My daughter Kate has been interested in makeup for a while now. After Grandma visited, she was excited about lipstick. After I painted my nails, she was eager to have hers painted, too. Inside, I quaked. I pay attention to the health news—I’d read about lead in lipstick. And Kate sometimes bites her nails. No way did I want whatever-the-heck is in polish to make its way into her toddler body.

So far, I’ve been able to put her off with gentle distractions. But I know that won’t work forever. Some parents may prefer to skip makeup play altogether, and I can understand their concerns. Heck, I even share them. On the other hand, I remember my own childhood play with makeup (colorful fingertips + transferable kisses = fun). I was a tree-climbing, baseball-playing kid most of the time, but played with makeup occasionally. As long it doesn’t become the sole focus of her play, it’s fine with me.

Except, as I said, for my concern about the ingredients. What can I do to ensure that makeup play is a bit safer for her?

Amanda Hanley offers five tips in her recent post on Enviroblog, while the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics highlights the need for attention not just to makeup but to a host of other products as well, and the Environmental Working Group has developed a Cosmetic Safety Database for concerned consumers. We can find ourselves using some pretty toxic products, if we’re not careful.

In the meantime, here are a few things to remember:

• Avoid powders. Powder makeup can be inhaled, so opt for cream blushers or eye shadow if you’re going to use those products.

• Read the ingredients carefully. When you’re buying nail polish, skip anything that has dibutyl phthalate or toluene. These common ingredients have been linked to cancer, hormone disruption, and allergies.

• Choose fragrance-free, phthalate-free products. Fragrances may cause allergies, and they may contain phthalates. (As noted elsewhere on babygooroo, many products are likely to be highlighting the fact that they are phthalate-free.)

• Skip the lipstick. As noted above, lipstick can contain lead. That’s probably not the only bad stuff it contains and, as Amanda Hanley all-too-rightly points out, children often overdo it with the lip coloring. Opt for a lip balm or lip gloss if you can. There are many all-natural options available.

• Think twice. That cosmetic glitter that looks like such fun initially won’t be when you’re cleaning it off the couch. Eyeliner is probably too much for a young child to handle.

• Don’t share.I can’t say that I see the danger in using the coloring on my daughter’s lips, then applying from the same tube to my lips. But it is all too easy for eye infections to spread through shared makeup; this might be a lesson to begin teaching your daughter early.

• Keep it simple. If your child will be happy with some lip gloss and a little polish, maybe you don’t need the other stuff just yet.
  

Children are beautiful, and there’s nothing nicer than freshly-washed cheeks and a glowing, natural smile. But if you decide playing with makeup is ok—like I will, eventually—I hope these tips help us keep them safe!