Howdy, Y'all, it is your GTX Cowgirl here with some fantastic news!
Our paints have been tested by Intertek in Illinois, a 3rd party independent testing lab, and have been found to be skin safe!
We chose 3 random colors, a metallic, a neon and a regular paint and sent them off to Intertek. We tested for lots of different types of bacteria and Heavy Metals. The results are not surprising to us, but if you had any concerns, you can now rest easy. We are not only UK compliant, EU compliant, Health Canada compliant and FDA compliant, but we are also now tested and proven SAFE from excessive bacteria or excessive heavy metals.
Structure of today's blog:
Let's talk about the test, then we will talk about legal limits in different countries for heavy metals, and finally, we will talk about our numbers and what it means for you. A fantastic read on the subject is here at Canada's site, it talks about the legal limit for such products as toothpaste and cosmetics- Spoiler alert, Canada's TOOTHPASTE has a higher heavy metal limit than our products contain. (This is not an invitation to put our products in your mouths. This is paint, not food.)
The testing we had done:
The tests we chose include bacteria and heavy metals testing. Happily all paints tested are well within the legal limits for skin safety across the board! Tests conducted:
-
E. coli: E. coli testing in cosmetics checks for the presence of this bacteria, which can indicate fecal contamination or poor manufacturing practices. E. coli in cosmetics can cause skin infections and other health issues.
-
Salmonella: Testing for Salmonella in cosmetics is important as this bacterium can cause infections. It's uncommon in cosmetics but can be a risk in products with natural ingredients if not properly manufactured.
-
Staphylococcus: Staphylococcus testing in cosmetics checks for these common bacteria. Certain types like Staphylococcus aureus can cause skin infections, making it crucial to ensure they are not present in cosmetic products.
-
Total Plate Count: This test measures the total number of viable bacteria and fungi in cosmetics. It helps ensure the product meets hygiene standards and is safe for consumer use.
-
Yeasts and Molds: Testing for yeasts and molds in cosmetics is crucial as these can cause spoilage and deterioration of the product, as well as potential health issues like skin irritations or infections.
-
1,4-Dioxane: This is a contaminant that can be present in trace amounts in cosmetics, particularly in products with certain ethoxylated ingredients. It's a potential carcinogen, so its levels are regulated and monitored.
-
Arsenic: Testing for arsenic in cosmetics ensures that this toxic element is not present at harmful levels. Arsenic can cause skin and other health problems if found in high concentrations.
-
Cadmium: Cadmium testing in cosmetics is conducted to prevent high levels of this toxic metal, which can cause skin and organ damage over time.
-
Lead: Lead testing is crucial as this heavy metal is toxic even at low levels. It can cause neurological and other health issues if present in cosmetics.
-
Mercury: Mercury testing in cosmetics, especially in skin-lightening products, is important as mercury can cause skin and neurological damage. Its use in cosmetics is highly restricted due to its toxicity.
These tests were done to show that our paints are indeed skin safe. It is for you, our customer to rest easy at night. (Although, when we were at the ACE convention and I was showing our compliance paperwork to one painter, she said "Who cares? We used to put Acrylic paint on the kids back in the day!" I laughed along because I am sure that is true, and I KNOW there are still people shopping on Amazon for paint and still schools using acrylic on kids. I see it all the time on Facebook. Let's do better though. Know better, do better! Buy pro-grade products always! Let's move along.)
What are Heavy Metals?
In general, Heavy Metals are indispensable in our modern lives- their use is Industry and technology, medicine, agriculture and renewable energy is not to be argued- however they do NOT belong in cosmetic products, including Face Paint!
Heavy metals are kinds of metals that are really heavy compared to water – they're at least five times heavier. They are found naturally in the earth and can be harmful or even poisonous in small amounts. Some common ones are arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury. These metals can be bad for our health and the environment. But not all heavy metals are always bad. Some, like iron, zinc, copper, and manganese, are important for our bodies to work properly, but if we have too much of them, they can be harmful too.
Limits for Heavy Metals by country:
-
United States:
- Mercury: Allowed only as preservatives in eye area products in small amounts (not more than 65 ppm) and in other cosmetics in trace amounts of less than 1 ppm.
- Lead: FDA recommends a maximum level of 10 ppm for lead as an impurity in cosmetics.
- Color additives: Arsenic (not more than 3 ppm), Lead (not more than 20 ppm), Mercury (not more than 1 ppm).
- 1,4 Dioxane- FDA recommends a maximum amount of 10ppm
-
Canada:
- Lead: 10 ppm
- Arsenic: 3 ppm
- Cadmium: 3 ppm
- Mercury: 1 ppm
- 1, 4 Dioxane: In Canada, 1,4-dioxane is listed on Health Canada's Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist, which is a list of substances intended to be prohibited or restricted for use in cosmetics. This listing implies that cosmetics containing harmful levels of 1,4-dioxane, which can be present as an impurity, are not allowed to be sold under Canadian legislation. However, the specific legal limit for 1,4-dioxane in cosmetics in Canada is not explicitly stated in the Hotlist.
-
European Union:
- Lead: 2-5ppm
- Arsenic: .50 ppm for cosmetics. 2.5ppm for Theater Makeup (which is our category)
- Cadmium: .1 ppm
- Mercury: .1ppm
-
United Kingdom:
- Existing regulations prohibit antimony, arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury in cosmetic products. Small trace quantities of these heavy metals are exempt if they are technically unavoidable under good manufacturing practice and not harmful to health.
Fairly simple so far, right? Ok, now on to the fun part- our numbers. I am attaching an image of the actual paperwork. You can see the numbers for yourself or even call Intertek to inquire about our testing. We want to be as transparent as possible.
My apologies for the grainy images. These tests are available for DOWNLOAD in crystal clear PDF Docs in our Downloads section. Feel free to download and check them out for yourself.
As you can see, our bacteria tests are all negative, no Staph here! AND our paints are well within the legal limits for heavy metals!
We are in fact less than 1ppm with lead, with the highest paint tested at .66 (Our lowest tested at less than .05ppm) The USA and Canada has a cosmetics lead limit of 10ppm. Our paint contains 15.5 times less lead than the legal limit! The EU limit is 2-5ppm for lead, so while it is the highest number you see, it is still 3-7 times less than the EU legal limit!
Phew that was exhausting! I hope you now have a basic understanding of Heavy Metals and can feel safe knowing our paints are completely safe for skin application. Of course, we already knew that, but there have been a few whispers around the community that maybe our paints weren't safe for skin... fear not, we are here for the long haul, so we invested thousands of dollars to get these paints tested, which is NOT a legal requirement in any country to sell!
Overall we are very happy to be compliant with all laws and regulations and welcome any questions you may have regarding our skin safety. Please reach out at hello@gtxfacepaint.com