possible when it comes to leave-on products and instead use ONE wonderfully fragrant and high-quality perfume.

- Spray the perfume primarily on your clothes or along the lengths of your hair to avoid contact with your skin.

- Choose essential oils rather than synthetic perfumes. This is especially important to avoid the suspected hormone-disrupting phthalates in synthetic fragrances. They are also volatile and therefore do not linger in the air and irritate those around you for the rest of the day, as synthetic fragrances can.

- Avoid using perfumed LEAVE ON products (body lotion, deodorant, detergent) that stay on and irritate the skin longer and instead enjoy them in your RINSE OFF products (shower cream, shampoo, conditioner, etc.).

Good to know...
A typical product contains between 10 and several hundred fragrances and according to the EU Cosmetics Regulation, ALL fragrances, whether essential or synthetic, must be listed on the ingredients list under the collective name perfume. For consumers, it is impossible to know whether the fragrances are natural or synthetic (factory-made). You can simply find out by asking the manufacturer. After the word perfume, it is then declared whether the product contains any of the 26 most allergenic fragrances, they must be reported separately and the most common ones to look out for in order to avoid are linalool, limonene or geraniol.

Natural or synthetic fragrance, what's the difference?
The origin of a fragrance can be natural and is then called essential and often consists of concentrated oils. A fragrance can also be synthetic, which means it is factory-made from chemicals. From an allergy point of view, the origin of the fragrance does not matter, both essential and synthetic fragrances can trigger allergies. Essential oils are usually more allergenic than synthetic fragrances, but in return, synthetic perfumes are often more hormone-disrupting and can cause asthma, among other things.