Mercury in your eye?
First it was lipsticks
with too much lead. And
now there is mascara
with too much mercury –
the reason why its
getting banned in the US
 |
ST. Paul (US):
In their quest
for thicker
lashes and
defined eyes,
women have been
using mascara
all across the
globe. The
quest is not
completely safe
though. Many
mascara bottles
contain mercury,
far beyond the
safety level.
And this is why
from Jan 1 the
state of
Minnesota in the
US is banning
mercury from
mascara, eye
liners and
skin-lightening
creams.
Minnesota
apparently is
the first state
in the nation to
ban
intentionally
added mercury in
cosmetics,
giving it a
tougher standard
than the federal
government.
Retailers who
knowingly sell
mercury-containing
cosmetics in
Minnesota could
face fines of as
much as $700.
Penalties could
reach $10,000
for
manufacturers
who fail to
disclose mercury
on product
labels,
according to the
Minnesota
Pollution
Control Agency.
"Mercury does
cause
neurological
damage to people
even in tiny
quantities,"
said Sen. John
Marty, the
Democrat from
Roseville who
sponsored the
ban.
"Every source of mercury adds to it. We wanted to make sure it wasn't here." Most makeup manufacturers have phased out the use of mercury, but it's still added legally to some eye products as a preservative and germ-killer, said
John Bailey, chief scientist with the Personal Care Products Council in Washington. That group doesn't track mercury in beauty products and favors a national approach to regulating cosmetics, instead of laws that vary from state to state.
Federal law
allows eye
products to
contain up to 65
parts per
million of
mercury. The
exposure a
person would get
from a product
used in small
quantities
around the eyes
would not cause
a problem,
Bailey said.
Malkan with the
Campaign for
Safe Cosmetics
in Berkeley,
Calif.
Connecticut,
Rhode Island and
Louisiana ban
products
containing more
than low levels
of mercury, with
some exceptions.
New York and
Illinois
prohibit
consumer
products with
mercury, such as
figurines, toys
and jewelry.
"Personal care
products contain
many problematic
chemicals,"
Malkan said.
"Many
ingredients
aren't listed on
the labels."
The new law is
intended as a
warning to
cosmetics
manufacturers
not to use
mercury, said
John Gilkeson,
with the state
Pollution
Control Agency's
toxics reduction
program.
Enforcement will
happen mainly
when consumers
complain.
Using eye makeup
with mercury is
unlikely to
cause immediate
health problems,
but mercury
accumulates in
the body, so
consumers should
avoid exposure
whenever
possible, said
Carl
Herbrandson, a
toxicologist
with the state
Health
Department.
"Mercury is bad,
basically in all
forms that get
into the body,"
Herbrandson
said.
Mercury can
retard brain
development in
children and
fetuses, who are
most vulnerable
to the metal's
toxic effects.
But it can also
cause
neurological
symptoms in
adults.
Mercury fumes
can collect
inside a jar of
skin cream or a
tube of mascara,
and a person
could inhale
them when the
container is
opened,
Herbrandson
said.
Imported
skin-lightening
creams and soaps
with high levels
of mercury have
been found in
other states;
they are illegal
under federal
law. Herbrandson
said skin
products with
mercury are more
dangerous than
mercury-containing
eye makeup
because people
apply larger
quantities to
their bodies.
Source: AP