The Dangers Hiding in Your Makeup Bag
Usually we think of our makeup products as beautiful little jewels and a fun part of our beauty routine. Unfortunately for our favorite little beauty boosters, scientists have discovered a lot of hidden bacteria, microbes, and other gross gunk having a party in our makeup products. Read on to discover what might be hiding in your beauty products, and what you can do about it.
Makeup Brushes
Your makeup brushes are some of the dirtiest tools in your bag. Think about it: you wipe them onto your face and back into your products every day, transferring tiny microbes with the help of the oils in your skin. Luckily this one is a fairly easy fix. Simply wash your brushes with warm water and baby shampoo once a week to keep your brushes clean and to stop harmful bacteria from getting in the way of beautiful skin.
Lipstick
This one is tough, because it’s a product we are always reapplying throughout the day, and even sometimes sharing with friends. Lipstick also has the potential to do the most harm, because it is applied directly to the mouth, so any germs it may hold are going directly into your body. For the healthiest lipstick, always wipe your mouth down before applying to avoid transferring bacteria back onto the lipstick. Also, shave off the top of your lipstick about once a week to cut off any bacteria that has started to grow there. Finally, never share your lipstick, or any makeup for that matter!
Expired Beauty Products
Okay, we are all guilty of this one. Sometimes you haven’t used all the product up by the time of its expiration date, so what’s the harm of saving a little money and not wasting a perfectly good product, right? Wrong. Expiration dates exist for a reason. At the expiration date, the preservatives in your beauty products have run out, meaning that they are at a high risk for having had time to accumulate too many contaminates to be safe for use. Use this guide to know when to toss which products: liquid eyeliners and mascara should be replaced every two to three months; toss out general face products after six months to a year; throw away your lipstick after one to two years.
Ready to Replace Old Beauty Products?
Looking for a healthy, natural new makeup collection to try? Jane Iredale’s mineral makeup might be just what you are looking for. Jane’s pure-pressed powder compacts are made from anodized aluminum, which releases few toxins into the environment, and as a result, fewer toxins are getting into your skin! Her beautiful products have a natural broad-spectrum UVA and UVB protection of SPF 20, and are Paraben free. At Summit Skin & Vein, we love Jane, and we are happy to introduce you to our collection of her fabulous beauty products. Stop in today or call us at (816) 533-4398 to learn more!