What’s In My Sex Toys: Parabens in Lubricants

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About: Red is many things, including a primary color. Queer, polyamourous and kinky, she likes to defy explanation while also being neatly defined for clarity's sake.See Authors Posts (8)

Lube science is kind of amazing – it never fails to blow me away when some completely new formulation hits the market. Just when you think all options must have been explored, there’s something new on the market.

One thing all lubes (and in particular, all water based lubes) have in common is a need for preservatives in the formulation. Microorganisms would invade lube rapidly and efficiently if not for preservatives – a water based gel is perfect for housing and feeding bacteria. But then, of course, most ‘preservatives’ work by making the medium inhospitable to microorganisms, and often time this means ingredients that would be crazy toxic by the spoonful but are perfectly safe to use in light concentrations. However, chemicals that makes things inhospitable to microorganisms are exactly the sort of chemicals people sometimes get allergies and sensitivities to. The delicate balance between preservative cocktails and skin sensitivity is no doubt of high importance for most lube manufacturers, and explains (to me, anyways) the huge variety of preservative mixes seen in otherwise similar products.

Of the many types of preservatives available, there is a class called the parabens that needs to be approached with some caution. I like to think of parabens the same way I like to think about old school “PABA” that you used to see all the time in sunscreen: effective, yes, but there are better options. In terms of function, PABA in sunscreen and parabens in foods and cosmetics are totally different – one kills of bacteria, the other absorbs UV rays – but structurally they are very similar and thus have similar sensativity causing issues for many people.

Beyond being sensitizers that can cause irritation to some folks, parabens have a darker side. There have been studies (spanning decades, I might add) that link parabens to breast cancer. Reports have been made about elevated concentrations of parabens in breast tumours, and is has also been noted that parabens have a estrogen mimicing effect. This is scary because estrogen and estrogen mimicers can accelerate the rate of tumour cell growth. The question of HOW the parabens enter the body remains one of much speculation and debate. Remember those spam emails about deoderant causing breast cancer? Those came to be BECAUSE it was actually suggested (and since rejected) that parabens somehow move from being rubbed onto skin in the underarm region into the breast tissues that are in that area. While this is known to not be the route whereby parabens can accumulate in breast tissue, the fact of the matter is that high levels of parabens are reported (specifically) in breast tumors, and parabens accelerate the growth rate of tumour cells in the lab. To me, this makes it a good idea to limit my exposure to parabens whenever possible – although admittedly, I’m mostly inspired to this by the fact that my skin is sensitive and develops allergies easily. I’m not interested in being neurotic about it – after all, there is plenty of stuff in this world that I am exposed to daily that is carcinogenic (what isn’t?), and plenty of stuff that is estrogen mimicking (*ahem* hormonal birth control…).

So what does that mean to you, as a consumer shopping for lube? I think it essentially boils down to the following: read your labels and blame parabens if you feel “burning” with a particular lube (they are the likely culprit, although it could be something else), and by all means, avoid them if possible. With so many good, quality, body safe options out there by lube companies that have decided that parabens are not a good preservative to use, it’s pretty easy to be picky.