Should We Disinfect Our Beauty Products Now?
Concern over COVID-19 continues to grow. While many physical stores that initially closed have reopened and vaccinations are ongoing, social distancing and mask wearing appear to be our new normal for the foreseeable future.
There’s no denying that the idea of person-to-person contact can be scary right now. But as we sit in our homes trying to balance work and reality, it’s important to maintain a certain degree of normalcy. My way of doing things is with makeup. While no one really sees me on a day-to-day basis (except a few of my colleagues on Zoom), I still feel the need to prepare a little bit during my shift, because that’s exactly what. what I’m used to. But then the anxiety sets in and I start to think about all the germs and pathogens that could potentially be around me, which makes me wonder: should we disinfect our beauty products now?
I always wipe off my makeup – maybe not as often as I should, but whenever I can remember. I’ll spray rubbing alcohol on my paddles and compacts to clean them up a bit. However, in the midst of a pandemic, should I be doing more? To ease my mind (and maybe yours), I reached out to experts to weigh in.
“I would make sure that if you let other people borrow your makeup, you wipe off the surfaces they touch,” says Amesh A. Adalja, senior researcher at the Center for Health Safety at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He also notes that you definitely shouldn’t be sharing your makeup with someone who is actively ill at the moment. Nada Elbuluk, clinical assistant professor of dermatology at USC’s Keck Medicine, agrees. Elbuluk does not recommend sharing makeup, especially during this time. If the outer surface has been touched by someone else, the surface should be disinfected immediately afterwards.
“The coronavirus can live on surfaces for different time periods depending on the surface material. For this reason, it would be beneficial to disinfect the exterior surfaces of makeup containers.” Elbuluk adds.
Cosmetic chemist Ginger King agrees. “It’s not a bad idea to disinfect everything. Prevention is better than cure.” King also reassures us that it is safe to apply makeup at home, as long as no one has borrowed your beauty products. She also advises that sharing your makeup, in general, isn’t something you want to get into the habit of. If prevention is better than cure, Adalja recommends wiping down common touch surfaces of the makeup bag.
How to sanitize your products
Whether your products are being touched by hands other than your own or you just want to play it safe, there are ways to sanitize your products without affecting the quality or effectiveness of the formula.
“Alcohol is used as a disinfectant and it evaporates, so it doesn’t interfere with the texture of the product,” King said, adding that alcohol spray is generally the best way to apply it to products. . “All the beauty consultants – I was one with many brands – learned how to disinfect the products at the counter [in the store] because it is used by a lot of people. Consumers can certainly do it. “
King also says that whether or not you have to worry about the product being contaminated, it depends a lot on its packaging. “If you buy products in airless pumps or in non-exhibiting packaging, you don’t have to worry about a thing,” she explains. “Most cosmetic products have been subjected to micro-challenge testing,” which ensures that the microbiome is not growing.
As for the exterior surfaces of your products, whether it’s a glass jar or a plastic compact, your typical disinfectant wipes like those from Lysol will do. You missed ? “Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are also effective for surfaces,” according to Stephen Goldstein, postdoctoral research associate in the Department of Human Genetics at the University of Utah Health.
Regardless of what is going on in the world right now, you should still clean your makeup brushes regularly. Most dermatologists will tell you to soak your tools, especially foundation and concealer brushes, once a week – at a minimum – to prevent product build-up. And for those who only use their fingers for makeup, which many of our beauty editors do, it’s extremely important to wash their hands for at least 20 seconds before and after applying the products to your face.
Long story short: if wearing makeup makes the workday at home shorter and more enjoyable, don’t hesitate to wear it. Just know who (if any) has been in your makeup bag and disinfect yourself accordingly.
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