Claire’s, the popular high street retailer, has removed three cosmetic products from its shelves as a cautionary measure, after a warning they could be contaminated with asbestos fibres.

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral often found near talc when mined. Talc is a key ingredient in many cosmetic products, and is used to prevent caking or make facial make-up opaque. Exposure to asbestos can lead to serious health conditions including lung cancer and mesothelioma.

The US Food and Drug Federation has warned consumers via social media not to use the products after samples tested positive for tremolite asbestos.

The products are:

• Claire’s Eye Shadows (batch no/lot no: 08/17)

• Claire’s Compact Powder (batch no/lot no: 07/15)

• Claire’s Contour Palette (batch no/lot no: 04/17)

“Out of an abundance of caution, we have removed the three products identified by the FDA from our stores, and are also removing any remaining talc-based cosmetic products. We will honour returns of any Claire’s talc based cosmetics”

Claire’s Europe

The FDA does not have the authority to force a recall, and so issued the safety alert. The FDA has requested Claire’s recalls the products, but the retailer has not yet complied.*

Claire’s have disputed the findings of the tests since early in 2018, citing that the test results had “significant errors” and had “mischaracterised fibres in the products as asbestos.”

*Since this article was published, Claire’s has recalled the three products in question.

Source: asbestos.com