Key Takeaways
- Lead is never intentionally added to cosmetics or personal care products.
- Trace amounts of lead may be present in finished products that are made with natural substances found in the environment such as clays or minerals.
- FDA determined the presence of trace levels (10 ppm or less) of lead in cosmetics/personal care products do not present a risk to consumers.
Lead is a heavy metalHeavy metals are higher atomic weight elements that have properties of a metallic substance at room temperature. Some heavy metals, such as iron, cobalt, copper, manganese, and zinc are required in small amounts by living organisms. Other heavy metals, such as mercury, lead and cadmium have no known beneficial effects. that occurs naturally and is present at an average level of 0.0014 % (14 parts-per-million (ppm)) in the earth’s crust. Trace amounts of lead are found throughout the environment: in the air, rocks, sediments, water and soils.
How am I exposed to lead in my daily life?
The most common sources of environmental exposures to lead come from the extensive contamination of residential garden soils and in indoor house dust due to the use of lead-based paint. These exposures often vastly exceed 10 ppm lead levels. Lead may also be carried from the soil into plants grown in the soil and can leach into drinking water from lead-based water pipes and into foods or liquids stored in ceramic containers made with lead glazing. Lead is absorbed much more readily into the body when it is consumed orally than when it is touched.
Is lead in cosmetics?
Lead is never intentionally added to cosmetics. Rather, unavoidable trace amounts of lead may be present in a finished product such as through the addition of natural substances like clays or minerals. These minute traces are less than the amount of lead found in the soil of most gardens.
Does the presence of trace amounts of lead in cosmetics present a public health risk?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates cosmetics under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) and the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (FPLA). These laws, along with the more recent Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act (MoCRA) of 2022, require that cosmetics marketed in the United States be properly labeled and safe for their intended use. The FDA has determined, based on its own studies, that the presence of trace levels (10 ppm or less) of lead in cosmetics/personal care products do not present a risk to consumers.
What are lead limits in cosmetics across the world?
| Country | Cosmetic Lead Limit (ppm) |
| ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) | 20 |
| Canada | 10 |
| China | 10 |
| EU | 10 |
| GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) | 10 |
| I.C.C.R. (International Cooperation on Cosmetic Regulation) | 10 |
| India | 20 |
| U.S. | 20 (colorants), 10 (cosmetics) |
| Thailand | 20 |