Did you know this eye makeup product almost blinded women in the 1930s?

During the 1930s, women who desired darkened and plumped-up lashes and eyebrows could go to beauty parlours where the chemical known as Lash Lure would be applied. The Lash Lure tragedy started from what seemed like an innocent beautifying process. The dye included a coal tar dye named paraphenylenediamine (PPD), which is known today to cause allergic reactions. During that time, there were few restrictions on cosmetics.

The Lash Lure tragedy put cosmetic safety under the spotlight

Lash Lure was basically hair colour for eyelashes and eyebrows. It would give you a darker look, and there were many women who did not experience any issues from using this product. But for some women, it resulted in blisters, abscesses, and ulcers developing in the face, eyelids, and eyes.

Lash Lure was not the only such beauty product. Other comparable products were Di-Lash, Coloura, Ey-Tec, Ey-dolize, Perma Coleur and Larieuse. Some of them even had harmful substances in their makeup. But Lash Lure became the product that gained fame because of eye injuries.

One of the worst cases was that of a 52-year-old lady. She went to have her eyebrows plucked at a salon and then had Lash Lure applied on them so that they looked fuller and darker. There were some open wounds because of the plucking process, which allowed an infection to set in. She ended up swelling shut her eyes, developing a fever of 104 degrees and conjunctivitis, and died after eight days.

During this period, there was not much information available regarding allergens and treatment for allergies. This was what made the Lash Lure incident more perilous. Even in modern times, PPD is a popular ingredient in hair dyes due to its permanence; however, the substance could potentially cause severe allergies. PPD is also an ingredient in cosmetic products throughout the world and has resulted in some deaths. In 2006, PPD was named Allergen of the Year by the American Contact Dermatitis Society.For more updates, join/follow our WhatsApp, Telegram and YouTube channels.

FDA used the victims of the Lash Lure tragedy to push for more laws on cosmetics. The FDA featured some shocking photographs before and after in fairs in an exhibit known as the 'American Chamber of Horrors' and claimed that cosmetics were not sufficiently regulated by existing legislation.

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