--- title: Deodorant, Antiperspirant and Aluminum: Can Deodorant Give You Cancer? description: Parabens and aluminum in underarm deodorant haven't been proven to cause cancer, yet some researchers are concerned about the chemicals canonical: https://time.com/3922814/deodorant-cancer/ author: Markham Heid article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-06-17T15:11:07.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:43:15.657Z article:section: Health og:title: You Asked: Can Deodorant Give You Cancer? og:description: Parabens and aluminum in underarm deodorant haven't been proven to cause cancer, yet some researchers are concerned about the chemicals og:url: https://time.com/3922814/deodorant-cancer/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt24ee75d3167cf9cf/698854da524fc02a6bdf325e/you-asked-deoderant-cancer.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2650 og:image:height: 1491 og:image:alt: You Asked Deoderent Cancer og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: You Asked: Can Deodorant Give You Cancer? twitter:description: Parabens and aluminum in underarm deodorant haven't been proven to cause cancer, yet some researchers are concerned about the chemicals twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt24ee75d3167cf9cf/698854da524fc02a6bdf325e/you-asked-deoderant-cancer.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # You Asked: Can Deodorant Give You Cancer? > Sponsored content. 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Jun 17, 2015 3:11 PM UTC  Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME by [Markham Heid](https://time.com/author/markham-heid/) ## Markham Heid Markham Heid is a contributor at TIME. He is the author of The Habit Trap, due out in early 2027. Jun 17, 2015 3:11 PM UTC If you’ve seen the 1989 film _Batman_—the one with Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson—you’ll recall that the Joker terrorizes Gotham City by slipping toxic chemicals into cosmetics: while no single item is lethal, combining deodorant with shampoo and lipstick could kill you. It’s hard not to think of that movie while chatting with toxicologists who study the potential risk of deodorant and antiperspirant ingredients, especially parabens and aluminum. However, according to the American Cancer Society’s [website](http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/othercarcinogens/athome/antiperspirants-and-breast-cancer-risk), there is no “clear” or “direct” link between parabens or aluminum and cancer. The National Cancer Institute [site says](http://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/myths/antiperspirants-fact-sheet) “more research is needed.” The [FDA, for its part](http://www.fda.gov/cosmetics/productsingredients/ingredients/ucm128042.htm#Are%5Fthere%5Fhealth%5Frisks), says “FDA believes that at the present time there is no reason for consumers to be concerned about the use of cosmetics containing parabens. However, the agency will continue to evaluate new data in this area. If FDA determines that a health hazard exists, the agency will advise the industry and the public. But “absence of evidence is not evidence of absence,” says Dr. Philip Harvey, editor-in-chief of the _Journal of Applied Toxicology_. Dr. Philippa Darbre, an oncologist at the University of Reading in the U.K., has published more than 30 research papers on those substances found in underarm deodorant and other personal care products. She says that many of these ingredients are concerning on their own. But the health risks of each may be greater—and more difficult to identify—when you consider the complex chemical cocktails that form when they combine. For example, her research has detected parabens—a category of chemical that acts as a preservative in some underarm and personal care products—in women’s breast tissue, though how those parabens got there and what happens when they are in breast tissue is unknown. In Darbre’s experiments, combining different parabens with human cells creates activity that may contribute to the development of cancer. But attempts to find these links in humans—as opposed to in petri dishes—have produced inconsistent results. One[ 2002 study](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12381712) found no correlation between underarm product use and breast cancer; [a 2003 study](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14639125) did find ties. Darbre says both studies have flaws and leave many important questions unanswered. ### You Asked: Your Top 10 Health Questions Answered  You Asked: Are Cleanses Healthy? Potions that claim to clear your body of toxins might sound alluring, but do they deliver? Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Eating Dessert Really That Bad For Me? Bad news for sweet-eaters—except if you end your meals with this kind of treat. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: What’s the Best Way to Whiten My Teeth? Yes, teeth whitening actually works—but here's why you have to dish out major bucks to see results. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Meditation Really Worth It? From easing stress to lowering heart disease risk, focusing your mind can do some amazing things for your body. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: What’s the Healthiest Sweetener? Take a taste of the unsettled science of sweeteners. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Should I Go Paleo? The pros and cons of eating like a caveman. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Cracking Your Knuckles Bad? Here's what really happens to your joints when you snap, crackle and pop. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Running on a Treadmill as Good as Running Outside? You'll fool your body into thinking it's outside with this one small treadmill tweak. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Does Laughing Have Real Health Benefits? Here's proof that everybody could use a belly laugh. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: What Is My Poo Telling Me? If you listen hard enough, you'll hear all kinds of health stories from #2. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME Like Darbre, Harvey has looked into the ways cosmetics interact with your body. He says wiping these chemicals under your arms and on the sides of your chest or breasts “could provide a route of almost direct exposure to underlying tissue containing estrogen receptors.” Both parabens and aluminum are “estrogenic” chemicals—meaning they interact with your body’s hormones or cells in ways similar to estrogen. That’s concerning, because excess estrogen plays a role in promoting the growth of cancer cells, according to the National Cancer Institute. While many experts think cosmetic chemicals like parabens have only “weak” estrogenic activity, Harvey doesn’t agree. He says, “It is often quoted that parabens are thousands of times less potent than estrogen in terms of their estrogenicity. This can be misleading and ignores actual exposures.” Harvey says his own calculations suggest these cosmetic chemicals may “significantly add to estrogenic burdens.” Because of that, he says he questions the wisdom of including any chemical with known hormonal activity in your personal care regimen. But until he and other researchers are able to explain—and demonstrate—the ways these chemicals cause health problems, no regulatory changes are likely. That’s because unless a chemical is proven harmful, regulators allow you to eat it, smoke it, brush with it or slather it on your body. Finding that proof of harm is a difficult, costly and time-consuming proposition. Darbre says researchers can’t simply mix some human cells and some chemicals in a test tube and watch for cancer to pop up. So where does that leave deodorant and antiperspirant users? Largely in in the dark, Darbre says. “People want a simple fix,” she says. “Unfortunately it is not simple.” Until more is known, consumers are in a bind. “Avoiding certain publicized chemicals is only the tip of the iceberg,” she says. Darbre says she switched to a twice-daily regimen of underarm cleaning with soap and water. (“No one has yet complained!” she jokes.) Frequent pit scrubbing may seem unnecessarily laborious—or just plain weird. But if you’re concerned about the chemicals you rub on your body, regular bathing might seem like an attractive alternative. ## Transcript In recent months, public health experts have said that not everyone should get screened for cancer, but that doesn't mean that you don't need to be screened. Here is what you need to know. [ MUSIC ] It used to be relatively straight forward that getting screened for cancer was a good way to prevent the disease. But a government group called the US Preventive Services Task Force has recently said that women, for example, Don't need to get mammograms until they're age 50, which is a full decade after previous recommendations had suggested that women get screened. And for men they now say that they don't need to get the blood test PSA which screens for prostate cancer at all. What hasn't changed is the idea that getting screened can prevent cancer. What has changed is the fact that we're better at calculating the risks and benefits of that screening. Lets take breast cancer for example, mammograms are actually x- rays, and so therefore expose women to a small dose of radiation each time they get screened. In addition, not every screening test is 100 % perfect, so they'll pick up. Some false positives, which means cancers that aren't really there. And that can lead to additional procedures, tests, and even surgery, which comes with its own complications. This is particularly true in prostate cancer which is such a slow growing cancer that most men are likely to outlive it. When the panel analyzed these costs and benefits They realized that the benefits did not outweigh the cost of having everyone screened. This doesn't mean that cancer screening is completely obsolete, however. 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