When you're swiping on your highlighter, one of the last things you'd ever be thinking about is if it's making you sick. Turns out the Just Shine Shimmer Powder from Justice Stores tested positive for asbestos, a fiber compound that's poisonous to humans when ingested...potentially deadly poisonous. Although its currently banned by the Food and Drug Administration for use in cosmetics (obviously), the investigative team at the WTVD station in Durham, North Carolina did some research and discovered the asbestos in Justice's Just Shine Shimmer Powder, which is sold at stores nationwide, as reported by Good Housekeeping.

To delve into the cosmetic chemistry, WTVD enlisted the help of the Scientific Analytical Institute in Greensboro — specifically that of Sean Fitzgerald, the lab's Director of Research and Analytical Services. After analyzing the products, the researchers found tremolite asbestos fibers in the talc used in the Just Shine Shimmer Powder. Talc is a commonly used clay-based mineral in makeup that give powdered products their texture. Usually, talc is tested for asbestos before using in cosmetics — the FDA requires it, in fact — but why this particular talc got through the proverbial cracks is still unknown.

"Fibers like this get into your breathing zone, and when you inhale, these fibers can get into the lung and go to the very bottom of the lung, and that is exactly where you have the greatest likelihood of asbestos to cause disease," Fitzgerald told WTVD. "Children should not be allowed to breathe it. If a 10-year-old inhaled this fiber today, when he's 50 years old, it's still there." (If you need a reminder of how dangerous asbestos poisoning is, throw your memory back to the infamous baby powder lawsuit of 2016.)

When WTVD reached out to Justice, they received the following corporate statement. "Justice is committed to the safety and integrity of our products. Upon receiving the inquiry from WTVD, we immediately began an independent investigation. We cannot speculate regarding the matter until we have more information. Nonetheless, out of an abundance of caution, we have stopped the sale of this product while we investigate."

The good news is that Justice has indeed pulled the Just Shine Shimmer Powder from shelves (digitally, at least), though it has yet to appear on the recalls section of the company website.

Updated Jul. 20, 9:05AM: Justice released the following statement regarding their Just Shine Shimmer Powder:

“A third party ISO-certified testing lab concluded there is no asbestos in our Just Shine Shimmer Powder product. Reports suggesting that the product contains asbestos are simply inaccurate. As part of our investigation and out of abundance of caution we found it necessary to quickly provide answers to our customers about our product (Item number 192307, or SKU number 19052777). Customers with any questions are encouraged to call our customer service associates at 1-866-246-5822 or email us at info@justiceretail.com.”

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