Assessment of Trace Metals in Imported Cosmetics marketed in Nigeria

Abstract

This work is aimed at investigating the levels of some trace metals in make-up items mainly imported into Nigeria. Ten different make-up items were analyzed for seven trace metals. Atomic adsorption Spectrophotometer (AAS) was used to quantify the presence of these heavy metals. The trace metals analyzed included Zn, Cr, Co, Cd, Mn, Pb, and Ni. The concentration of Zn (0.6866 mg/Kg) was found to be the highest in sample I followed by Mn with (0. 5485 mg/Kg) while Cr in sample C and F, and Cd in sample A where below detectable limit.  These heavy metals were found to be within safe limits of Health Canada, The Japanese Standards of Cosmetic Ingredients (JSCI), FDA and The European Cosmetics Directive for healthy cosmetics free of trace metals toxicity.

Keywords: Trace metals, Imported, Nigeria, AAS, limit, and FDA.