The Los Angeles Times published an amusing personal essay by Kathleen Clary Miller earlier this week. The topic? Her dismay at finding that many of her cosmetics and beauty products may be shortening her life. The catalyst for her revelation was Skin Deep, an online portal that rates the toxicity of almost every lotion and potion you likely smear on yourself each day.

All products are given a hazard rating from 1-10, and the site tells you what specific ingredients in your foundation, shaving cream, or eye makeup have been linked to (cancer, allergic reactions, toxicity...) based on an impressive database of studies.

How did my own beauty regimen stack up? While I was relieved to find that my face wash was ranked a measly 3 on the hazard scale, I was a little freaked that my lotion of choice scored a whopping 7. Will I toss it? To be honest, probably not. After all, "linked to" doesn't equal "caused" in the world of science. (And it smells so good.)