By Sarah Villafranco, M.D.

The ponds of Wellfleet are more than just places to cool off in the summer—they’re delicate ecosystems teeming with life, and they deserve our respect and protection. Every product we use in our homes and on our bodies eventually finds its way into the water, especially in this area where many homes rely on septic systems or even older cesspools. Even swimming in the ponds without rinsing off first can introduce chemicals that disrupt these fragile environments.

Most conventional personal and home care products contain ingredients like parabens, phthalates, ethoxylated compounds (such as PEGs), synthetic fragrances, and preservatives like formaldehyde-releasing agents. Two of the most common ingredients you’ll find are sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate (a foaming agent in shampoos, toothpastes, body washes, and almost all laundry detergents), and synthetic fragrance (present in almost every single home and personal care product, and listed as “fragrance” or “parfum” on a label). Unless you’ve made an effort to eliminate these ingredients, they are in your products and potentially causing harm to our beloved ponds. Even brands that seem natural or clean often contain these ingredients, and people are surprised to learn that the brand they chose in good faith is nowhere near as harmless as they were led to believe by the brand’s label and/or marketing.

The ingredients mentioned above may persist in the environment and harm aquatic life. Some could act as endocrine disruptors, altering reproductive and developmental patterns in fish, amphibians, and other creatures. Others accumulate in sediment or interfere with the natural microbiome of the water, impacting everything from algae to insects to the birds that feed on them.

But this isn’t just about the frogs and dragonflies.  These same chemicals affect human health – particularly the skin, endocrine, reproductive, and immune systems. Because our skin is permeable, many of the chemicals in personal care products are absorbed into our bodies. And when we rinse them off in the shower or wash them down the drain, our septic systems can’t fully break them down—so they often find their way into the soil and ponds, where they may eventually cycle back to us in addition to harming the creatures.

We believe it’s possible—and necessary—to care for ourselves and our homes without compromising the health of these sacred ponds. Below are some cleaner alternatives that avoid the worst offenders. These are brands I’ve either used myself or researched extensively. There are others, and you can and should do your own research and make your own product choices. 

Also, you don’t have to replace everything overnight. Start with what you use most often—or what washes directly into the environment, like shampoo, soap, body wash, and sunscreen. Every small shift you can make helps reduce the cumulative chemical load on the ponds, the creatures who live there, and the people who treasure them.