Kerala schools battle stealthy makeup addiction

Walk into a government school on the fringes of Kollam city and one will likely spot a strange, colourful mosaic stamped across the once-whitewashed walls — a series of bright, unmistakable lip prints.

An alarming trend is taking root as schoolchildren, some as young as 10 years, increasingly turn to hyper-cheap cosmetics such as lipsticks priced below ₹50. But what these young consumers view as a budget-friendly lifestyle is actually a quiet pipeline of industrial dyes and toxic heavy metals.

In order to maintain impossibly low prices, manufacturers are reportedly bypassing safety standards, unleashing a series of health and behavioral issues among school girls.

According to teachers, the habit has evolved into a full-blown addiction in children as some find it difficult to cope without these products. The obsession is heavily fueled by social media, where young students are captivated by child influencers showcasing their routines in popular “Get Ready With Me” (GRWM) videos.

”Even when schools try to enforce bans, students simply hide the cosmetics in their bags, step outside the school gates, and reapply them immediately. With the current child rights laws in place, our hands are tied, we cannot force them to stop using these items,” says a teacher.

He also points to the legal and regulatory vacuum surrounding the sale of these products. Unlike narcotics or alcohol,  which are strictly banned under the law, there are no restrictions on selling low-grade cosmetics to minors. “Students buy these cheap lipsticks from shops in the immediate vicinity of their schools and bring them to class in their schoolbags. They are available like pens and notebooks,” he adds.

Studies on mass-market cosmetics in India consistently reveal dangerous levels of parabens and heavy metals. Health-care professionals warn that regular exposure to these chemicals can lead to complications from anemia to neurodevelopmental disorders.

While public concern often centres on chemical toxicity, medical experts warn that the crisis has a deeper, psychological effect. Jijo Joseph John, a paediatrician at the Believers Church Medical College Hospital, Thiruvalla, points out that even organic alternative cannot fix the behavioural fallout.

“Starting cosmetic use so early triggers severe body image issues, leading children to feel inherently deficient without makeup and conditioning them to believe they can only look good with it,” he says.

Furthermore, Dr. John points out that the chemical danger extends beyond lipsticks to everyday products like kajal, which often contains high lead levels so much so that Western nations routinely screen users for lead poisoning.

To combat the growing crisis, the Kollam Child Welfare Council (CWC) recently stepped in with a dedicated “lipstick-free campus” campaign that was met with a mixed response from students who have grown accustomed to these products as daily essentials.

”The response we received after launching the campaign was eyeopening. We were contacted by school officials from across Kerala who reported that they were battling the exact same issue on their campuses. It is clear that this is not an isolated incident, but a Statewide trend that requires an organised response,” says D. Shine Dev, secretary of the CWC.