potentially toxic makeup and body products widely used by children, study says

a recent study found carcinogens, heavy metals, and other toxic substances in many children’s makeup and body products.

by dave yasvinski

published jan 31, 2023

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many face paints, other products used by children contain carcinogens

“unfortunately, currently little is being done at the federal level to protect children from toxic chemicals in children's makeup and body products.” getty

a new study has found that the majority of u.s. children use makeup and body products that may contain carcinogens and other toxic substances. according to the research, published in the international journal of environmental research and public health, almost 80 per cent of u.s. parents said their kids, 12 years of age and younger, regularly used face paint, glitter, lip gloss and other body products marketed to children. previous research has shown that many of these products contain toxic chemicals, such as pfas (also known as forever chemicals), lead, phthalates and formaldehyde.

many of the chemicals found in children’s makeup and body products (cmbp), such as heavy metals, are particularly harmful to infants and children and have been linked to cancer, neurodevelopmental problems and other serious — and irreversible — health issues.

“there is increasing evidence of harmful ingredients often included in adult cosmetics and cmbps and children are more biologically susceptible to the effects of toxicants,” said eleanor a. medley, first author and co-lead of the study at columbia university mailman school of public health.

“in this context, it is important to uncover how makeup and body products are being used by children to characterize risk and improve safety,” said kendall e. kruchten, the study’s other co-lead.

the work — which was conducted in conjunction with earthjustice, a non-profit, public interest organization dedicated to litigating environmental issues — was based on the results of more than 200 surveys. according to researchers, around 54 per cent of parents said their kids used a cmbp at least monthly, 12 per cent said they used them daily and about 20 per cent said they used them for at least eight hours at a time. one in three parents reported their children had inadvertently ingested a cmbp over the past year.

“children are particularly vulnerable to adverse health risks associated with chemicals often found in makeup and body products,” said julie herbstman, senior author of the study and professor of environmental health sciences and director of the columbia center for children’s environmental health at columbia university mailman school of public health.

“in addition to dermal exposure through the skin, behavioural patterns such as hand-to-mouth activity may increase exposure to products through unintentional ingestion. additionally, children’s small body size, rapid growth rate, developing tissues and organs and immature immune systems make them biologically susceptible to the effects of toxicants.”

pfas compounds have been used since the 1950s in industrial products, such as firefighting foams and consumer goods, including coated fabrics, carpets and cookware. and although only a few pfas have been studied in-depth, they have been linked to health effects in humans and animals, including reduced immune function, altered fertility and metabolism and increased risk of obesity.

three groups of well-studied pfas — pfos, pfoa and lc-pfcas — are prohibited in canada, but there’s concern that other chemicals in the more massive pfas group are replacing them. the federal government is currently looking at regulating all pfas as a group.

“it is alarming that industry is being allowed to sell makeup and body products marketed to children that contain extremely toxic chemicals,” said lakendra barajas, an attorney for earthjustice. “findings from this study can help federal agencies better understand how children are using these products and will hopefully spur agencies to act to protect children from toxic chemical exposures.

“unfortunately, currently little is being done at the federal level to protect children from toxic chemicals in children’s makeup and body products.”