Katrina Kahl, a communications associate at the San Francisco-based Breast Cancer Action, questions the impact of some companies' so-called largesse. For example, she points out that some auto companies encourage people to test drive their latest cars by doling out cash to a breast-cancer group for every mile driven. "Car exhaust contains chemicals that are linked to the disease," she says. "So it's a little ironic to encourage people to test drive a car for breast cancer, knowing that what's coming at the other end of the tailpipe is actually contributing to the disease."

Other Kahl "pinkwashing" culprits: cosmetics companies with products containing chemicals that include toxins and carcinogens (look out for ingredients lists that include parabens, formaldehyde, and toluene), as well as dairy purveyors that source from cows treated with growth hormones. "We're asking those companies, if they really care about women's health, to take a step further and look at their products to see if they might actually be [causing cancer]," Kahl says.

Breast Cancer Action's Think Before You Pink campaign urges consumers to pose some critical questions. They’re good for companies to consider, too:

How much money actually goes to the cause? What is the maximum amount that will be donated? How much money was spent marketing the product? How are the funds being raised? To what breast cancer organization does the money go, and what types of programs does it support? What is the company doing to assure that its products are not contributing to the breast cancer epidemic?