CAUTION: This $24 lipstick contains lead!
Do you know what you’re buying?

Find out what’s in your favorite beauty products and discover the secret to safer alternatives. Join us for a free event July 19 at the San Francisco Library. Meet Stacy Malkan, author of “Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry,” and special guests Sarah Janssen, MD, PhD; and Jessica Assaf, Teens for Safe Cosmetics. Emceed by ALEXA from Movin’ 99.7

SATURDAY, JULY 19, 12-2, SAN FRANCISCO LIBRARY, KORET AUDITORIUM
100 Larkin Street, across from Civic Center BART

WIN FREE NON-TOXIC MANICURES AND MAKEOVERS!

Here is a $1.99 tube of LEAD-FREE Wet N Wild:
And the industry can’t get lead out of lipstick?!

The $50 billion beauty industry can do better. Companies already know how to make lipstick without lead and shampoo without 1,4 dioxane. Now we have to make them do it. Help us give the beauty industry a makeover! Hope to see you July 19 … Stacy Malkan

The companies say they can’t do it. It’s too hard to get lead out of lipstick. But don’t you worry, they say, it’s just a little bit of lead in the lipstick, and lead is mostly a problem only for kids (and where do they think kids come from?).

Well, we worry. Because we know that lead is highly toxic to the brain even in tiny doses. Lead builds up in our bodies and it stays in our bodies for a long time, so it can endanger our future children even if we aren’t pregnant now. And more than worried, we’re mad, because lipstick doesn’t need to contain lead!

How do I know this? Because I am holding in my hand a $1.99 tube of Wet N Wild lipstick that has no lead in it. And here I have an $8.50 Revlon lipstick in a lovely shade of red — with no lead.

But over here is an $8.50 tube of L’Oreal Colour Riche lipstick with the highest lead content found in recent product tests conducted by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. And here’s a fancy tube of lead-containing lipstick made by Dior Addict that sells for $24.50 — and let’s not forget that the actual lipstick part of the product costs the company about 15 cents!

So yes we think the beauty industry can do better. Stay tuned for round two in the lead-in-lipstick legislative battle, coming soon.

And a B.S. radar alert: While the beauty industry is under the gun with toxic chemical controversies, they have plenty of mind-warping weapons in their arsenal! The leaded lipstick scandal got huge press — from Good Morning America to the Washington Post — but all the beauty industry has to do to get our attention is buy a prime time series.

If you watch Lipstick Jungle (I admit to being a fan even though I may be the only one): keep an eye out for sneaky Maybelline NY product placements in the show, faux make-up tips with experts (so you, too, can look like Nico Riley!) and the annoying barrage of lip-plumping ads (6% plumper guaranteed!) — all sponsored by L’Oreal, the manufacturer that wins the prize for making the most lead-contaminated lipstick of all. It really is a jungle out there! … Stacy Malkan

RECENT INTERVIEWS with Stacy: ABC 7 Chicago, CBS 4 Miami, Grist.com. the LA Times blog, Green Living Online, and see the Green LA Girl book giveaway!

The political winds are shifting: Nine states introduced legislation in 2008 to regulate toxic chemicals in personal care products, and Democrats in the US Congress are pushing to strengthen cosmetics regulations at the federal level. California is considering a bill to ban lead from lipstick.

Skin Deep tops 59 million searches! EWG’s Skin Deep is now getting 5 million searches per month and growing – proving that once people start asking questions about their favorite personal care products, they don’t want to stop!

Natural products raise the bar: The rush is on to create standards for “natural” and “organic” personal care products. While there is still no single industry standard, the upshot is that products are actually getting safer. Example: In order to meet Whole Foods’ new Premium Body Care standard, companies have been quietly removing synthetic fragrance, toxic surfactants and other undesirables.

The good word is spreading: “Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry,” the book that tells the inside story of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, is now in its second printing with more than 10,000 copies sold. The book recently won a 2008 Silver Medal IPPY award!

And best of all…

Babies are getting safer: Years ago, I heard Pete Myers, co-author of “Our Stolen Future,” say that the single most important thing a person can do to avoid toxic exposure is to stop using #7 plastic bottles made with bisphenol-A (BPA). This freaked me out because I spent years in Colorado where the Holy Grail of water bottles were the fashionable (and toxic) #7 Nalgene bottles. Nalgene finally agreed to reformulate (which should have happened years ago), and now even the New York Times is advising parents to avoid BPA-containing bottles. Congratulations to everyone who exposed the ridiculously risky practice of making baby and water bottles out of estrogenic chemicals. Who ever thought that was a good idea to begin with??

