Almost every store sells the lip balm that comes in colorful, egg-shaped packaging. Several celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Anna Kendrick, and Hilary Duff have been known to promote the product as well as Miley Cyrus and Britney Spears. It is impossible to miss the product that has recently been growing in popularity at the check out counter.
However, EOS (Evolution of Smooth), the company that created the popular egg-shaped lip balm is facing legal charges. Consumers are are claiming that their lips and skin surrounding their mouth broke out in rashes, blisters, and bleeding after using the product; their lips also completely dried out after applying the lip balm.
Rachel Cronin's story has gone viral, being advertised on several popular social media websites. Pictures of her red, blistered mouth are accompanying the articles alongside pictures of the popular lip balm. Her lawsuit against the company claims that they misrepresented their product by advertising it as "natural" and "organic" (via US News).
The company claims that their product is 99 percent natural and organic. They took to their Facebook and Twitter pages to assure their customers that the product continues to be both natural and organic. They wanted their product users to know that despite recent claims it was still safe to use EOS lip balm. They were also sure to mention that their customers' health and well-being was a top priority within the company. The posts include a reaction to the lawsuits stating that they believe that the claims against them are unjust.
Are EOS products really the reason behind customers' cracked and blistered lips?
Dermatologists state that Rachel Cronin's condition following her use of the product may have been the result of a simple allergic reaction, a very common occurrence when using items that have several chemicals in them. There is a belief that natural and organic problems do not cause these kinds of reactions. Dr. Adam Friedman states that this is wrong. Natural products are not guaranteed to be safe. Anything that comes in contact with the skin can cause a contact reaction if the person is allergic to it.
Doctors also explain that reactions similar to the one Rachel Cronin experienced after using EOS are common with several other lip balm brands. In fact, simply licking your lips could cause the same reaction that Rachel Cronin experienced. Perhaps EOS is not at fault for Cronin's condition. This case could possibly just be an incident of bad PR for the company.
