Toxics Watch Group Lauds Lazada and OLX for Delisting Online Ads for Mercury-Tainted Skin Whitening Cosmetics
The EcoWaste Coalition, a non-profit environmental and health group, gave online shopping sites Lazada and OLX two thumbs up for quickly removing third-party advertisements for banned cosmetics laced with mercury, a potent neurotoxin.
The group had earlier alerted the two e-shopping platforms about the alarming proliferation of unlawful ads for “Goree Beauty Cream with Lycopene with SPF 30 Avocado & Aloe Vera” and “Goree Day & Night Whitening Cream” that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had banned due to their mercury content.
The FDA in October last year issued Advisory No. 2017-289 warning the public against the purchase and use of the said Goree cosmetics after laboratory tests confirmed the presence of mercury above the maximum allowable limit of one part per million (ppm) as per the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive.
Imported from Pakistan, the banned Goree skin lightening cosmetics “have not gone through the verification process of the agency and have not been issued the proper authorization in the form of acknowledged cosmetic notifications.”
“Our group lauds both Lazada and OLX for duly responding to our notification regarding the inappropriate use of their sites by third-party merchants to sell mercury-laden skin whitening products banned by the FDA,” said Thony Dizon, Chemical Safety Campaigner, EcoWaste Coalition.
“The removal of the deceptive ads will protect online shoppers from being duped into buying and using dangerous skin care products that promise to whiten the color of the skin,” he said.
“Their action is in step with the implementation of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from the adverse effects of mercury, which, among other provisions, seeks to phase out mercury use in products such as skin lightening cosmetics with mercury above 1 ppm,” he added.
Based on the screening conducted by the EcoWaste Coalition using a handheld X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) device, Goree Beauty Cream had 25,300 ppm of mercury, while Goree Whitening Cream had 21,800 ppm, way above the trace amount limit of 1 ppm.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “the main adverse effect of the inorganic mercury in skin lightening soaps and creams is kidney damage.”
“Mercury in skin lightening products may also cause skin rashes, skin discoloration and scarring, as well as a reduction in the skin’s resistance to bacterial and fungal infections,” the WHO warned.
“Other effects include anxiety, depression or psychosis and peripheral neuropathy,” it further said.
-end-
Reference:
http://www.fda.gov.ph/advisori es-2/cosmetic-2/472052-fda-adv isory-no-2017-289
http://www.who.int/ipcs/assess ment/public_health/mercury_fly er.pdf
The group had earlier alerted the two e-shopping platforms about the alarming proliferation of unlawful ads for “Goree Beauty Cream with Lycopene with SPF 30 Avocado & Aloe Vera” and “Goree Day & Night Whitening Cream” that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had banned due to their mercury content.
The FDA in October last year issued Advisory No. 2017-289 warning the public against the purchase and use of the said Goree cosmetics after laboratory tests confirmed the presence of mercury above the maximum allowable limit of one part per million (ppm) as per the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive.
Imported from Pakistan, the banned Goree skin lightening cosmetics “have not gone through the verification process of the agency and have not been issued the proper authorization in the form of acknowledged cosmetic notifications.”
“Our group lauds both Lazada and OLX for duly responding to our notification regarding the inappropriate use of their sites by third-party merchants to sell mercury-laden skin whitening products banned by the FDA,” said Thony Dizon, Chemical Safety Campaigner, EcoWaste Coalition.
“The removal of the deceptive ads will protect online shoppers from being duped into buying and using dangerous skin care products that promise to whiten the color of the skin,” he said.
“Their action is in step with the implementation of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from the adverse effects of mercury, which, among other provisions, seeks to phase out mercury use in products such as skin lightening cosmetics with mercury above 1 ppm,” he added.
Based on the screening conducted by the EcoWaste Coalition using a handheld X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) device, Goree Beauty Cream had 25,300 ppm of mercury, while Goree Whitening Cream had 21,800 ppm, way above the trace amount limit of 1 ppm.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “the main adverse effect of the inorganic mercury in skin lightening soaps and creams is kidney damage.”
“Mercury in skin lightening products may also cause skin rashes, skin discoloration and scarring, as well as a reduction in the skin’s resistance to bacterial and fungal infections,” the WHO warned.
“Other effects include anxiety, depression or psychosis and peripheral neuropathy,” it further said.
-end-
Reference:
http://www.fda.gov.ph/advisori es-2/cosmetic-2/472052-fda-adv isory-no-2017-289
http://www.who.int/ipcs/assess ment/public_health/mercury_fly er.pdf
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