Lipstick, Glosses Contain Toxic Metals: ReportThursday, 02 May 2013 Lipsticks and lip glosses apparently give you more than colorful kissers, according to a new study by California scientists that contends the products contain lead, cadmium, chromium, aluminum and five other toxic metals.
The research team tested 32 different lip glosses and lipsticks
commonly sold at drug and department stores. Some metals were
detected at levels that could raise potential health concerns, the
researchers said.
"Lipsticks and lip glosses often have levels of toxic metals
which approach or exceed acceptable daily doses based on public
health guidelines," said researcher Katharine Hammond, a professor
of environmental health sciences at the University of California,
Berkeley.
Hammond declined to name brands tested. "I would treat these
results as applicable to all lipsticks," she said.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, however, does list the
lead content of many lipsticks by brand on its website.
In the new study, lead was found in 24 of the 32 products, but at
a concentration usually lower than the acceptable daily intake
levels.
"At an average level of use, it's not likely to be an issue,"
Hammond said. She added that she's concerned, however, about
children playing with makeup, as no level of lead exposure is
considered safe for them. Heavy adult users might consider cutting
down, she added.
In the study, certain colors were not more likely than others to
have the toxic metals, Hammond said. Nor were glosses more likely to
have them than lipsticks, or vice versa.
The study was published online May 2 in the journal
Environmental Health Perspectives.
The new report isn't the first to focus on toxins in lipsticks.
In 2007, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics tested 33 lip products and
found that 61 percent contained lead, some with levels high enough
to cause concern.
The current study went further than measuring the levels of lead
and eight other metals.
Researchers estimated risk based on the concentration of the metals detected and the users' potential daily intake -- average or high. They compared that information with existing public health guidelines about acceptable intake levels.
The researchers focused on lipstick and lip gloss, they said,
because those who wear them absorb or eat them, bit by bit.
High use was defined as ingesting 87 milligrams of the product a
day. That would involve repeated reapplying, Hammond said. Average
use was about 24 milligrams a day.
When used at an average daily rate, the estimated intake of
chromium from 10 products exceeded acceptable daily intake, the
researchers found. Chromium has been linked to stomach tumors.
High use of the products, they found, also could result in
overexposure to aluminum, cadmium and manganese. High manganese
levels have been linked to nervous system problems.
The findings do signal a need for more public oversight, the
researchers said.
The FDA regulates cosmetics safety under the authority of the
Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. Cosmetics must be safe when
used as the label directs or under ordinary conditions. The FDA does
not, however, require cosmetics to get pre-market approval. Color
additives must get pre-market approval, in most cases. No limits for
lead in cosmetics have been set by the FDA.
The FDA, however, has set specifications for lead in the color
additives that are used in cosmetics.
The Personal Care Products Council, a trade association
representing the cosmetics industry, said in a statement Wednesday
that the lead content of lipsticks has already been studied by the
FDA and that the agency decided the amounts involved were not a
threat to public safety.
"Trace amounts of metals in lip products need to be put into
context," Linda Loretz, chief toxicologist for the council, said in
the statement. "Food is a primary source for many of these naturally
present metals, and exposure from lip products is minimal in
comparison.
For example, daily trace amounts of chromium or cadmium from lip products based on the results in this report are less than 1 percent of daily exposures one would get from their diet. In the case of manganese, typical daily intake from food is more than 1000-fold greater than the amount from lip products."
"Cosmetic companies are required by law to substantiate the
safety of their products before they are marketed. Nothing matters
more to cosmetic companies than the safety and the well-being of the
people who use and enjoy them," Loretz added.
The findings are not surprising, said Dr. Luz Fonacier, head of
the allergy and training program at Winthrop University Hospital in
Mineola, N.Y. Many lip products are packaged in metal containers,
she said, "and this may affect the amount detected by
investigators."
"I agree with the authors that there should be U.S. standards for
metal content in cosmetics and that monitoring of metals in
cosmetics, especially those with a higher likelihood of ingestion or
absorption, should be done," Fonacier said.
Dr. Ken Spaeth is director of occupational and environmental
medicine at North Shore-LIJ Health System in New Hyde Park, N.Y. He
reviewed the findings and has written a book for doctors on
detecting heavy metal exposure problems.
He said, "The findings should certainly raise concern about the
use of the products."
Certain people should be especially careful about exposure, he
said, including pregnant women and teens. "The fetus is particularly
susceptible," he said. "And brain development continues throughout
adolescence."
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