The Breakdown Of Preservatives In Make-Up

As reported today, your make-up does have a shelf life. What amazed me is that although there is a preservative the shelf life can be anywhere from 2-3 months to 2 years. The reason for this is that as you use the make-up the preservatives begin to breakdown and anything that is a water base is more susceptible to bacteria. When this happens you can get an infection, conjunctivitis, and irritated skin.
The worse enemy is mascara because it is dark and moist. The shelf life of mascara is 2-3 months. As for your eye pencil this will last longer the more you whittle it down removing the possibility of infection. But, don't forget to clean your sharpener. Liquid make-up usually has a shelf life of 10-12 months. Face powder and blush can last as long as 3 years because there is no water. But, whoever has make-up for that long? And finally, lipstick can last as long as 2-3 years.
There are a couple of ways to tell if the preservative is breaking down in your make-up. One is the sniff test - if it doesn't smell right then time to get rid of it or look for discoloration!
Time for me to clean out my make-up drawer!