Here, the latest and most dangerous beauty alerts, and how to protect yourself without compromising your beauty routine. |
Chemicals, heavy metals, bacteria, and other hazardous ingredients are turning up in makeup, skin creams, and hair styling products. Here, the latest and most dangerous beauty alerts, and how to protect yourself without compromising your beauty routine. Mercury in Skin Creams? That was the headline-grabber last week, when an FDA investigation found imported skin creams may contain toxic levels of mercury and other heavy metals. The risk is serious; people are actually getting sick from mercury contamination from these products. The creams are intended primarily for “skin lightening” and anti-aging. Symptoms of mercury poisoning include tremors, memory problems, irritability, and changes in vision or hearing. The creams have turned up in seven states so far, and several cases of serious mercury poisoning have been reported. Lead in Lipstick? Once considered an “urban legend,” the rumor that some lipsticks contain lead turned out to be deadly true when the FDA tested hundreds of lipsticks following an alert issued by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. The brands that tested positive for lead levels included well-respected national brands including L’Oreal, Revlon, Avon, and Cover Girl. And high-end brands like Dior and M.A.C. weren’t exempt either. Five of the ten most contaminated lipsticks were manufactured by L’Oreal USA. Bacteria in Mascara? Yes, this can happen too, but it’s the result of keeping mascara too long. The microbes don’t arrive in the mascara itself. According to a study in Optometry, bacteria that are naturally present in the eyes can be transferred into mascara via the wand. When the researchers tested mascaras, microbes were present in 33 percent of the products tested. Formaldehyde in Hair Straighteners Despite label claims of being “formaldehyde-free”, many keratin-based hair straighteners, when tested, were found to contain formaldehyde, a known carcinogen. The levels of formaldehyde found were fairly low, and shouldn’t pose a hazard if you’re only straightening your hair a few times a year, but more often than that isn’t a great idea. And stylists, who use the products on their customers regularly, are at risk. Mineral Makeup Often considered a natural alternative to makeup, mineral-based products often come in the form of powders. The problem results because the particles of minerals such as mica are so small, they float through the air and can be inhaled into the lungs. (Consider this: When construction workers use spackle and other products containing mica, they wear masks to avoid breathing them in.) There hasn’t been any warning issued for mineral makeup yet, but some experts, such as pulmonologists, are warning women that lung damage could result from frequent use. (Read by Nelly Min. Nelly Min is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) |
《福布斯》雜志近日提醒,有些化妝品、護(hù)膚霜、美發(fā)產(chǎn)品中含有化學(xué)物質(zhì)、重金屬、細(xì)菌等危險(xiǎn)成分。以下是最新發(fā)布的最危險(xiǎn)美容產(chǎn)品提醒,以及如何在不妨礙日常美容護(hù)理的同時(shí)保護(hù)自己。 面霜含汞? 美國(guó)食品和藥物管理局(FDA)上周公布的一份調(diào)查吸引了人們的注意,調(diào)查稱,一些進(jìn)口面霜可能含有汞等重金屬成分,可以致毒。這種危險(xiǎn)非常嚴(yán)重,一些消費(fèi)者因所用化妝品含汞而患病。含汞面霜的功效通常集中于“亮膚”和“抗衰老”。 汞中毒的癥狀包括顫抖、記憶喪失、易怒、視力聽力下降。含汞面霜迄今已在美國(guó)七個(gè)州有售,而且已報(bào)告數(shù)起嚴(yán)重汞中毒病例。 口紅含鉛? 某些品牌的口紅含鉛一度被認(rèn)為只是“坊間傳說”,但在FDA檢測(cè)了數(shù)百種口紅后,這一傳聞得到了證實(shí)。此前,“安全化妝品運(yùn)動(dòng)”組織曾對(duì)此發(fā)布警告。 不少在全美廣受尊重的品牌口紅都檢出含鉛,包括歐萊雅、露華濃、雅芳和封面女郎。迪奧、M.A.C.等高端品牌也未能幸免。含鉛量最高的十款口紅中,有五款是美國(guó)歐萊雅制造的。 睫毛膏帶菌? 是的,睫毛膏可能帶菌,但這是在保存期限過長(zhǎng)的情況下。細(xì)菌并非睫毛膏自帶的。根據(jù)驗(yàn)光科的一項(xiàng)研究,眼部細(xì)菌可通過睫毛膏的毛刷進(jìn)入膏體。研究人員在33%的接受檢測(cè)的睫毛膏中發(fā)現(xiàn)了微生物。 美發(fā)產(chǎn)品含甲醛 盡管標(biāo)注“無甲醛”,但一些角蛋白直發(fā)產(chǎn)品經(jīng)過檢測(cè)之后都被發(fā)現(xiàn)含有甲醛成份,甲醛是一種致癌物質(zhì)。美國(guó)市場(chǎng)直發(fā)產(chǎn)品的甲醛含量并不高,如果每年直發(fā)幾次,不會(huì)產(chǎn)生太大危害,但并不提倡更頻繁地直發(fā)。經(jīng)常為客人直發(fā)的美發(fā)師受危害的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)較高。 含有礦物質(zhì)的化妝品 一些基于礦物研制的化妝品通常以粉末形式存在,而且被認(rèn)為是更天然的選擇。問題在于云母等礦物質(zhì)的微粒非常微小,可以漂浮到空氣中并吸入肺部。(試想建筑工人使用抹墻粉和其它含有云母的材料時(shí)通常戴口罩以防吸入。)目前還沒有任何針對(duì)礦物質(zhì)化妝品的警告發(fā)布,但胸腔醫(yī)學(xué)等學(xué)科的專家提醒女性,頻繁使用此類化妝品可能損傷肺部。 相關(guān)閱讀 日本發(fā)明化妝“魔鏡”輕點(diǎn)一下嘗試百變妝容 網(wǎng)上調(diào)情:關(guān)鍵是要贊美嘴唇 (中國(guó)日?qǐng)?bào)網(wǎng)英語點(diǎn)津 Julie 編輯:陳丹妮) |
Vocabulary: urban legend: 來源不明、缺少或無證據(jù),但自然地以各種形式出現(xiàn)的當(dāng)代故事或傳說 formaldehyde: 甲醛 carcinogen: 致癌物質(zhì) mica: (礦物)云母 pulmonologist: 胸腔內(nèi)科醫(yī)生 |