Study of contaminants in natural cosmetics

OBJECTIVES: Cosmetic products placed on the market should be safe for both the consumer and the professional user. Safety monitoring of cosmetics is regulated by law in the European Union. In practice, there are 3 levels of safety assessment: the manufacturer, a qualified safety assessor and the competent authority, which in Poland is the State Sanitary Inspectorate, responsible also for official surveillance and product sampling. To identify the occurrence of threats to human health from selected chemical and biological factors based on cosmetic products distributed in Podkarpackie Province in 2023. MATERIAL AND METHODS: were analyzed. RESULTS: was not detected. CONCLUSIONS: Cosmetic products tested in 2023 showed formaldehyde below the detection limit (<0.005%), while mercury, AgNO₃, and microbiological contaminants were within legal limits. Results apply only to the analyzed samples and should be interpreted considering current formaldehyde limits in cosmetics (0.001%, 10 ppm). Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2026;39(2).