A Fox News Health video reports on how fragrances can cause skin allergies – and worse.

Senior Editor of Body + Soul magazine, Hillary Geronemus, describes how there are 3,000 or more ingredients used to make fragrances, most of which are synthetic. ‘Repeated exposure over the lifetime makes a toxic soup out of our bodies,’ she says.

Skin allergies are the most common reaction to synthetic fragrances. But, as the March issue of Body + Soul reports, they can also cause problems in immune, reproductive, and central nervous systems as well as changes in kidneys, liver, adrenal glands, endocrine systems, and asthma aggravation.

Dermatologist Dr. Vermen Verallo-Rowell suggests that, even when prodcuts say they're fragrance-free, you look at ingredients. Fragrances, which are added in small amounts but can stil cause reactions, are usually at the bottom of the list.

Healthy choices of prodcuts that don't include harmful synthetic fragrances include products that are upfront about what's in them and have few ingredients listed. It's also a good idea to test a new product on a small patch of skin. Safe fragrances, made from essential oils, are also available.

Dr. Verallo-Rowell herself has begun a line of products deemed by many as the ‘gold standard of hypoallergenic products.’ She has devised a numbering system rating the amount of allergens in a product: the higher the number, the more allergens the product does not contain.

See more allergy friendly personal care products.