by 2 Cylivers
Ah! The lead in lipstick controversy again.
It was all very well until an e-mail began doing the rounds suggesting that there could be lead in lipsticks. Ever since then, everyone seems to be wondering if that could be true.
Your concern is understandable. I can imagine you wanting to know whether such a thing could be possible because women use lipsticks so often. And, after all, if there is indeed lead in lipsticks, it would be nothing short of dangerous as lead is known to cause cancer. Since that e-mail and the barrage of queries it kicked up, there have also been write-ups by people from cancer-treating societies, trying to dispel the story as hogwash. These people point out that there are strict laws governing the production of cosmetics, and that lead is completely banned from all cosmetics, barring hair dyes.
So, should one believe them or should one test the product before using it?
One theory doing the rounds suggests that you can test whether a particular lipstick has lead content in it by rubbing it on your hand and then scraping it off with a gold ring. If the lipstick has lead in it, it will turn black, it is said. I haven’t tried this yet. But what’s the harm in doing so? Maybe I will.
But the idea seems absurd and the reaction could seem to be somewhat of a knee-jerk response to an unconfirmed report. But to put things in perspective, lipsticks do contain waxes, oils and emollients, including olive oil, mineral oils, castor oil, cocoa butter, lanolin and petroleum, and silicone oil, which seals the color to your lips.
Whether there is also some lead in it -- is for the governing bodies and law-enforcing authorities to announce. And we are yet to hear from them.
