Watch Out! Your Makeup May Contain Rat Poop And Human Urine

I don’t know about you, but I don’t especially want to start my day by rubbing rat crap all over my face. Unfortunately, according to a press release issued by the London’s Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit, cheap knockoffs of common cosmetics are manufactured illegally and may contain unsanitary ingredients.

According to their lab tests, knockoff perfumes contained both human urine and cyanide. Cosmetic products applied to the face were found to contain traces of arsenic, mercury and led. Even rat waste was occasionally found in these products.

There are real dangers to makeup tools as well. Fake styling tools are actually liable to overheat and burn the person using them. Today there is a $139 million a year counterfeit cosmetic industry, but there’s a legal effort to put an end to it in the United Kingdom. Ending it has been difficult because fakes are harder to spot if you’re not paying attention or buying online.

Police are warning that if you look closer, you can spot a fake. Grammatical errors on the website you’re buying from or the product itself is a dead giveaway. Before you purchase cosmetics online, the FBI recommends doing a price check of the item against other online retailers. If the price is roughly the same, you’re likely safe.

Be careful with your purchases, especially online!

Image credit: Dee ♥, Flickr