Friday, 14 August 2009
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Does Your Makeup Need To Be Tossed?
vFor a girl contributing to a beauty blog, I'm not very good at throwing away makeup, even if its been a while. It's probably just the broke college student in me talking, but after seeing a friend of mine get an eye infection from some bacteria-laden mascara, I'm thinking I have to shut that part of me up.
But how do you tell when makeup's ready to be tossed? Since there aren't expiration dates on makeup (there are no laws in the US mandating that they be displayed), we have to rely on some rules of thumbs and helpful tips.
After reading some government-issued FDA guidelines and an article on the same, here's the low-down on when you should throw away old makeup:
- Eye Makeup gathers bacteria faster than any other products and should thus be thrown away earlier than all others. Makeup manufacturers recommend mascara be thrown away after two to four months (information that definitely would have helped my friend out). If it dries, throw it out; water or saliva will only increase the bacteria on the product.
- Fondations and Concealers last from one year to a year and a half. Cracking, discoloration, and other irregularities will signal if it needs to be tossed earlier.
- "All Natural" Products don't have the preservatives that keep other makeup lasting longer, and thus should be watched more closely for cracking, drying, discoloration, or other irregularities that would signal it needs to be tossed,
- Sharing Makeup is a huge no-no, as it introduces foreign bacteria into your system. That means testers in stores and borrowing your friend's lipstick can lead to big problems.
When do you throw away these or other products? What are your tips for promoting sanitary makeup use?
