Lead in Lipstick: Beauty is a Beast

The Food & Drug Administration reports that the lead levels in lipstick are too high. Read this article to find out which lipsticks may be harmful.

By Kalia Doner

If your lips are painted rosy red and luscious for a Valentine's kiss you may be passing along more than passion. Turns out that 400 of the most popular tubes of lip color have levels of lead that are ABOVE what is allowed in candy and other ingestibles. The FDA, who produced the analysis, insists that it's, well, apples and oranges, so to speak: "It is not scientifically valid," they say on their website, "to equate the risk to consumers presented by lead levels in candy, a product intended for ingestion, with that associated with lead levels in lipstick, a product intended for topical use and ingested in much smaller quantities than candy."

But you can decide for yourself: The lead in Maybelline's "Pink Petal" is 275 times the level in the least-contaminated brand tested: Wet & Wild Mega Mixers Lip Balm. Which would you choose? And figure you started wearing lipstick at 15 and are going to wear it almost every day for 50 years. Your lead exposure might add up; accumulation could contribute to cognitive decline in older age.

FYI: Here are the top 10 lead-heavy lipsticks in the FDA report.

1. Maybelline's Color Sensation in Pink Petal. (Lead content: 7.19 ppm)

2. L'Oreal Colour Riche in Volcanic. (Lead content: 7.00 ppm)

3. NARS Semi-Matte in Red Lizard. (Lead content: 4.93 ppm)

4. Cover Girl Queen Collection Vibrant Hues Color in Ruby Remix (Lead content: 4.92 ppm)

5. NARS Semi-Matte in Funny Face. (Lead content: 4.89)

6. L'Oreal Colour Rich in Tickled Pink. (Lead content: 4.45)

7. L'Oreal Intensely Moisturizing Lipcolor in Heroic. (Lead content: 4.41)

8. Cover Girl Continuous Color in Warm Brick. (Lead content: 4.28)

9. Maybelline Color Sensational in Mauve Me. (Lead content: 4.23)

10. Stargazer lipstick in shade "c." (Lead content: 4.12)

And for more information on cosmetics--to choose and to avoid, check out these videos.