Cosmetics on a table

Reports of Side Effects With Cosmetics Increasing

Reports of adverse events associated with cosmetics and personal care products sold in the U.S. more than doubled last year, due in large part to complaints about WEN by Chaz Dean Cleansing Conditioners, a new study suggests.

June 27, 2017 | Source: Fox Business | by Reuters

Reports of adverse events associated with cosmetics and personal care products sold in the U.S. more than doubled last year, due in large part to complaints about WEN by Chaz Dean Cleansing Conditioners, a new study suggests.

Researchers examined data on side effects reported to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) from 2004 to 2016 for products like makeup, sunscreen, tattoos, hair color, perfume, shaving creams and baby care items. Overall, there were a total of 5,144 adverse events, with an average of 396 a year, researchers report in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Side effect reports climbed 78 percent to 706 in 2015, followed by a 300 percent surge to 1,591 adverse events last year, largely driven by complaints about hair care products and WEN products in particular, the study found.

“Adverse events to cosmetics matter to patients mostly because nearly everyone uses a cosmetic or personal care product every single day – this includes newborns, infants and pregnant women,” said senior study author Dr. Shuai Xu, a dermatology researcher at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.

“Unlike drugs and medical devices, cosmetics permeate daily life,” Xu said by email. “We’re exposed to hundreds of chemicals a day from these products.”