After the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics released the 2007 report, "A Poison Kiss: The Problem of Lead in Lipstick," which found lead in popular lipstick brands, the FDA promised to conduct its own analysis of lead in lipstick. It took two years for the FDA to release its information to the public, despite pressure from U.S. Senators and repeated calls from health groups, including letters from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.

The FDA published its long-awaited study on lead in lipstick in the July/August 2009 issue of the Journal of Cosmetic Science. The article was available for a fee only through the Journal's Web site, and the FDA would not name the brands of lipstick tested. Due to public pressure, FDA finally posted the study, including brands tested, on its own Web site in November 2009.

The FDA analysis found lead in all 20 lipsticks tested, and the lead levels were consistently higher in brands made by three manufacturers: Procter & Gamble (Cover Girl brand), L'Oreal (L'Oreal, Body Shop and Maybelline brands) and Revlon.

The most lead-contaminated brand in the study, Cover Girl Incrediful Lip Color, had a lead level of 3.06 ppm - more than 30 times higher than the least contaminated brand.

To date, the FDA has taken no action to protect consumers from unnecessary lead in cosmetics. The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics continues to pressure FDA to set a maximum limit of lead in lipstick, based on the lowest lead levels manufacturers can feasibly achieve. See our January 2010 letter to the FDA.