Beware The Deadly Fake Make-Up

Trading Standards are cracking down on counterfeit make-up items being sold in the UK that contain deadly levels of chemicals.

Brands such as MAC and Benefit, which are hugely popular with celebrities and women around the world, are being imitated and sold online and in stores at a fraction of the price.

While saving £13 on a £15 MAC lipstick might sound like a good deal, in reality it really is too good to be true.

Fake beauty products that were seized from a shop in Nuneaton, Warwickshire were found to contain up to 19 times the legal level of lead.

Trading Standards were tipped off by a female customer who complained of suffering a bad skin reaction after using one of the imitation products.

High levels of lead can cause high blood pressure, fertility problems and is especially dangerous for pregnant women.

As well as lead, counterfeit make-up seized by police has been found to contain arsenic, mercury, copper and cadmium.

Some fake designer perfume has even tested positive for traces of urine.

These cheap knock-offs contain a cocktail of ingredients that unlike established brands such as MAC and Bobbi Brown, have not been approved by the strict beauty standards and thorough tests that exist to protect shoppers.

Instead, they are made of cheap and sometimes deadly ingredients and sold in near identical packaging for unrealistically low prices.

A simple online search for “cheap MAC make up” brings up a number of sites selling suspicious products.

One features a MAC pressed powder RRP £21.50 for £2.73, Dior lip gloss RRP £22 for £1.88 and Benefit’s best selling Hoola bronzer RRP £23.50 for just £2.60.

Experts are warning shoppers to be extra vigilant when shopping online and on the high street.

Always buy brand beauty products from the brands themselves or trusted, recommended retailers and check packaging for batch numbers.

Have you been caught out by counterfeit products? Let us know in the comments below.

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