Blog Post

Lipsticks Found to Contain Traces of Lead


October 18, 2007
Topic: Products Liability

Ask a woman what's the one cosmetic product she wouldn't be caught dead without and chances are she'd reply her lipstick. Well, as it turns out there might be enough in her little tube to cause serious damage to her health, if not actually kill her. In a recent study, a US consumer rights group has found that several of the most popular brands of lipsticks have a lead count that exceeds the normal.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a coalition consisting of women's and health groups said that the tests conducted in Santa Fe Springs, California involved lipsticks from several popular brands, and revealed that at least 61 per cent of them had lead levels of 0.03 to 0.65 ppm. In a reversal of the "you get what you pay for" adage, the lower priced brands like Revlon were found to have no detectable traces of lead while the luxury brands like Christian Dior's Addict showed higher lead traces than other less pricey brands.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics has criticized the FDA for failing to set standards for the amount of lead in lipsticks. The founders of the coalition say manufacturers should concentrate on reformulating their products and making cosmetics that do not contain the toxic substance.

Lead has been in the news a lot lately and for all the wrong reasons. In recent months, millions of toys most of them made in China have been recalled after reports of high traces of lead paint on them which could be ingested by children causing serious long term damage to their health. This new report of lead laced lipsticks is even more worrying because lipsticks are ingested much more quickly, much the same way as candy. High lead levels have been linked to infertility and miscarriages, and are cited as especially dangerous to pregnant women.

Lipsticks are one of the most commonly used cosmetics, something that not too many women pay too much attention to other than in terms of what it will actually look like on their lips. They certainly don't expect their lipstick to cause any serious health problems, and they shouldn't have to worry that something as innocuous as a lipstick tube could contain toxic substances that could leave them infertile.

When a person is injured through the use of defective products, she may be entitled to receive compensation for her injuries, distress and suffering. The California personal injury lawyers at The Reeves Law Group bring decades of experience winning compensation for injured clients.


The California personal injury attorneys at The Reeves Law Group represent victims of accidents, injuries and wrongful death throughout California from our offices in Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Diego County, Riverside County, San Bernardino County, Ventura County, Fresno County, Kern County, Sacramento County, San Fernando Valley, Long Beach, Antelope Valley, Torrance, Glendale, Bakersfield, Santa Ana, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, Ontario, and Victorville.