The Case Against Fragrance

My family has been plagued with fragrance sensitivity since before I was born. I’m 64. My grandma, mom, sister are all adversely affected, and I think my brother is as well, but he and his family have not stopped using them. When I heard about this book I thought it would validate what we experience and give examples of others like us. But it did so much more. Through thorough examination of the industry and scientific research or lack there of, she exposes a deep secret that everyone should know. It appears that the fragrance industry isn’t just poisoning us with carcinogenic, poisonous and hormone disruptering man made chemicals, with no intervention by our governments it is also poisoning the very things we need to survive in this world, namely the water supply. These chemicals don’t breakdown in waste water treatment and apparently never go away. They are found in mother’s breast milk and all things sacred. She is an amazing woman and author and I’m grateful she risked her reputation by writing this book. She made hard science easy to read. Thank you for writing this book!

I was shocked to learn that 30% of people are affected by fragrances: with headaches, asthma, skin irritation, etc. I intensely dislike artificial fragrances and thought I was unusual, since they are everywhere that most everyone must like them. Why are they so pervasive, when so many can't stand them? But it turns out we are all affected by fragrances, even if the consequences are not so immediate and obvious. They contain carcinogens and hormone dysregulators that affect us all, babies and children most of all. Many of the hormone dysregulators are highly persistent in the environment and are concentrated in the animal food chain. There are other causes, but the extensive use of these chemicals is likely part of our ongoing infertility crisis. The book is not only well researched and eye-opening, it is also a pleasure to read. Many thanks!

Very thought provoking! We don't even think about fragrance as potentially toxic, but it can be. I cut back on scented items, and rarely have headaches or sinus issues like I used to. So many interesting ideas and much information.

What a wonderful book explaining how especially artificially manufactured fragrace ismessing with our body. If you suffer from headaches or even migraines, eczema and other "interestibg" skin eruptions you migh want to read this book. It explains a lot. Today artificial fragrance is hidden everywhere ( air freshness, bin bags, household cleaners, detergents, soap).

A well written, well researched, and lively discussion of an important topic. As one of the roughly 35% of the population with a fragrance sensitivity I wish more people would read it. If I had contact details, I would buy a copy for the person who sat next to me on a recent flight.

The arguments are very well researched and fairly presented. A very good presentation on the topic with more than adequate under pinning references.

“I hadn’t realised just how hard it was to avoid fragrance in one form or another. But I learned cunning. I sprinted through the scented foyers of hotels with a scarf over my nose. In cabs I sat in the back, asked the driver to remove the fragrance diffuser, opened the window and stuck my head into the slipstream like a dog, arriving bedraggled and windblown” The Case Against Fragrance is the second non-fiction book by award-winning Australian novelist, Kate Grenville. It came about when she realised it was fragrance that was the cause of her headaches and discovered the dearth of objective information available about sensitivities to fragrance. You may think you don’t use very much fragrance, but you are probably unaware of just how insidiously your fragrance load accumulates. Your own personal load, unless you are using fragrance-free products, will go something like this: you wake from sleeping between sheets washed in fragranced laundry detergent; you shower with fragranced soap or gel, use fragranced shampoo and conditioner; you rub fragranced lotion into your skin, use fragranced hair products, put on deodorant, all that before you even reach for the spray bottle of scent that will be your intentional use of fragrance for that day. You wear clothes washed in fragranced laundry detergent; you might have an air freshener in the loo, and your loo paper might be fragranced too; your dishwashing detergent probably smells of lemon; your cosmetics may well be fragranced. Then you walk out the door: does your car have a deodoriser? Or maybe the taxi has a diffuser going; or you sit next to someone on the bus who’s just refreshed their perfume, so you get to share that. Are there fragrance diffusers going in your workplace? Are the cleaning products they use fragranced? So what? you say. Because you might be one of the many lucky ones who is apparently not adversely affected by fragrance. But you might just be inflicting your fragrance load on someone who is sensitive, someone who gets a headache or starts to wheeze at a strong whiff of fragrance. Or there may be effects, on others and also on you, that you never dreamt of. Because what exactly is in fragrance? The only people who know are the manufacturers, and they’re not telling. Even more shocking is that all the regulation of and research into ingredients is controlled by the fragrance industry, so adverse findings might never make it to the public eye. Without being excessively alarmist, Grenville explains how we are exposed to compounds that might have as profound effects as some drugs, without our knowledge, and why. Grenville presents a wealth of facts about fragrance, and the fragrance industry, but her explanations are accessible to everyone: you don’t need to be a scientist to understand what she’s telling you. Twenty pages of comprehensive notes supporting Grenville’s text are evidence of her extensive research into this subject. She tells it simply and even occasionally with humour, but the result is a surprising and disturbing revelation. Grenville’s latest oeuvre is a quick but salutary read that will change the way you think about fragrance. Essential reading for all humans.

