Yikes: Lush Bath Bombs Are Dyeing People’s Skin and Hair Crazy Colors

Call it the month of the beauty product backlash. First, EOS – makers of those Easter egg-like lip balm balls – was thrown in the spotlight after customers complained of blisters, bleeding and rashes. (Psst: We gave you some great alternatives for treating chapped lips here.) Now Lush is taking heat after bath bomb users began noticing a funny thing happening in the tub. Well, see for yourself: 

https://twitter.com/bbsmithwick/status/690038147594461184/photo/1

Eek. But before you go tossing your arsenal of fizzy bath bombs, know that at least one of the incidents was due to, er, user error. (No, those bath bombs are not soap, and no, they should not be scrubbed all over your body). Still, other bathers have been stained by a simple soak:

@LushWeCare I didn’t realise Granny Takes A Dip would stain my hands

The skin-staining issue isn’t particularly new. User reviews on the Lush website often note ‘cons’ like stained skin, tubs and towels, and plenty of bleached-blondes have complained about bath bombs leaving them with rainbow-stained strands. (Note: Bleached hair is more porous and takes on any sort of dye more quickly, so you’re safest to avoid colorful bath bombs.)

A Lush representative spoke with Metro.co.uk about the skin-staining, and noted that the colorful bath soaks are designed with “a calculation that has to take into account different hair and skin types” and are meant to “achieve a lovely colour in the bathwater without colouring the person soaking in that bathwater.”

Don’t want to risk pink skin? Stick with the vanilla bath bomb (a note: while this doesn’t contain any bright dyes, it does leave an oily residue in tubs), or get back to basics with good ol’ fashioned bubble bath and leave the colorful water to nature.