FDA Issues Warning Over Mercury in Skincare Products
The Food and Drug Administration is now warning consumers over the mercury content of many ‘off-brand’ personal care products, an element that is toxic in all forms. While the FDA is warning against certain ‘off-brand’ skin creams and lotions, a previous investigation by the Chicago Tribune involving 50 skin-lightening creams found mercury levels as high as 300,000 parts per million – six of which were even found to contain amounts of mercury banned by federal law. Five of the six had more than 6,000 parts per million — enough to potentially cause kidney damage over time.
According to the new FDA report, the common culprits are marketed as skin lighteners and anti-aging products. The agency also states that mercury-containing skin products were found in at least seven states, including Texas, California, Virginia, Maryland, New York and Minnesota. The FDA findings also reached similar conclusions to the independent analysis by the Chicago Tribune, with face cream tested by the agency containing mercury up to 131,000 times more than the allowable level.
Gary Coody, the national health fraud coordinator for the FDA’s Office of Regulatory Affairs, says that the products are often sold illegally in the United States or transported in from other countries.
If the product contains “mercurous chloride, calomel, mercuric, mercurio, or mercury,” stop using the product right away, the FDA said.
The news comes just after it was found that as many as 400 popular lipstick shades actually contain lead. The federal analysis reviewed top lipstick brands sold to children and adults alike. Purchased between February and July of 2012, all 400 shades came from retail stores. The lead content actually exceeded the limit that is safe for candy, except the FDA claims that it is “safe” in lipstick due to the fact that you do not ‘eat’ lipstick. Lipstick, however, is oftentimes ingested when eating and drinking, kissing, or licking your lips. In addition, chemicals can easily be leached into the skin.
Both reports serve as a reminder to only buy 100 percent organic personal care products and to avoid purchasing anything from traditional drug stores.
The skin everywhere on the body absorbs stuff, this much we should have learned in grade-school health class.
What I find interesting is that while the FDA makes a big splash about this, they still claim that the mercury in dental fillings (regardless of the ratio) that are in your moth -24/7, 365 days a year- is totally safe and seeks to humiliate those who question the safety of it.
Either it's bad or it isn't…you cannot claim that it is harmful if it is in contact with your skin for a few hours but then claim that the same stuff in your fillings, which are always in contact with your mouth, saliva and delicate tissues are totally safe.
It's bad stuff regardless of how much is in the products or how long you are exposed to it during the day.
Avoid it when at all possible.