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 &mum and an average short diameter of 0.5 &mum, 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 blurring wrinkles by blending acicular zinc oxide particles thus obtained in a cosmetic.
