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If you, like me can not live without the magic wand of your favourite mascara, then you should read this article by Brian Bienkowski of The Environmental Health News at once, and make the change to a safe, organic, natural, toxin free alternative. Because your worth it !!

Mascara exempt from UN mercury treaty.

Under a new global treaty that limits the use of mercury, some light bulbs will be banned. Some batteries, thermometers and medical devices will be banned too. But mascara is exempt.

Last week, about 140 countries signed the United Nations’ Minamata Convention, which includes a ban on mercury in cosmetics and soaps. But mascara and other eye makeup is exempt because “no effective safe substitute alternatives are available” and “the intention is not to cover cosmetics, soaps or creams with trace contaminants,” the treaty says.

Mercury is sometimes used in small amounts in mascara as a preservative and a germ-killer. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration allows it in eye cosmetics at a concentration of up to 65 parts per million.

“The purpose of the products is to inhibit the growth of bacteria and fungi that could spoil the products and that could infect and damage the eye, so the risk-benefit analysis favours the use of these preservatives,” said Joanna Tempowski, a scientist for the World Health Organization’s International Programme on Chemical Safety, in an email.

But Stacy Malkan, co-founder of the advocacy group Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, said there is no reason “a known neurotoxin should be allowed in any of these products” because most companies already have found alternatives.

In the United States, “companies just haven’t been using it. There’s absolutely no reason to not include it in the treaty,” Malkan said. “It’s just ridiculous.”

There is no reason “a known neurotoxin should be allowed in any of these products.” –Stacy Malkan, Campaign for Safe CosmeticsMercury is a potent neurotoxicant. High levels can cause serious neurological effects and kidney damage, and, if a pregnant woman is exposed, lower concentrations can disrupt the brain of a developing fetus. However, no scientific studies have examined exposures or effects from the low concentrations found in mascaras or other eye makeup.

The focus of the treaty’s phase-out in cosmetics was on skin lightening creams that use much larger concentrations of mercury as an active ingredient. For those products, the toxic metal can be absorbed at high levels through the skin, and some studies have linked them to kidney damage in women.

Sheila Logan, a program officer with the United Nations’ Mercury and Other Metals team, said in an email response that when the treaty’s cosmetics ban goes into effect in 2020, there probably will be “few or no products” with mercury.Alternatives exist for some mascaras – particularly those with shorter shelf lives – but not for all, Logan scts that currently do not have substitute preservatives, she did not respond.aid. When asked for examples of those prod

The Personal Care Products Council, the trade group for the cosmetics industry, is not aware of any manufacturers using mercury in mascara, said Linda Loretz, the group’s chief toxicologist.

But according to a database compiled by the Environmental Working Group, six mascaras and two eyelash makeups manufactured by Bari Cosmetics, Ltd. under the Love My Eyes brand contain thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative. The database is compiled from the ingredients listed on the boxes. The products were added to the database between July and September of this year.

Bari Cosmetics, Ltd. directed calls to the parent company, Revlon, which did not respond to requests for comment.

The FDA does not require ingredients that comprise less than 1 percent of a cosmetic product to be divulged on the label, so a lot more products may have thimerosal and consumers would never know, said Kristin Adams, chief executive officer of Afterglow Cosmetics, a natural and organic cosmetic company.

“The purpose of the products [preservatives] is to inhibit the growth of bacteria and fungi that could spoil the products and that could infect and damage the eye.” –Joanna Tempowski, World Health OrganizationInstead of mercury, some major brands use phenoxyethanol, methylisothiazolinone, parabens and formaldehyde releasers as preservatives, according to the group’s database.

Such substitutes also may not be benign; formaldehyde is carcinogenic to humans, and parabens may be linked to hormone disruption. But none of the substitutes is as toxic as mercury, said Sonya Lunder, an Environmental Working Group senior analyst.

Adams said many big cosmetics companies use preservatives such as mercury and parabens because they are good at what they do – extend shelf life.

“They (large companies) are looking for a 5-year shelf life for their product because it’s all about cost of goods for them,” she said. “Cosmetics will go bad very fast.”

Adams wouldn’t divulge what Afterglow Cosmetics uses instead, but said they adhere to a France-based network that developed a non-toxic standard for cosmetics.

“We see alternatives, why not just include [eye makeup] in the ban?” Malkan said. “Women should not be putting something so toxic right by their eyeballs.”

I SUGGEST READING THIS POST CAREFULLY BEFORE PUCKERING UP AND APPLYING YOUR LIPPY LADIES !!

I find it extremely concerning to read an article written by the Environmental working agency, on the research of lead in lipstick, which indicates that the problem is much more widespread than previous research had believed:According to the report:

“Millions of women get a little bit of toxic lead on their lips each day with every swipe of their lipstick,” said Jane Houlihan, senior VP for research at Environmental Working Group. “There is no safe level of lead exposure. The biggest concern is for pregnant women – lead is a potent neurotoxin and the fetus and very young children are most at risk. Some companies make lead-     free lipsticks, and we think all companies should.”

The EWG signed a copy of the letter below, from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics to the government’s top cosmetics regulator, Linda Katz, M.D., M.P.H., director of FDA’s Office of Cosmetics and Colors.

The letter to FDA’s Katz said:

“Your new analysis found lead levels in lipstick more than twice as high as your previous report. As in previous studies, certain manufacturers consistently have higher lead levels than other brands. The most-contaminated brand, Maybelline Color Sensation made by L’Oreal USA, had lead levels more than 275 times the level found in the least contaminated brands, and more than seven times higher than the average found in all the lipsticks. Clearly, some manufacturers could be doing more to protect women from unnecessary lead exposure.”

There are plenty of toxin free alternatives on the market today which you and your children can apply safely, make the switch today – “Because your worth it” !!!!