It's true what your mum told you; if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. This adage is probably never truer than when you're offered a hefty discount on a usually premium-priced product - of course, there has to be a catch somewhere, right? For example, popping 'cheap MAC makeup' into Google will bring you heaps of cut-price offerings, but a recently study has shown some of these bargain-basement finds have scarily high levels of lead in them.
These steals, of course, are because they aren't the real McCoy: all makeup products sold in the EU have to pass rigorous safety tests to make sure they're safe to use. But, if you whack together a quick knock-off version of say, a Benefit face powder, wrap it in almost identical packaging and sell it on the sly? Well, who knows what could be going in there. Police raided a shop in Nuneaton, Warwickshire after a woman complained about a strong adverse reaction to a product she bought there - turns out, the product had almost nineteen times the legal level of lead, Yahoo reported. Gulp.
In addition to causing reactions and even causing burns, lead and other metals found in these knock-offs can be hugely dangerous to pregnant women, or play havoc with your blood pressure and fertility levels. Not really worth it for a £13 saving on a lipstick, unless you love arsenic and copper in with your pigment.
While the Trading Standards Authority are going to crack down on these sellers, we'd advise you to always buy your makeup from a reputable high street or department store website, and if a price seems too good to be true? It probably is. Plus, if full-price luxury brands are out of your price range, we rate Rimmel, Revlon, NYX Cosmetics and e.l.f Cosmetics for a more purse-friendly offering.