European survey on the content of lead in lip products

223 lipstick samples (representing 55 diverse brands) were purchased in 15 European Union Member States and analysed for the presence of lead. Various textures (lipsticks and lip glosses), shades (red, brown, purple and pink) and price ranges (3 categories) were investigated. The analytical method applied foresaw a microwave-assisted acid digestion followed by ICP-MS determination. The results revealed that 49 samples (22%) contained lead at a level higher than 1 mg/kg (positive samples), representing 31% of the tested lipsticks and 4% of the lip glosses. On average, the lead content found in lipsticks (0.75 mg/kg) was nearly double compared to the one in lip glosses (0.38 mg/kg). Considering lipsticks, on the one hand, purple items showed a higher proportion of positive samples (48%) than the red ones (14%) and, on the other hand, the higher price of products of category III (> 15 euro) seemed to correlate with a higher quality in terms of lower lead concentration. In all cases, however, the actual lead concentration measured on finished products is far below the recommended limits as applied in Germany (20 mg/kg) and Canada (10 mg/kg). The outcome of this work delivers information about the current situation on the European market and provides knowledge to policy-makers about the lead level in lipsticks which is technically possible to achieve.

PICCININI Paola;  PIECHA Malgorzata;  FORTANER TORRENT Salvador; 

2014-09-09

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

JRC70522

0731-7085,   

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0731708512006620,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC70522,   

10.1016/j.jpba.2012.11.047,