Thank you Kate for writing this book! I get sick from synthetic fragrances, it started in 2008. It's hard to get anyone else to believe me. There is a lot of money at stake in this arena, just like the tobacco economy. Hopefully we'll be rid of these bad chemicals and the "new second hand smoke" soon.

Although perfumes can be lovely experiences, unfortunately the author is right in what she says in this book. There are just too many unknown and untested chemicals used in modern fragrances - along with ones like formaldehyde that we DO know about and should know better than to use. The excessive scenting of other products like laundry liquids and soaps is another serious problem she highlights. I also agree with what she says about essential oils being almost as dangerous as artificial perfumes. Essential oils are intensely concentrated to an unnaturally high degree. In the short term, some people can experience worse side effects (eg headaches, confusion, depression, fatigue) from an essential oil than from an artificial fragrance. In the long term, however, the artificial fragrance can be worse. For example, artificial fragrances caused my histamine levels to go through the roof in the medium term. If you think that's something that could be fixed with an antihistamine, you're partially right. But I didn't feel like taking antihistamines every day for the rest of my life. And if you think that the effects of histamine are overstated, you should google "too much histamine in the brain" and read some results. It's so nice to read a book like this by someone who can write. Some of the popular health authors are nice, positive, earnest people, but they can't write to save their own lives. Whereas a book like this was written by someone with a proven ability to write. So it's an easy, flowing read. Highly recommended. This is the second time I have written this review. The first time I lost my entire review when temporarily switching out of the Kindle iOS app. Apparently that app is extremely flaky for writing reviews. Hopefully this web version will get through.

I SUFFER from fragrance sensitivity and allergy to different substances. This book helps me better understand my own situation among other things. It feels good to know others are dealing with similar trouble as I am. I know that sounds selfish but it honestly feels good to know I'm not truly alone and that a solution or fix might be collectively worked upon

Everyone should read this and stop using all these scents that are harming us!

I have read a couple of Kate's novels (The secret river and Sarah Thornhill) so I was surprised to find her as the author of a non fiction book on a subject I was keen to find out more about. Right from the start you completely understand and sympathise with where she is coming from and I identified with many of the situations she documented. The book is well researched, very informative, very readable and quite shocking. It is also extremely thought provoking. So, having read it, I'm still not quite sure what to do with the information... As other reviewers have said, everyone should read this, but I personally don't think people who love their fragrances and scented candles would want to acknowledge other people have a problem. It would be great if there was crusade to publicise this research but I can't see this happening any time soon. Meanwhile I guess we just see if we can spot any potential incidents amongst friends.

This is a subject which is becoming steadily more relevant, especially in the UK which is so lagging in environmental issues and increasing the amount of synthetic fragrance in public places at an alarming rate. I have always been made extremely ill (to the point of needing emergency medical attention as it can cause anaphylaxis) by synthetic scent. I have also seen others experience migraines, reactive asthma and excema when exposed to it. The last decade has been a nightmare for anyone who was once able to avoid triggers. Having read this book, I now have a much greater understanding of what people are reacting to and how nasty these substances are. It is reassuring to know one is not alone in these things. I hope that the information in here becomes more widely recognised, for the sake of the health of the general population and that the fragrance free protocols listed can be implemented worldwide.