A student with severe nut allergies claims she was left fearing for her life after a suffering a potentially deadly reaction to a lip balm.
Amy Brown, from Middlesbrough, was careful to read the set of ingredients on the outer packaging of a NIVEA gift set she received for Christmas.
However, she claims she did not recognise sweet almond oil labelled under its chemical name Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis.
The 19-year-old tried not to panic as her lips tingled, throat became itchy, and a rash appeared on her hands, and took medication to relieve the symptoms.
NIVEA claim it has not broken any laws - almond oil was listed on the individual lip balms contained within the pack. But Miss Brown did not think she would need to check.
Miss Brown, who has been allergic to all nuts and sesame seeds since the age of four, is now urging cosmetic and food industries to be clearer, as the ingredients could have led to fatal consequences.
Amy Brown, 19, from Middlesbrough, has had nut allergies since she was four years old. She managed to control her reaction to the NIVEA Blueberry Blush Lip Butter immediately
Miss Brown said she checked the gift set packaging - but not the lip butter itself - for ingredients. She thought the product was safe before applying
Sweet almond oil was 'hidden' under its chemical name Prunus Amygadulus Dulcis
On the lip butter product, sweet almond oil is labelled in brackets. Miss Brown has urged cosmetics to be more clear, as her reaction could have been fatal
She said: 'Not stating it properly has made me anxious - what other products don't have clear labels? It was a terrifying experience but one that I wanted to turn it into something positive.
'I want to alert NIVEA to the fact that not clearly stating that nuts are in their products could be extremely dangerous for thousands of people who suffer from nut allergies like myself.
'We have standards for food labelling in regards to allergies, but cosmetic appear to be lagging far behind and I think it's time that more is done about it.'
Miss Brown received the NIVEA Luscious Lips gift tin containing two Lip Butters and two Lip Balms for Christmas from her parents.
On January 7, after having carefully inspected the ingredients on the tin, with the help of her mother, Carolyn, 47, a nurse, Miss Brown applied some of the Blueberry Blush Lip Butter.
Within seconds, Miss Brown began to feel her lips tingling and saw a rash on her hands due to touching the application of the lip balm.
She calmly wiped off the NIVEA lip balm, took anti-histamines, her inhaler and throat lozenges to try and counteract the terrifying symptoms before they escalated.
Miss Brown was on her own at the time, but a family member was able to rush home to be by her side.
Speaking of her ordeal, she said: 'I knew how to deal with it but it panicked me. My breathing went quite quick at the time and I was shaky.
'I'm really careful. I've lasted my whole life not having a reaction until a reaction last year. There are quite a lot of makeup products I don’t use because I know what to look for.'
Thankfully, by catching the reaction quickly, Miss Brown did not need to use her lifesaving EpiPen or steroids which she carries with her at all times.
Miss Brown was alone when she suffered her allergic reaction. She remained calm, knowing that previous reactions had led to hospitalisation
In an email, NIVEA confirmed that the lip balm contained sweet almond oil
