A report from a CNN affiliate claimed that a number of types of children's makeup being sold at Claire's stunningly contained tremolite asbestos.
Asbestos, often used in building materials and since outlawed, can be deadly. When inhaled or swallowed, it's been linked to cancer and lung damage. The most worrying ailment it causes is mesothelioma, which is an aggressive type of cancer that is often deadly.
Clearly, that's not the type of product parents wanted to see their children applying every day. Asbestos exposure is often linked to workers and older buildings made with asbestos-containing materials, but the risk could be incredible for kids using it in daily products.
As such, Claire's recently announced that it had taken the nine types of makeup listed in the report right off of the shelves.
It is worth noting that the store is carrying out its own testing. It claims that no asbestos was found in the first round of those tests. Because of the scope of the risk and the national attention, though, more tests are being conducted and the products won't be sold due to what the company called "an abundance of caution."
In question was a talcum ingredient supply coming from a European vendor. The statement also says that tests on that ingredient did not show any asbestos.
It will be very interesting to see what future test results look like, especially as they are carried out in independent labs and not by the company itself. Even so, parents who are worried that their kids may have been exposed to toxic materials may want to know all of their legal options.
Source: CNN, "Claire's pulls children's makeup kits over asbestos concerns," Sandee LaMotte, Dec. 29, 2017