A woman who loves beauty products and most of all lipsticks, can never have enough of them. Lipsticks are an important part of a female’s makeup routine.

Lipsticks contain waxes like candelilla, ozokerite, beeswax, and carnauba wax which has a high melting point and these waxes are used to strengthen the lipstick. Various fats and oils are also used to make lipsticks and these oils can be petrolatum, lanolin, cocoa butter, mineral oil, and olive oil.

If your lipstick leaves an oily residue it may be due to the use of tallow or animal fat taken from dead animal carcasses. Tallow is used by many cosmetics companies as it saves them a lot of money. Make sure your lipstick isn’t made of any of these – myristic acid, lauric acid, caprylic acid, lard, suet, hydrolyzed collagen, palmitic acid, oleyl stearate, oleyl oleate, oleic acid, stearic acid or any ingredient with the word tallow.

Your lipstick also contains heavy metals like industrial grade minerals which can lead to cancer, harm your reproductive system, and lead to organ toxicity. These won’t be listed in the ingredients of your lipstick but anything which begins with green, violet, yellow, blue, and red, indicates the use of heavy metals. Heavy metals are mostly never listed but include antimony, chromium, aluminum, cadmium, arsenic, nickel, iron, and lead.

Here are six ingredients to look out for in your lipstick.

Perfume
The use of perfumes is regulated under the trade secret law. The company does not reveal the ingredients. FDA cannot decipher the meanings of ingredients which are used, but perfumes can result in skin rashes, respiratory issues, and migraine.

Methylparaben
This is used as a preservative in many beauty products. This ingredient is banned in European Union countries as it is linked to cancer and it disturbs the endocrine system. It has been marked as highly hazardous.

Petroleum
This is found in cream-based lipsticks and lip glosses. It tends to causes rashes, acne, and clogs the pores. While buying a lipstick, look for ingredients like petroleum distillates, paraffin, and mineral oils. These ingredients repel water and clog the pores causing them to suffocate.

Lead
Elevated lead in the bloodstream is known to cause miscarriages and seizures. If children are exposed to it, it can cause permanent brain damage. Make sure your lipstick does not have any lead in it.

Parabens
This is a common preservative in cosmetics and costs almost nothing. Parabens are linked to many diseases. It has been found in the tissue of breast tumors and it is found to be carcinogenic when taken in high doses; it is also linked to allergic reactions. Matte lipsticks also contain parabens.

Tocopheryl acetate
This is also called vitamin E acetate. It is used in almost all beauty products like primers, foundations, and lipsticks. This ingredient causes toxic reactions like burning, itching, skin blisters, hives, and scaling. It can also cause weakness, nausea, diarrhea, headaches, dizziness, and tiredness.