Makeup? Risks? Really? It’s not what you can see on your makeup, but what you can’t!

By their very nature, makeup and beauty tools including makeup brushes and makeup sponges provide prime breeding grounds for bacteria and fungus. Research over the years has confirmed this and only last year, Birmingham Aston University’s research clearly proved in detail how used and uncleaned makeup and makeup sponges gave rise to a range of bacteria and fungus.  In addition, research in the States also showed how beauty counter tester samples harboured a range of bacterial loads from e-coli to fungal organisms.

We are living in different times with the covid pandemic and our awareness for the need for good hand hygiene to avoid cross-contamination is at an all time high.  Makeup brands and beauty professionals have excellent hygiene protocols and we are delighted that so many international colour cosmetics companies use The Pro Hygiene Collection®, but what about consumers who wear makeup?

“We don’t want to take away any of the fun…. we just want to take away the risks”

The cross-contamination cycle is no different for makeup wears.  Because we all understand instinctively the health damage that cross-contamination can wreak, yet with makeup, most consumers are blissfully unaware of the dangers of cross-contamination.  Anything goes … brush to face, brush to makeup, hands to eyes, hands to sponges, lips to lipstick –  the contamination cycle is extensive and is multiplied whenever makeup is shared.  First think about where it goes.  Around sensitive eyes, into the moist corners of the mouth, onto facial skin, which as we know, is semi-permeable and thinner than body skin.  Now think about the micro-organisms that can transfer through makeup use, breed on on the product, and contaminate brushes, applicators and makeup products.

By introducing a regular makeup hygiene routine that includes daily cleaning and sanitising of makeup brushes, applicators and sponges and sanitising makeup products helps reduce the contamination cycle and helps preven health problems poor makeup and beauty hygiene can cause.