"Lead in lipstick!!" screams the headline, and in come the panicked patients....
The public needs to know that the lead is not an added ingredient in the lipsticks. Lead is a natural element that gets measured by the fact that it is present in the dyes used in cosmetics. These dyes are elements, and the lead is a contaminant in these inert powders that are used to confer color. That is why generally speaking, the sheerer the lipstick, the lower the lead level.
Ever read the ingredient lists? "FD&C red #7", "iron oxide #4" "aluminum lakes #8" and the like, are derived specifically for the FDA and no cosmetic in the US can be sold without these specific dyes, which have been vetted by the FDA and they continue to be. These dyes often have aluminum too, and though I'm not a chemist, the way I understand it is that these metals impart color fastness and stability, so the red lipstick will remain a red lipstick.
Lead has a very long and ancient history as a cosmetic dye because it makes the pigment more stable. Queen Elizabeth I wore a lead based facial paint to cover up bad facial smallpox scars. Supposedly she also suffered from lead poisoning along with untold others.
Currently lead poisoning affects children the most because their growing systems can't handle exposure to this substance, and the old flaky paint used before 1975 ( I think) shed lead particles nto the air. The lead dust can be inhaled and cause lead toxicity. But that's a whole other story.
In the past century there have been no cases of lead poisoning from a cosmetic in the US. In fact, pigment is what gives lipsticks their variable inherent SPF level. It has been shown that women have much lower rates of cancer of the lip vs. men because women tend to cover their lips with lipstick, and though not formally rated, the zinc oxides and pigment bases provide some level of ultraviolet protection. Lead is well known as a UV and radiation blocker, which is why you get a lead apron draped over you when you get Xrays at the dentist :-)
There are many flaws in the FDA's logic, namely that lipstick isn't a "food". They are lumping the lead risks from lipsticks together with the lead risk from other cosmetics, no other cosmetic gets ingested, only lipstick. Eileen, to answer your question, I believe the FDA has set the safe threshold for lead in a color additive at 20 parts per million, similarly Canada and the EU. All of these lipsticks tested on their list fall below 5 parts per million.
To conclude this long rant, knowledge is power. Nothing is perfectly safe in this world. Don't take anybody's word for it. You must educate yourself and form your own opinions about what you're willing to use and not use. It's your body.
However, if we wanted to be perfectly natural we'd wear zero makeup. But where's the fun in that?
