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There’s no denying that we girls LOVE our makeup, and lipstick is quite possibly the one item that every woman has in her bag. Women are mainly exposed to heavy metals like lead as it’s commonly found in cosmetics. Researchers estimated the average consumers daily intake of lead, cadmium, chromium, aluminum and five other metals for 32 types of lipsticks and lip glosses commonly found in stores. We’ve all seen that viral alert on Facebook, right?
Cadmium is a carcinogen that’s been found in breast cancer biopsies and shown to cause cancer cells to multiply in lab experiments. Metals are often used in mineral dyes to give lipstick its pigment. Fortunately, lead is not as present in lipsticks at high levels that should cause concern. Lead may not necessarily cause cancer, but it is an element that’s dangerous to human. Exposure to lead can cause physical and mental disabilities, especially on children. Younger children with developing bodies tend to absorb more nutrients, and that includes the metals in their cosmetics, so it’s not a great idea to put makeup on your daughter just yet. Furthermore, people with kidney problems or even diabetes are also susceptible to potential health problems.
In 2012, the Food and Drug Administration (US) tested 400 lipsticks for lead content. The top twenty lead-containing lipstick from the FDA’s 2012 review is shown in the chart below:
Maybelline Color Sensational in “Pink Petal” contains the highest amount of lead. Drugstore brands, L’Oreal, Maybelline, Covergirl and Revlon dominate the list, so it may have to do with these lipsticks being affordable. But it’s quite a heartache to see NARS in the least.
So, what brand of lipstick do you buy now? We’re still doing some research into what brands you can buy that are lead-free, so do stay with us for that. To test the lead content of your lipsticks, simply try out this test:
1. Put some lipstick on your hand
2. Use a 24k-14k Gold ring to scratch on the lipstick.
3. Observe if the lipstick color changes to black. If it does, that’s how you know that your lipstick contains lead.
With all said and done, the FDA also confirmed that the mount of lead found in lipstick is very low and does not pose safety concerns. In fact, the common element happens to be our environment and it could be due to the combination of being exposed to numerous free radicals everyday. Although, it will be good to cut down on your lipstick wear.
(Source)
