SEOUL, July 18 (AJU PRESS) – Korean authorities have discovered a carcinogenic substance in women’s underwear sold on Shein, a popular Chinese e-commerce platform. The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on Thursday that the underwear contained arylamine, a known carcinogen, at levels nearly three times higher than the Korean safety standard.
The investigation, conducted from June 11 to July 11, examined 330 items including clothing, cosmetics, food containers and hygiene products sold on Chinese platforms Shein, Temu and AliExpress. The women’s underwear from Shein contained 87.9 mg per kg of arylamine, significantly exceeding the Korean limit of 30mg per kg.
Additionally, 14 cosmetic products were found to contain bacteria exceeding Korean standards, with some testing positive for staphylococcus aureus, a pathogenic bacterium. Nail products from Ali and Shein contained nickel and dioxane at levels up to 97.4 and 1.6 times the Korean limits, respectively.
“Given that carcinogenic substances and components with safety concerns were detected in underwear, cosmetics and food containers that directly contact the skin, extra caution is needed when purchasing these products,” said Kim Tae-hee, head of the Citizen’s Health Bureau at the Seoul Metropolitan Government. The city plans to request a sales halt for the 20 problematic products through the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the respective online platforms.
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