Question from SVE
Hi Debra,
How toxic are the lubricating strips on razor blades? This website describes them and lists polyurethane oxide – www.google.com/patents/US6993846. I do know I had a internal body reaction, not a skin reaction to the Gillette Sensor Excel razor blade.
I have ordered a steel razor holder and double edge razors (platinum) to use, at least temporarily. Do you have any suggestions here that would be best for avoiding reactions to toxins in razor blades? Thanks for all you do, Debra!
Debra’s Answer
I’ve never had this question before!
But good you asked it.
The plastic strip exudes a lubricant generally made from polyethylene oxide (not polyurethane oxide as you wrote).
Polyethylene oxide is another name for polyethylene glycol (PEG). A manufacturer says it is nontoxic and “approved by the FDA for use as excipients or as a carrier in different pharmaceutical formulations, foods, and cosmetics.” However, the MSDS says “After contact with skin, wash immediately with plenty of water” and “Not for use in Food, Drugs or Cosmetics” and “May cause skin irritation, May be harmful if absorbed through the skin.”
And here’s an article about PEG contaminated with 1,4-dioxane.
So I can see where your body might react to it.
How toxic is it? Personally I would use a razor without lubricating strips.
What about using a safety edge razor that is metal with a replaceable blade?
Sometimes the old ways are the best. Yes.
Hi All! Just wanted to let you know that I have found a disposable razor that does NOT have any lubricating strip. They are called Bic Silky Touch, just two blades and nothing else. Got a 10 pack on Amazon for $2.97! It is an “add on item” though so you need to have $25 in your cart to qualify for this price.
Here is the link: Bic Twin Select Silky Touch 10 ct https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000P158OW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_wmkdzbZ03F6RY
Fight the patriarchy and go hairy!
OK. So could you provide the proper MSDS please?
Has anyone found a woman’s razor without the moisturizing strip?
I am desperately searching…no luck yet. I know you can peel some off, but I don’t even want to touch the moisturizing strip, especially if it contains BHT which is a migraine trigger. I’ve been switching out all of my daily products that I use to go all natural as i am trying to avoid migraines and I didn’t even think of that strip on the razor. I’m glad I found this site!
A few years ago I found a few disposable men’s razors that didn’t have them. I hated the strips, too, but didn’t know until now what was in them that I reacted to!
Yes, please see my comment above.
Dollar General has some
I am very allergic to the strip in the razors. I found in a hotel in China a double edge Schick razor without a strip. It was a very good razor. However I can’t find it in the USA.
WHy can’t these strips be made without toxic material? and Placed on top of the strips already there..
I find that even with the strip removed on my Gillette blades, they still smell awful 6 months on… (I re-sharpen in a pyramid 😉
With the Gillette Fusion blades, the lubricating strip easily pulls right off of the blade, so this shouldn’t be an issue if you don’t want to worry about it anymore.
My problem is that I can’t touch the lubricating strip, especially if it’s wet. I have since found a razor with no synthetic strips that does not nick as well as some excellent safety razor blades, both on Amazon. (My first, cheaper, razor caused nicks every day.)
Merkur Heavy Duty Double Edge Razor #34C
120 Crystal “SUPER +” Stainless Steel Platinum Coated Double Edge Safety Razor Blades A.K.A Israeli Personnas
some of the razor you can remove the strip screw driver or scrap it off
Debra, no wonder I felt such a bad reaction to those razor blades. The kinds listed in the first website you provided – http://www.ebarbershop.com/store/product44.html – advertises the razor blades I had been using for years which did not cause reactions. I just switched to the (more expensive) razor blades one morning and got that immediate reaction. Having the reaction was not enjoyable, but I think being exposed to a toxic product regularly would be serious.
Debra,
We use Daisy razors with the moisturing strip like mentioned above. Can you recommend another kind of razor for us women to use?
Any razor without a moisturizing strip would be OK. Here are some blades without the moisturizing strip: http://www.ebarbershop.com/store/product44.html. Gillette Good News Disposable Razors don’t have the lubricating strip according to amazon reviews, but amazon.com was out of stock on this item. Check your local stores as it seems to be a pretty common product.
Hi Debra,
Thank you for the links. The only problem is is that the razors are for men.
Now on my daisy razors I do want to mention that the lubricating strips have been coming off of the razor. Does that make it safer? Now I also want to mention that even though the strip is not there I still notice a little something as though the strip is still there. Is there something to be concerned about even though the lubricating strip is not there?
I think it’s fine.
Hi Debra,
Thank you. I also wanted to say that I studied it more on my razor and it looks to me that since the strip fell off it looks like either a couple of small pieces of the strip is left behind or maybe it is glue. I don’t know.
I purchased the Gillette Sensor blades from ebarbershop. on the back of the box: “Ingredients PEG-115M, PEG-7M, PEG-100, BHT”. There is a little white paper looking strip on the top of the blades. I wrote to Ebarbershop and Gillette. Let’s see if they respond. There are not no-toxic ingredients.
The PEGs are polyethylene glycols, which are polymers of ethylene glycol. The number in the name represents the average number of ethylene glycol units. These are considered to be of low toxicity by the industry, but are petroleum-based ingredients. Polyethylene glycol can have a variety of health effects. It’s not a natural material. In this case, you’re not eating it or putting it on your skin, which are the major routes of exposure.
BHT is a common food preservative, also made from petroleum. Why they need to use it here, I don’t know. It’s consdered safe in food doses, but many people avoid foods with this preservative.
Thank you…..all of them also have aloe vera. My daughter is allergic to aloe. And gets migraine every day.
So is there a nontoxic razor? It seems like most of them have the strip these days.
Debra, not making excuses for my mistake above but this may be why I became mixed up with the lubricating strip ingredients. Polyurethane may be a substance used for the lubricating strip itself – http://www.madehow.com/Volume-5/Safety-Razor.html: “…Razors may contain a variety of miscellaneous parts which help hold the blade in place, guards which cover the blade during shipping, or springs or other release mechanisms which facilitate changing of the blades. These pieces are molded by similar processes. The more sophisticated brands include a lubricating strip made of polyurethane, or other similar materials, that is impregnated with acrylic polymers. These strips are mounted on the head of the razor, in front of the blades. The polymer film absorbs water and becomes very slippery, thus creating a lubricating surface that helps the blade glide across the surface of the face without snagging or cutting the skin…”
Also, I would think that 1,4-dioxane would be a problem for me, too, as you said. With oxalate problems, I’m always watchful for anything with “OX” in the chemical name.
Yes, this sounds like an entirely different method for the strip than I found. Either way, you don’t want liquid polymers on your skin where they can easily be absorbed. Nor 1,4-dioxane, which is extremely toxic.
Oops! There’s a big difference between polyurethane and polyethylene! It must be the OXIDE giving me the problems. I am severely sensitive to oxalates in foods and the environment, related I’m assuming to my having multiple chemical sensitivities (for 40 years). I follow the “Low Oxalate Diet” as described in this website: http://www.thevpfoundation.org. This program has helped me tremendously but there are so many substances that are not labeled such as razor blade strips! Thanks, Debra…