‘Dangerous and illegal’ chemicals found in 90% of all teeth whitening and gel nail kits sold online, report warns

UP to nine in ten teeth whitening kits and gel nail kits bought online could be unsafe, trading standards experts warn.

Bosses say imports frequently contain chemicals in illegal or potentially harmful quantities or mixtures.

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The Chartered Trading Standards Institute will launch a campaign today to warn Brits to be careful where they buy cosmetics.

It has found the worst at-home teeth whitening kits contain 300 times the permitted amount of hydrogen peroxide bleach.

Shoppers are able to buy professional-grade UV gel nail kits that can cause severe reactions if they touch the skin when applied by amateurs.

And skin-lightening creams have been found to have banned chemicals including hydroquinone and mercury.

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Teams at ports in Suffolk found that 88 per cent of imported products tested in the past year were unsafe or not compliant with UK law.

Christine Heemskerk, lead officer for product safety, said: “Cosmetic products should attract

compliments, not complications.

“These dangerous goods can leave the public with serious life-long side effects.

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“Trading Standards will remove these products from sale and take action where needed, but online sellers need to take responsibility.

“Online marketplaces can and must do better.”

British laws are struggling to keep pace with the booming beauty industry and customers risk painful and disfiguring side effects from DIY treatments or cheap clinics.

New rules are being drawn up for cosmetic procedures like fillers and Botox to halt a rise in rogue practitioners.

At-home treatments are hard to control as there are huge numbers of products available online.

Dr Emma Meredith, of the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Perfumery Association, said: “We advise

purchasing your cosmetic products from a reputable retail source and ensuring they are correctly labelled with a full ingredients list.

“If a product is labelled ‘for professional use only’, please only trust a professional to apply it.”