Sulphates Myths

To gain a marketing edge, hair product companies have gone to great lengths to exploit widely misguided consumer beliefs about the carcinogenic risk posed by sodium lauryl sulfate. This is in spite of strong evidence to the contrary, which includes an article published by the American Cancer Society that states there is no link between SLS and cancer.

This urban legend remains ingrained in consumers' minds in spite of there being no evidence linking SLS or SLES to cancer. Sulfates are in powder form and used as a foaming agent by joining sulfate and lauric acid, two compounds widely found in nature. 

One dubious claim made by anti-sulfate websites and blogs is that sodium lauryl sulfate is carcinogenic because it produces nitrosamines when it reacts with formaldehyde. However, since neither compound contains a nitrogen atom, that is chemically impossible. So most of the hype about sulfates is fearmongering because the evidence says sulfates do not cause cancer and are not toxic.

Despite the fact there is still no hard evidence to back up the link between sulfates and cancer, unscrupulous haircare product companies continue to take advantage of the allegations to market their products, which helps legitimize this myth. It is also ironic that some of these companies have far more harmful chemicals such as parabens and ethanolamines, which do contain nitrosamines.

It is worth noting neither SLES nor SLS is banned by the US Food and Drug Administration or the Therapeutic Goods Association in Australia. It is also worth noting that it is a scientific fact that sodium laureth sulfate and ammonium laureth sulfate exhibit a high degree of foaming and impart "softness" to the skin and are especially useful when there is a high mineral content in the water.

Due to the urban myth widely and falsely believed by consumers, iRange Formulations does not use Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) or Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) in any of the products we manufacture.