"In general, what I tell my patients is that cosmeceuticals, including cosmetics, are not regulated the way that other drugs are regulated," says Dr. Joely Kaufman, assistant professor of dermatology at the University of Miami. "The FDA does not require cosmetic companies to obtain preapproval for a new cosmetic product before its release on the market."

As a result, 89 percent of the ingredients found in most cosmetics today have not been tested for safety, according to Malkan. Meanwhile, the list of ingredients turning out to be potential or confirmed carcinogens continues to grow. Tim Kropp, a toxicologist with the Environmental Working Group, singles out parabens and phthalates as the most worrisome cosmetic ingredients. In addition, the SCC cautions consumers about the use of products containing formaldehyde, coal tar, lead acetate, silica, propylene glycol and sodium lauryl sulphate.

Given that U.S. legislation is slow in coming, the SCC has been appealing directly to manufacturers to phase out the use of these and other carcinogens. Thus far over 100 companies have signed the organization's Compact for Safe Cosmetics, pledging to replace any potentially harmful ingredients with safer alternatives within three years.

"Parabens are the most widely used preservatives in the body care industry," reports Laura Genoway, product consultant for Avalon Organics, one of the compact's signers. Genoway explains that the "knowledge that paraben preservatives act as endocrine disruptors and estrogen mimickers" led the company to revise its formulations.