Health authorities recommend “no longer using” purchased Joëlle Ciocco products and consulting a doctor in case of adverse effects. Indeed, the National Security Agency of medication and health products (ANSM) announced on Wednesday the suspension of the marketing of cosmetics of the brand, until compliance with the regulations.
Following an inspection carried out in June 2022 at the brand’s production site in Conflans-Saint-Honorine (Yvelines) as well as at the head office in Paris, the ANSM investigators found “that the company Capital Joëlle Ciocco did not comply with the regulations for cosmetic products”, explains the agency.
Prohibited products
Checks in laboratory also proved that “certain products prepared specifically for customers contained a corticosteroid, betamethasone, which is used in the composition of medicines and which can only be used within the framework of a medical prescription”, adds the ANSM in a press release.
Betamethasone is a corticosteroid that has properties anti-inflammatories. It can be prescribed to treat certain dermatological pathologies, such as eczema, but should not be applied to the face unless formally prescribed by a doctor. It can lead to undesirable effects, particularly to be feared in the event of prolonged use, such as a risk of thinning and fragility of the skin, an outbreak of acne or depigmentation.
A rare decision
“Consequently, we are suspending the manufacture, marketing, , distribution and use of cosmetic products of the Joëlle Ciocco Paris brand”, of “cosmetic products prepared specifically by the company Capital Joëlle Ciocco”, as well as that “specifically prepared products containing betamethasone”, writes the ANSM. The agency “asked the company to withdraw all of its products from sale”.
“The major sections of the regulations applicable to cosmetic products were not respected,” said Dominique Labbé, deputy director of the ANSM’s inspection department. Compliance “is an achievable objective for the firm which can complete its shortcomings”, she underlines, specifying that the decision to suspend the sale of cosmetic products of a brand, “is not frequent”.