Accidental self-poisioning in cosmetics

I personally don't artifically protect them from such things. The times were as they were. If something was thought to be good or harmless in its day, but now is known to be harmful (i.e. smoking), then so be it. I would rather be authentic than to alter or change things.

But if it should bother you, simply make up an in-character reason why she would not wear makeup or have her perfer natural coloring due to allergies or something.

But to answer the original question, no - I let the chips fall as history dictates.

In some places and times, lead was also common in the dinnerware and other objects of daily use. Everyone was sort of slowly getting lead poisoning!

I keep to the fashions of the time. If my character would have worn make-up, then she should be wearing it. Not everyone would immediately show signs of severe lead poisoning, though. Even if now we consider something harmful, I keep to the realities of the time.

Men often wore as much in the way of powders and cosmetics as women - at least, depending on your period/region. In Egypt, it was kohl, the Romans called it stibium - it all had lead, and much had arsenic.

It's possible to stay authentic, but not have everyone die at the end a la "Blackadder" just because they wore cosmetics. Not everyone who smokes dies of cancer ...

Today's cosmestics are tested, but they too will end up being harmful over the long run--carcinogenic in many cases, as you'll probably live to see. When there was open sewage on the streets and no antibiotics, I don't think lead makeup was that big a problem, comparatively. I've set stories in the late 20th century when women smoked and drank while pregnant, with their doctors' blessing, took DES, got injected with urine as a diet. Why lie? Women did those things. My mother used to pour Mercurochrome into our open wounds. Now they say not to use even peroxide. Plus ça change...

Yeah, I agree with everyone else. That's the way things were. But if you are personally against it, then just have them walk about sans makeup. Or they can be an earth baby type and make their own out of hemp oil and berries or whatever. But it wasn't a big deal back then. It's not even a big deal now. Lipstick didn't kill Marilyn Monroe.

Rice powder is still used as a skin whitener. Though I read that it can stretch the skin as it swells when it absorbs sweat.

Not all women wore make up and there were times when wearing it was not socially acceptable.

I wonder if you mean the 18th century, because of the trends for white powdered skin and hair powder, too? Maria Gunning, a famous socialite, died of blood poisoning after using too much lead-based makeup. She died in 1760.

I have a character use Gower's lotion, which was basically a chemical peel. I wouldn't use it, but they wouldn't have known any better.

My dad used some kind of chemical as a teenager which basically turned his face red and then burned off a layer of skin as an acne treatment. It's heavily regulated these days, but it worked because he never had an acne problem after that.