PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide acicular zinc oxide particles having excellent ultraviolet shielding properties and effect of blurring wrinkles, to provide a method for producing acicular zinc oxide particles capable of forming a particle shape into an acicular shape and controlling the particle diameters using an environmentally friendly, simple and low-cost technique, and to provide a cosmetic having high ultraviolet shielding properties and excellent transparent feeling and effect of blurring wrinkles.SOLUTION: There are provided zinc oxide particles having an average long diameter of 3.0 μm and an average short diameter of 0.5 μm, which have acicular shape. The zinc oxide particles can be synthesized by dissolving zinc oxide with an acidic solution such as nitric acid and mixing the resulting water-soluble zinc compound and an amine compound and followed by heat treatment. There is obtained a cosmetic having high ultraviolet shielding properties and excellent transparent feeling and effect of blurr
