Some environmental health groups are arguing that what one puts on his or her body is just as important as what one puts in it. Recent studies by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have reopened the conversation about the safety of lead content in cosmetic products, specifically in lipstick.
A 2007 study by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics found that 61 percent of the 33 brand name lipsticks tested contained lead at levels up to 0.65 parts per million. In 2009 the FDA discovered lead content ranging from 0.09 to 3.06 parts per million in the same brand name lipsticks tested in the study by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.
However, the FDA does not consider the lead amounts found in the lipsticks to be hazardous.
“The FDA is just guessing the level of lead content in cosmetics is okay,” Communications Director of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, Stacy Malkan said.
The FDA limits the amount of lead approved for color additives in cosmetics to no more than 20 parts per million. The lead levels in the lipsticks tested in the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and the FDA study did not exceed this limit.
Health Communications Specialist for the Center for Disease Control, Jay Dempsey said higher levels of lead are more dangerous. However, any exposure to lead is unsafe.
Among the 33 brand name lipsticks tested in the FDA study, Cover Girl, Revlon and L’Oreal contained the largest amount of lead.
“There are certain brands of cosmetics that consistently had higher levels of lead than others. Companies can do a better job,” Malkan said. “We have called L’Oreal out as the worst lead offender. It is good to avoid L’Oreal until they clean up their products.”
The issue of lead in cosmetics derives from the concern for children’s health and lead exposure.
“Young children are the most vulnerable population to lead exposure because their bodies and brains are still developing. Lead exposure in children may be linked to irritability, brain damage or stunted development, depending on the amount of lead they are exposed to,” Dempsey said.
The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics suggests children are just as likely to be exposed to lead in cosmetics as adults are.
In a letter to Linda Katz, director of the Office of Cosmetics and Colors, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics said, “Any mother of a young girl will tell you, it’s impossible to keep her daughter away from her lipstick.”
Adults can experience adverse effects from lead exposure as well. Pregnant women have been encouraged to avoid lead exposure because they may pass lead content on to their unborn children.
Lead is not solely present in cosmetic products. Lead can also be found in water pipes, paint and soil.
“The main source of lead is older paint that was around before 1978. Older homes may contain lead-based paint. The lead can get into soil and dust as the paint chips,” Dempsey said. “Sometimes imported candies from Mexico, consumer products like toys and jewelry and traditional home remedies and cosmetics that are not commercially sold may contain lead as well.”
There are laws put in place to help ensure that personal care items and cosmetics are safe to use. However, under the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act of 1938 cosmetic products are not subject to premarket approval by the FDA, with the exception of color additives.
“People think it is not legal for companies to use harmful chemicals in their products. However, companies can put whatever they want in their products without any assessment,” Malkan said.
The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics is currently working to gain more support for the reintroduction of the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010, which was designed to give the FDA authority to ensure that personal care products are free of harmful ingredients and that all ingredients are fully disclosed.
Malkan said, “There is no way to know whether a product contains lead without sending it to a lab to be tested for $200. Lead is not listed on the label because companies are not required to list them. We need to get the FDA to set safety standards.”
For more information on lead content in cosmetics please visit the links below:
Hey Jojo,
ReplyDeleteYou have a well written article with great transitions between paragraphs.
Although I have heard much of this information before for decades, you have suceeded in writing in such a way to frighten me all over again. You definitely strike an emotional cord here.
Perhaps when you do a similar article in the future, you could insert photo stock images or video of women in vibrant make-up (including ads from Beyonce - Loreal, Queen Latifah - Cover Girl).
Also, consider utilizing links to lead the reader to additional information (website) about persons, places, or things (like Loreal) mentioned in your article.