Kissable Lips? Maybe, Not So Much!
Lipsticks tested by a consumer rights group found that more than half contained lead and some popular brands including Cover Girl, L’Oreal and Christian Dior had more lead than others.
The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics said Thursday that tests on 33 brand-name red lipsticks by the Bodycote Testing Group in Santa Fe Spring, Calif., found that 61 per cent had lead levels of 0.03 to 0.65 parts per million (ppm).
Lipstick, like candy, is ingested. The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a coalition of public health, environmental and women’s groups, said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not set a limit for lead in lipstick.
“The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics said Thursday that tests on 33 brand-name red lipsticks found that 61 per cent had lead levels of 0.03 to 0.65 parts per million.”
One-third of the lipsticks tested contained an amount of lead that exceeded the FDA’s 0.1 ppm limit for lead in candy — a standard established to protect children from ingesting lead, the group said. Thirty-nine per cent of the lipsticks tested had no discernible lead, it said.
“It’s critical that manufacturers reformulate their product,” said Stacy Malkan, a co-founder of the coalition.
“It’s possible to make lipsticks without lead, and all companies should be doing that.”
Lead can cause learning, language and behavioural problems such as reduced school performance and increased aggression. Pregnant women and young children are particularly vulnerable to lead exposure, the group said. Lead has also been linked to infertility and miscarriage, it said.
Procter & Gamble Co. makes Cover Girl brand and France’s L’Oreal is one of the largest cosmetic companies in the world.
In recent weeks, more than 20 million toys made in China have been recalled, mostly due to the use of lead paint.
The coalition said that some less expensive brands it had tested, such as Revlon, had no detectable levels of lead, while the more expensive Dior Addict brand had higher levels than some other brands.
The Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association trade group said that lead was a naturally occurring element that was not intentionally added to cosmetics.
L’Oreal’s U.S. arm said its products are reviewed and tested by a team that includes toxicologists, pharmacists and doctors.
“All the brands of the L’Oreal Group are in full compliance with FDA regulations” as well as safety requirements in international markets, L’Oreal USA said in a statement
Source: The Edmonton Journal
About the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics
The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics is a coalition of women’s, public health, labor, environmental health and consumer-rights groups. Our goal is to protect the health of consumers and workers by requiring the health and beauty industry to phase out the use of chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects and other health problems, and replace them with safer alternatives.
Personal care products like shampoo, conditioner, after shave, lotion and makeup are not regulated by the FDA or any other government agency. It is perfectly legal and very common for companies to use ingredients that are known or suspected to be carcinogens, mutagens or reproductive toxins in the their products. Consumers buy these products at drug stores, grocery stores, online or in salons, usually without questioning the product’s safety.
