Exposing the Cosmetics Industry: The Story of Cosmetics

Women and men spend millions of dollars every day to make themselves more attractive – and to poison themselves in the process.

Ever walked into a drugstore full of ‘personal care products,’ including cosmetics, fragrances, shampoos, conditioners and sunscreen, and felt overwhelmed? It’s a pretty common feeling, but how often do we question the safety of products found at our neighborhood drugstore?

In fact, The Food and Drug Administration doesn’t regulate cosmetic products and (surprise, surprise) these products are filled with toxic chemicals that pose a dangerous threat to our health.

The Story of Cosmetics, a 7-minute animated film by Annie Leonard and the good people at The Story of Stuff Project, was launched on July 21. The short film provides a unique peek into the cosmetic industry, explaining in clear and simple language how the industry is a threat to consumer health – and, importantly, how consumers can begin to change the industry.

In the film you’ll learn about things like:

Lead in Lipstick? Turns out, the urban legend is true. In 2007, the path-breaking organization The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics tested 33 popular brands of lipsticks to discover that 61 percent of lipsticks contained lead. It took nearly two years of pressure from consumers but in 2009 the FDA released a follow-up study that found lead in all samples of lipstick it tested, the highest lead levels in lipsticks made by three manufacturers: Procter & Gamble (Cover Girl brand), L'Oreal (L'Oreal, Body Shop and Maybelline brands) and Revlon. Despite the fact that lead is a neurotoxin that causes learning, language, and behavioral problems, and easily crosses the placenta to a fetus, the FDA has so far refused to take any action to protect consumers.

Cancer-Causing Baby Shampoos? Product tests by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics in 2009 found two known carcinogens, 1,4-dioxane and formaldehyde, in dozens of bath products for babies and kids, including Sesame Street character brands and even the iconic "pure and gentle" Johnson & Johnson's baby shampoo. None of the products tested listed 1,4-dioxane or formaldehyde on the label.

Danger at Your Nail Salon: Did you know that nail salons use toxic chemicals that are known to be carcinogens? Not only is it toxic for you as a customer, but salon workers are exposed to these toxins every day. This video by the Brave New World Foundation further exposes the health issues and risks at nail salons.  

Is the price of beauty worth your health? You can check if the products you use contain toxins and the relative safety of each one by visiting the incredibly useful online database Skin Deep, developed by researchers at the Environmental Working Group.

The Story of Cosmetics is a great education and outreach tool. To learn more about the information used in this film, here are some great resources:

Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry (New Society Publishers 2007), by Stacy Malkan. This inside story of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, written by Campaign co-founder Stacy Malkan, received a 2008 Silver Medal from the Independent Publisher Book Awards.

The Body Toxic: How the Hazardous Chemistry of Everyday Things Threatens our Health and Well-Being (North Point Press 2008), by Nena Baker. Investigative journalist Nena Baker explores the chemicals getting into our bodies, the everyday products that deliver the chemicals and the government policies that allow these potentially harmful products to be sold.

The Secret History of the War on Cancer (Basic Books 2007), by Devra Davis. Dr. Davis shows how the War on Cancer has targeted the disease and left off the table the things that cause it — tobacco, alcohol, the workplace and other environmental hazards.

Slow Death by Rubber Duck: The Secret Danger of Everyday Things (Counterpoint Press 2010), by Rick Smith and Bruce Lourie. For four days, these authors ingested and inhaled a host of chemicals via everyday products like cosmetics. The book — the testimony of their experience — exposes the extent to which we are poisoned every day of our lives, from the simple household dust that is polluting our blood to the toxins in our urine from run-of-the-mill shampoos and toothpaste.

Comments

[Charles]

I was inspired by two things, the high price of lip balms based on petroleum jelly and the lumps of beeswax on the shop shelves in Kenya. In many parts of the world I believe a cheaper product can be made using local materials and, more importantly, a better product will result. I may have a few issues with the criticisms reported above, but that does not alter the fact that in Africa we can usually make a higher quality product - locally. I can't normally post out lip balm samples, but I can help with recipes.