There is still much to be done to raise public consciousness about the toxic chemical soup that is modern industrial society. But back to the good news: millions of you are working to change that every day by supporting and developing the new green economy. Cheers to you all! –Stacy Malkan

The contest honors the best independently published books of the year in 64 categories. “We were impressed with the in-depth research in our non-fiction and current events entries, (and) the important breakthroughs in our science and health entries,” wrote the contest judges. “We’ve tried to highlight the best of the best.”

“This award is a tribute to the breakthrough work of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, and I am honored to share the inspiring story of the women and men who are changing the face of the beauty industry,” said author Stacy Malkan. “I’m so pleased people are using my book as an organizing tool to spread the word about safer products.”

Reviews of “Not Just a Pretty Face”

“An encouraging and empowering story!” — LA Times blog review

“Read this book! It is educational, unsettling, and inspiring. Personally, I have made several changes in the products I use and the quantity.” Kaffeine Buzz

“Check out this book!” EcoSmart Consumer

“A must read for anyone who uses any type of cosmetic/beauty/personal care product.” Threadbanger

“This is an outside-the-box book that reads like a captivating novel and lands much to close for comfort… It is a must-read.” Alive Magazine, April 2008.

MS Magazine “Great Reads of Winter 2008!”

More reviewer comments here

Join Stacy Malkan at the San Francisco Library’s Koret Auditorium for this free special event for moms, daughters, teens and weens. You don’t want to miss this — mark you calendars!

When: Saturday, July 19, 12-2 p.m.
Where: San Francisco Library, Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin Street, San Francisco; Civic Center BART
Who: Emceed by Alexa at Movin’ 99.7. Stacy Malkan, author of “Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry,” Sarah Janssen, MD, PhD, MPH, science fellow, National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Jessica Assaf, Teens for Safe Cosmetics.

Win free gift baskets, non-toxic manicures and makeovers!

Discover the secret to safer cosmetics and join the effort to give the beauty industry a makeover! Book reading at Whole Foods, Franklin
When: Thursday,May 22, 10 a.m. - 11 a.m.
Where: Whole Foods Market, Franklin
1765 California St
San Francisco, CA 94109
415.674.0500
Check out the Whole Foods Premium Standard - raising the bar for natural personal care products.

OPPPORTUNITY GREEN presents: Beauty & Sustainability. An evening of pampering and education, with beauty tips, mini-facials, cosmetic consultations, organic food, VIP gift bags and more with leading eco-experts! $20 suggested donation at the door. RSVP: http://beauty.eventbrite.com/

· Where: LuLuLemon Athletica, 334 North Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210

· When: May 13, 7-10 p.m.

· Panelists: Rachelle Carson, actress, producer, wife of Ed Begley Jr. and stars in Living With Ed; Jolene Anello of Jurlique skin care company; Renata Helfman, founder/owner of Vert and veteran Hollywood make-up artist.

· More info: Laura Beatty, 310-226-6460; laura@opportunitygreen.com; RSVP: http://beauty.eventbrite.com/

May 8: New Haven Connecticut - YALE UNIVERSITY: Free community event * Light refreshments * Free samples * Spend an evening with green luminaries, including special guests Paul Anastas, the father of green chemistry, and Sean Grey, the architect of Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep database

• Where: Yale University, Lindsey-Chittenden Hall Room 102, 63 High Street corner of High and Chapel, New Haven, CT
• When: May 8, 6:30 – 8 p.m.
• Panelists: Paul Anastas, Director of Yale’s Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering; Dr. Gary Ginsberg, toxicologist and radio host; Dawyn Cloud-Alter, founder of See the Dawn Natural Skin Care Products. Hosted by Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and the Coalition for a Safe and Healthy CT

Beauty News We Can All Use: Carcinogens in baby shampoo. Lead in lipstick. What’s going on? Find out what toxic chemicals are lurking in your favorite products, discover the secret to safer alternatives, and help give the beauty industry a makeover! Join Stacy Malkan, author of “Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry,” at these upcoming events …

May 7: PORTLAND, MAINE – LONGFELLOW BOOKS
Book reading, discussion with leaders from the Environmental Health Strategy Center

• Where: Longfellow Books, 1 Monument Way, Portland Maine
• When: May 7, 7 p.m