Does Makeup Expire, Really?

Makeup isn't like you food, is it? Even if they do claim to use every manner of fruit extract and every exotic natural oil in it to better protect your skin, it isn't like food, is it? Does makeup expire?

Makeup can be expensive. When you buy it and it goes to waste because you haven't been able to use it all up, it can be a bad feeling. You may be tempted to go and use makeup past the expiration date the label mentions, because you feel that it's just a bunch of chemicals that you need to use for cosmetic purposes. It isn't like medicine or food that need to go inside, is it?

Nevertheless, you need to understand that cosmetics do expire. You need to throw them away even if safety seems like a luxury. Even if things are quite uncertain in life, financially speaking, your cosmetic stash does need to be culled periodically to make sure that expired products have no place there.

But you have probably heard enough about how it is unsafe to keep makeup that's past its expiration date. You've heard that before. What you want to know is, why should it matter. Does makeup expire in the way food does? Does it get filled up with dangerous bacteria or something?

Well, since you ask, it actually does do that. Makeup does begin to grow bacteria after a certain period of time. You get streptococci and staphylococci and other such nasty bacteria that give you infections.  But not every kind of makeup tends to expire at the same rate.

When a product comes in a wand or tube - product like lipgloss or mascara for instance, it tends to dry out rather quickly since it's open. Not only does this affect how easily it goes on when you try to use it, it affects how hygienic it is as well. If you're worrying about this, you really should go with products that are cheaper so that you can replace them on a regular basis.

You shouldn't even just blindly trust the expiration date. Any time a product looks like it's changing color or its cracking or separating, it's been with you for too long. But here's a more specific guide that should answer the question does makeup expire.

If you have a product that comes  in a bottle that's completely closed off and the only way you can access it is through a pump, you can safely ignore the expiration date. The bottle completely protects the product inside.

On the other hand, products like lipstick, lip gloss and eye makeup should be regularly replaced. You should never keep any of these past six months. The eye pencil is the one exception to the rule. Even if it's something that's used in the eyes and the benefits all exposed, it tends to last quite a bit. You really have to pay attention to any expiration date on this, unless you plan on keeping it beyond a year.