Are the Parabens in our Personal Care Products Really Harmful?

I've been hearing so much about parabens and how we should try to avoid them in personal care products. I decided it was time to do some digging. What are parabens? Are they dangerous? How can we avoid them? Should we listen and go out of our way to use paraben-free products? What are they? Parabens are preservatives added to personal care products for extending shelf life. Methylparaben is probably the most widely used. Are they dangerous? They may alter hormone levels, possibly increasing risks for certain types of cancer, impaired fertility, or alteration of the development of a fetus or young child. Parabens are Endocrine disruptors: They are suspected of presenting risks to the reproductive system that could include reduced chances for a healthy, full-term pregnancy, or for becoming pregnant, based on laboratory studies or studies of human populations. What does the Environmental Protection Agency have to say on the subject? According to them "The science related to measuring and demonstrating endocrine disruption is in its' infancy, so validated methods of testing that indicate specific effects of an endocrine disruptor are still being developed." To me, it sounds like they're saying they just don't know yet. So if parabens are only suspected of causing all this harm, do we really feel the need to switch to paraben-free products? That's something we will all have to answer on our own. Is it worth the risk to your health, to your family's health to use products with parabens? Why take that chance when there are so many personal care products that are paraben-free. Do we really want to wait around until the EPA has a better way of testing the effects of endocrine disruptors? The choice is yours.