Student Jade Inglis says she needed a treatment used on acid attack victims after a Garnier product burnt her eyeball.
Jade removed her eye makeup before bed with Garnier’s micellar oil-infused cleansing water, and noticed nothing wrong before heading to sleep.
The next morning she woke up to find her right eye ‘glued’ shut with a sticky discharge.
Jade, 19, called 111 who told her to go to A&E.
Doctors determined Jade had a chemical burn on her eyeball, which showed up under the lens as a glowing green mark. It’s thought the burn was the result of the micellar water product.
Jade had to have her eye rinsed with a solution used on acid attack victims.
The student is now sharing photos of her injury to raise awareness of the risks of beauty products, even if they’re designed for sensitive areas.
Jade said: ‘It felt like sunburn in my eye, the pain was excruciating.
‘When my eye turned green from the dye I looked like Poison Ivy from the Batman films, thankfully it faded away after a few hours.
‘I was terrified that I’d lose my sight when I heard I had a chemical abrasion on my eye – the first thing I was asked was whether it was permanent or not.
‘They took the pH level of my eye – the level in my right eye was higher than my left – then they used a solution on my eye that I was told was used on acid attack victims.
‘I had to lie there for 20 minutes with the tube inside my eye, it was horrific.
‘It was held in place with a little sucker that looked like a toilet plunger around my whole eye. It was so uncomfortable, I’ve never felt anything like it before.
‘They put an orange dye in my eye and then looked at my eye through an optician’s lens to see if there was any permanent damage.
‘They could see a really big abrasion on my pupil from the chemical burn, that’s the green in the photo, and said it would heal by itself.
Jade was given pain relief and antibiotics and sent home. But when there was no improvement two days later, she was forced to take another trip to A&E.
‘My eye was closed all day on Saturday as I was in so much pain and crying constantly,’ said Jade.
‘I’d already booked tickets up to Sheffield to visit my boyfriend on Sunday and I didn’t want to waste my money.
‘I wore sunglasses the whole journey as I was so self-conscious.’
At the hospital Jade was given more medication and reassured that there would be no lasting damage.
Jade is now calling on Garnier to stop selling the product, as she believes it poses a risk to other customers.
‘I’ve used other Garnier micellar waters before and not had a problem,’ she said.
‘I ran out of my normal one and saw that specific oil-infused one in the shop and thought I’d try it.
‘I religiously take my makeup off before bed so dripped the cleanser onto a cotton pad and wiped it around my face and eyes to get everything off.
‘I didn’t notice anything unusual when I put the product on my skin – it looked and felt fine.
‘As soon as I woke up the next day my right eye was glued shut with discharge, I could tell it was something different to just sleep in my eye.
‘I went straight to the bathroom and tried to prise it open and wiped all the discharge away before contacting a friend and then 111.
‘It must have been that Garnier product because I’ve been using everything else for years.
‘The pain before the eyedrops was excruciating, I would be up all night crying with it. The doctors can’t do anything more with it, I’ve been told it will heal by itself.
‘If it can happen to me it can happen to anyone, I don’t want anyone else going through the pain that I have – it was horrific.
‘I’m not allergic to anything and as it’s only happened in one eye it’s clearly a chemical burn and not an allergic reaction. The bottle says it’s a product for face, eyes and lips.
‘I’ve been so self-conscious since it’s happened and been wearing sunglasses the whole time.
‘I’m still really scared to put makeup on – I haven’t dared to put anything near me.
‘I’d like Garnier to take it off the shelves, it specifically says it’s for eyes and it gave me a chemical burn.’
A Garnier spokesperson said: ‘Micellar Oil-Infused Cleansing Water, like all of the products in our Garnier range, undergoes rigorous testing to ensure it is safe to use, even on sensitive skin.
‘Our consumer advice team is currently in conversation with Jade to understand the facts around her specific experience.’
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