Mokashi Aesha, Fellows Katie M, Chin Roger J, Whittaker Stephen G, Simpson Christopher D, Ceballos Diana M
Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, University of Washington School of Public Health, Seattle, Washington, United States of America.
Hazardous Waste Management Program in King County, Seattle, Washington, United States of America.
PLOS Glob Public Health. 2025 Jun 25;5(6):e0004643. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0004643. eCollection 2025.
Traditional eyeliners contain high concentrations of lead, a neurotoxic metal. In King County, Washington (WA), United States (US), several refugee and immigrant populations continue to use these products, some containing up to 800,000 parts per million (ppm) lead. Lead is toxic, especially in young children where it can cause neurological defects and growth delays. We investigated lead in eyeliners used by these communities, including traditional and nontraditional products. We conducted community-based participatory research (CBPR) to understand the use of traditional eyeliners in the local Afghan community. Our study revealed that Afghan community members were largely unaware of the dangers of lead in traditional eyeliners, but once made aware, most were willing to change their behaviors. We found that traditional eyeliners contained significantly higher median lead concentrations (10 ppm) than nontraditional eyeliners (0.06 ppm). Eyeliners manufactured in the US and the European Union (EU) had significantly lower median lead concentrations (0.94 ppm) than those from Afghanistan (29 ppm) and other low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) (2.8 ppm). Some traditional eyeliners labeled as "lead-free" contained very high lead concentrations (up to 610,000 ppm), well above the US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) guideline of 10 ppm and the WA safety guideline of 1 ppm. Our findings suggest that traditional eyeliners currently used in the US still contain hazardous materials.
传统眼线产品含有高浓度的铅，一种具有神经毒性的金属。在美国华盛顿州金县，一些难民和移民群体仍在使用这些产品，有些产品的铅含量高达百万分之80万（ppm）。铅具有毒性，对幼儿尤其如此，它会导致神经缺陷和生长发育迟缓。我们调查了这些群体使用的眼线产品中的铅含量，包括传统和非传统产品。我们开展了基于社区的参与性研究（CBPR），以了解当地阿富汗社区对传统眼线产品的使用情况。我们的研究表明，阿富汗社区成员大多未意识到传统眼线产品中铅的危害，但一旦了解，大多数人愿意改变行为。我们发现，传统眼线产品的铅含量中位数（10 ppm）显著高于非传统眼线产品（0.06 ppm）。在美国和欧盟（EU）生产的眼线产品的铅含量中位数（0.94 ppm）显著低于来自阿富汗（29 ppm）及其他低收入和中等收入国家（LMICs）（2.8 ppm）的产品。一些标注为“无铅”的传统眼线产品含有非常高的铅浓度（高达610,000 ppm），远高于美国食品药品监督管理局（FDA）的10 ppm指导标准以及华盛顿州的1 ppm安全标准。我们的研究结果表明，目前在美国使用 的传统眼线产品仍含有有害物质。
