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A 13-Year Study of Skin-Lightening Creams Sold in NYC Found Mercury in Nearly 1 in 3

Researchers tested 197 skin-care products bought at retail stores across New York City between 2009 and 2022. Mercury turned up in 29% of them. Eight of the highest-testing products, mostly made in Pakistan, were still being sold online as of this month.

Meridians Life Desk

Published 24 August 2026 · Updated 24 August 2026 · 5 min read

A 13-Year Study of Skin-Lightening Creams Sold in NYC Found Mercury in Nearly 1 in 3Beauty
Photo: Photo by Brian Phetmeuangmay / Pexels (Pexels License — free to use, no attribution legally required (credited above as good practice).)

The short answer

  • A peer-reviewed study published Aug. 15, 2026 in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology tested 197 skin-care products purchased at New York City retail stores between 2009 and 2022.
  • Mercury was detected in 29% of the products tested; 18% exceeded the FDA's limit for mercury in cosmetics, and 11 products measured above 10,000 parts per million, one as high as 27,000 ppm.
  • Eight mercury-containing products, most manufactured in Pakistan, were reported as still available for purchase online as of the study's release: Chandni Whitening Cream, Due Beauty Cream, Face Fresh Beauty Cream, Faiza Beauty Cream, Golden Pearl Beauty Cream, Goree Beauty Cream with Lycopene, Sandal Whitening Beauty Cream and Seven Herbal Ubtan Cream.
  • The FDA prohibits mercury in cosmetics except in trace amounts as a preservative in certain eye-area products, and warns that exposure can cause kidney damage and neurological harm, with pregnant women, nursing infants and young children most at risk.

Nearly one in five of the skin-care products tested in a new study exceeded the FDA's limit for mercury — and some blew past it by a factor of ten thousand. The study, published under the name Fitzstevens et al. in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology, is a 13-year snapshot of products that were actually sitting on shelves in New York City, not a lab survey of what's theoretically allowed. Meridians has not independently tested any of the products named below; the findings and product names come from the published study as reported by Pressenza and cross-checked against FDA guidance on mercury in cosmetics.

What the study found

Researchers collected 197 skin-care products from retail stores in NYC neighborhoods with large West African, East Asian, South Asian, Latino and Caribbean communities, sampling between 2009 and 2022. Mercury showed up in 29% of the products. Eighteen percent exceeded the FDA's cosmetics limit for mercury. Eleven products measured above 10,000 parts per million, and the highest reading was 27,000 ppm.

Products still for sale online

  • Chandni Whitening Cream
  • Due Beauty Cream
  • Face Fresh Beauty Cream
  • Faiza Beauty Cream
  • Golden Pearl Beauty Cream
  • Goree Beauty Cream with Lycopene
  • Sandal Whitening Beauty Cream
  • Seven Herbal Ubtan Cream

Why mercury ends up in skin-lightening creams

Mercury compounds block the skin's production of melanin, which is why they've historically turned up in unregulated skin-lightening products. The FDA doesn't allow mercury in cosmetics except in trace amounts as a preservative in specific eye-area products, and even then only where no safer alternative exists. Everywhere else, its presence typically means a product was made or sold outside the reach of that rule. The FDA warns the risk isn't confined to the person using the cream: family members can be exposed through mercury vapor in the home or through contaminated towels and washcloths, and pregnant women, nursing infants and young children face the highest risk of neurological harm.

Sources

Every factual claim above is traceable to these documents. Check them — that is why they are here.

About this byline

Meridians Life Desk is an editorial desk at Meridians, not an individual. A desk byline means the article was produced and fact-checked to that desk's published standards. Read our editorial standards and corrections policy.

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