Lead in Children's Lip Gloss

I just returned from my local Target where I had quite a shock. A friend had recently told me about a well know environmental activist she saw on PBS explaining that cheaper products contain less harmful ingredients. This claim didn't seem at all plausible to me given what I know about the toxic ingredients contained in commercial health and beauty products. I picked up a flavored lip gloss in the dollar bin to test this theory. This lip gloss had brightly colored packaging with a picture of a delicious looking ice cream sundae on it and the words "Mango Flavored". As I flipped over the back of the package to read the ingredient listing I was astonished to find the following warning "This product contains lead which is known to cause birth defects and cancer. This product is not meant to be eaten or ingested." I began to feel sick to my stomach. This lip gloss was obviously being marketed to children and obviously meant to be ingested or it wouldn't have been given a fruity mango flavor.

Horrified I paced around the store imagining how many little girls were going to beg their Moms for this toxic lip gloss and how many Mom's would willingly buy it for them. I would have done the same thing when I was a little girl. What busy mom has time to screen her child's lip gloss for Lead? Most people operate under the misconception that some government agency is ensuring that the products we use are safe and free from hazardous chemicals. Why would a children's lip gloss contain lead? This is America right? We have people watching out for our safety and our children's safety right? When it comes to the health and beauty industry this couldn't be further from the truth. There is no agency testing ingredient safety before they're marketed in beauty products. Often companies can legally get around listing cancer causing ingredients on their label by hiding them under the term Fragrance.

Now I know I can't change the world, but I still believe in standing up for what's right. I wouldn't have been able to sleep if I didn't do something about this. I spoke to the manager and made her aware of the product. She thanked me and seemed shocked that they were selling this product as well. When I returned home I called Target's corporate office only to be transferred to India where a customer service representative acted shocked at my concern. I'm sure that Target won't pull these items off of their shelves as legally they can sell products containing lead if they have a warning on them. My hope is that more consumers will start reading labels and making educated decisions about the products they purchase for their families. There are many companies that are dedicated to providing their customers with healthy organic products so we always have the option to use our purchasing power to send a message to the health and beauty industry.

So I guess the moral of the story is cheaper isn't safer or better. Keep it green!