Did you know that your mascaras, eyeliners, and foundations, hold the highest risk, at giving you eye and skin infections?

Chances are, you have worn mascara that was expired before. As a beauty & wellness expert, who is obsessed with the science of cosmetics, I’ve discovered that our most coveted products can cause more harm than good when they expire.

The side effects of expired products can have dangerous effects on the skin, similar to eating food that has changed in chemical composition.  

Cosmetic products that include water as an ingredient, such as liquid foundations, liquid concealers, liquid eyeliners, and lip glosses will have the shortest shelf life.

Did you know that natural products that are preservative-free have a much short shelf-life than powders and products that contain, little to no water?  

According to Women’s Health Magazine, the efficiency of active ingredients becomes compromised over time. For example, an expired foundation with SPF is not as effective as an unexpired foundation with SPF. This rule also applies to products that include salicylic acid for acne prevention or retinol to prevent fine lines.

Bacteria in expired products are dangerous and begins to outweigh the good and active ingredients, you increase the risk of infections to your skin due to the breakdown of the product's ingredients.

Is Your Holy Grail Of Makeup Products  Giving You Infections, Allergic Reactions, or Skin Breakouts?

The FDA advises that women do not share or swap because another person's germs may be hazardous to you. The risk of contamination may be even greater with "testers" at retail stores, where a number of people are using the same sample product. If you feel you must sample cosmetics at a store, make sure they are applied with single-use applicators, such as clean cotton swabs.

The quickest way to get a bacterial contamination in your eye is to use mascara past its expiration date or to share your mascara with your friends and family. Eye infections are not fun, so either invest in disposables mascara wands or travel sized mascara products.

Bonus tip! The moist and dark environment inside the mascara tube is ideal for bacteria to grow in, so always twirl the wand in the tube vs using pumping motions. Those up and downs, in and out movements, can actually push contaminants from the air into the tube.

Expired Foundation & Concealer

Let’s talk foundation. Conventional foundation from your local drugstore, department stores, and beauty emporiums typically last for about 9 to 12 months. If your foundation begins to change color or scent, toss it out.  

For all you natural bunnies, pay close attention to your product expiration date as many natural and organic products tend to have a shorter lifespan than conventional products.

If you have experienced an adverse reaction such as blemishes, bumps, rashes, or swelling of your skin, your old expired products could have been the culprit.  

Tips To Prevent Infections and Extend the Life of Your Beauty Products

First things first, let’s get to the basics.

1. Be sure to wash your face and exfoliate weekly.  If you wear makeup daily. Washing your face in the morning and right before heading to bed to important. A great cleanser works to remove dirt debris, unclog pores and washes away the makeup you've been wearing all day or all night. Try our Healing Face Cleanser enriched with rosemary and lime to gently remove dirt and greasy makeup. Follow up with our Clarifying Face Masque and Scrub enriched with minerals, rose clay, and essentials that work together to absorb toxins, pore-clogging sebum and excess residue from makeup. Exfoliating helps unclog pores and helps remove dead skin on the top layer of skin. 

2. Clean your makeup brushes weekly. Often times, dirty brushes and a poor skin care routine, extends the infections and breakouts from expired makeup. Did you know that Jacq’s offers a facial cleanser that doubles as brush cleanser?  Here's a quick recipe to help disinfect and clean your makeup brushes.

1 teaspoon Healing Face Cleanser + 1/2 tablespoon Olive Oil = Makeup Brush Cleanser

"Bacteria in expired products are dangerous and begins to outweigh the good and active ingredients, you increase the risk of infections to your skin due to the breakdown of the product's ingredients."

 Let's talk foundations, pencils, lipsticks and pressed powders.

Since water can breed bacteria, liquids and your cream foundations will expire sooner than your powder foundations. You can expect your liquid and cream foundations to last six to 12 months.

3. When using foundations, be sure to apply makeup with clean hands. Foundations can last up to a year to two years, I’d recommend investing in a new foundation every 6 months because these products can become easily contaminated.

BEAUTY TIP: Sharpening your pencils can remove any bacterial growth on the top layer of the product.

When it comes to your brow, lip, and eye pencils, keep them in top-notch condition by sharpening them.

The expiration date for your eyeliners will also depend on its formulation.The ingredients in liquid eyeliner are easily susceptible to bacteria contamination.  You can expect your liquid liners to last for about four to six months. Your pencil eyeliners, similar to your brow & lip liners, can last for to two years.

4. Protect your statement lip products from airborne contaminants by keeping up with the lids. If you apply your lipstick from the tube directly to your lips, consider using a wipe with 70% alcohol to sanitize the top layer. Lip disposables and lip brushes will also support your preventative measures.

If you are a woman who loves to wear lipgloss, pay special attention to scent, texture, or color changes. Always twirl your lip gloss wand in the tube instead of pumping it, which brings more contamination from the air, into your tube of gloss, similar to mascara.

Your coveted powder bronzers, blushers, and highlighters will continue delivering quality results for at least 12 months to two years. If you want to extend the life of your products, keep your makeup brushes cleaned and invest in cosmetic sanitizer spray, such as beautysoclean, or use our Healing Face Cleanser as a makeup brush cleanser.

5. Always close your powder products after use to minimize the amount of time it’s exposed to the air. In the tragic event where your powder breaks and the lid cannot be replaced, toss it out. Unless you can depot it and transfer it into a z palette without the lid, your powder products will just become a magnet for bacteria.

Always keep your products stored in a dry, cool place and every month, review your products, and toss out what you no longer use.

To help you remember, we’ve created a convenient download for you to use. Keep it on your phone, on your tablet or print it out.

 Click on the link to get your free portable download.

I hope this article inspires you to detox beauty bag and makeup collection. We want to encourage you to practice safe makeup and provide you the tools to know what you're putting on your skin because the truth is good products can go bad.

Be sure to share this!

xoxo,

Brikea

Hi! I'm Brikea - Freelance Makeup Artist Based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  I am a focused, driven, and passionate beauty entrepreneur with a natural talent for inspiring, teaching, and connecting with women, from all backgrounds. I have a formal education in business and I am happily pursuing professional training in makeup artistry. My vision is to empower women with motivational writing, speaking, and impeccable makeup enhancements. In my eyes, all women are naturally beautiful, and makeup is a magical wand, that can transform our God given features into unique and exquisite works of art. Outside of my creative pursuits in the beauty industry, you will find me designing a beautiful life with my husband and two daughters. Discover more at instagram.com/muabrikea