Heavy metals in cosmetics pose potential health risks to consumers. Arsenic, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, lead, mercury, and nickel are elements that are commonly referred to as "heavy metals" or "toxic metals." They can be toxic to humans and this depends on how we are exposed to them, at what levels, for how long and how frequently this occurs. There is an expectation that dermal exposure is typically the most common route as many product types are applied to the skin. Some consumers can develop sensitivity towards these elements potentially leading to allergic contact dermatitis or other skin problems. There is also potential for oral exposure for products such as lipsticks and those used in and around the mouth as these can be ingested or absorbed. Consequently, it is important to understand the levels of heavy metals and have a good understanding of the levels of exposure and the toxicological risk they pose. To ensure consumer safety and reduce health risks from toxic elemental impurities in cosmetics, it is critical to conduct an accurate and sensitive analyses of raw materials or finished cosmetics products.

Personal care products and facial cosmetics are commonly used by millions of consumers on a daily basis. Direct application of cosmetics on human skin makes it vulnerable to a wide variety of ingredients. Despite the protecting role of skin against exogenous contaminants, some of the ingredients in cosmetic products are able to penetrate the skin and to produce systemic exposure. Consumers’ knowledge of the potential risks of the frequent application of cosmetic products should be improved. While regulations exist in most of the high-income countries, in low income countries there is a lack of similar standards. In most countries for which these legal regulations have been identified, restrictions on the permissible level of heavy metals are strict. There is a need for enforcement of existing rules, and rigorous assessment of the effectiveness of these regulations. The occurrence of metals in cosmetic products is of concern for three principal reasons:
a) The use of cosmetic products could represent a possible source of population-wide exposure daily, and often long-term exposure to metals in cosmetic products
b) Metals can accumulate in the body over time, and
c) A number of them are known to exhibit different chronic health effects, such as cancer, contact dermatitis, developmental, neurological and reproductive disorders, brittle hair and hair loss. ome metals are potent endocrine disruptors and respiratory toxins. Moreover, some metals, such as Cd, As, Pb, Hg and Sb, are exceptionally toxic with a wide variety of chronic health effects, whereas Cr, Ni and Co are well known skin sensitizers. Since the issue of heavy metals as deliberate cosmetic ingredients has been addressed, attention is turned to the presence of these substances as impurities

Toxicological Risk Assessments

Toxicology consultants are experienced in delivering advisory services related to metals in cosmetics product quality, safety, efficacy and labelling requirements. We evaluate the toxicity of the individual chemical ingredients of the formulation used to manufacture the product where each ingredient is assessed for its hazard or "inherent" toxicity such as acute toxicity, skin/eye irritancy, potential for skin sensitization, reproductive, genotoxic, or carcinogenic activity, in relation to the potential for consumer exposure to the chemical. All Laboratory also evaluate the potential for synergistic or unpredictable adverse effects from the combination of ingredients in the formulation and assess exposure considerations such as the characteristics of the product such as physical form and size/volume, accessibility (e.g. liquid components) and intended use

India Introduces Regulations For Heavy Metals in Cosmetics

In the wake of certain imported cosmetic products found to be containing spurious materials, especially heavy metals in cosmetics, which are hazardous to the body, the government of India has issued regulations regarding registration and testing of all the imported cosmetic products. However, the imported cosmetic items which are not meant to be sold in the Indian market are out of this bound.

The regulation is effective from October 1, 2011. As per the Indian Drugs and Cosmetics Act of 1940, the registration could be issued by the office of the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) or his nominee.

For registration fee for each cosmetics brand has been decided to be USD 250. The fee could be paid in USD or equivalent Indian rupee, directly by the manufacturer, or by the designated distributor or the agent. The regulation also contains guidelines for the testing of cosmetics products for heavy metals, whereby the products could be tested in a laboratory authorized by the government.

The time period for issuance of the registration certificate will be within six months from the date of submission of the application form and the required documents including test report for heavy metals in cosmetics. The duration of a registration certificate will be for a period of three years from the date of its issue unless it is suspended or canceled sooner for some reason.

It is also mandatory that the label of imported cosmetics would have the registration number of the product and the name and address of the registration certificate holder for sale of the product in India.

As per the Drug and Cosmetics Act, India prohibits the manufacture and import of any cosmetic products containing hexachlorophene, lead, arsenic or mercury compounds.

There are specified permitted limits for the synthetic organic colors and natural organic colors used and heavy metals in the cosmetics. The number of heavy metals in cosmetic shall not exceed:
2 parts per million of arsenic calculated as arsenic trioxide.
20 parts per million of lead calculated as lead.
100 parts per million of heavy metals other than lead calculated as the total of the respective metals