Believe it or not but a staggering 72% of women admit to never washing their makeup brushes, and unsurprisingly, this can do more harm than good!
A study at Loyaola Marymount University found that after one month, uncleaned makeup brushes hoarded more bacteria than they were even able to measure.
1. Your pores can become clogged
Failing to wash your brushes means that not only are they clogged with weeks’ old makeup, but bacteria, dirt and dust that will have accumulated in your home. In that case, every time you reapply your makeup you’ll be reapplying bacteria that can use your skin as a breeding ground. To control this, your skin will react with skin eruptions in the form of spots and pimples. So, if you’ve been experiencing breakouts in the same places that you use your makeup brushes, they might simply need a thorough clean.
2. You could risk a staph infection
Dirty makeup brushes can cause much more damage than simple breakouts. Using the same tools every day means that dead skin cells, dirt, pollution and oil will accumulate and these can include harmful bacteria including staphylococcus, streptococcus and E. Coli. Trust us when we say that this isn’t farfetched. An Australian woman even contracted a staph infection after sharing makeup brushes with a friend, ultimately leaving her paralysed in the arms and legs. Never share your makeup brushes with anyone as it complicates the issue further as your skin may not tolerate “foreign microbes” well.
3. You can pull your eyelashes out
If you’re using an eyelash curler that’s sticky with past mascara applications you might be at risk of pulling your eyelashes out. Even if you clean your eyelash curler before applying mascara, there’s still a risk that you could be transferring dead skin cells from eye to eye, maximising the risk of infection. To combat this, rub a small amount of rubbing alcohol onto a cotton pad and wipe down the curler pads. Similarly, every few month you should make sure to replace the pads to avoid exposing your lashes to the metal of the curler.
4. Heighten the appearance of wrinkles
Dirty brushes can leave your skin exposed to oxidative stress from free radicals. This can cause a breakdown of collagen and elastin, resulting in premature ageing. The dead skin cells that accumulate on your brushes will make them rougher than they should be thus wearing on your skin and leading to the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
5. You might get conjunctivitis
While conjunctivitis or “pink eye” is an easily treatable infection, you still want to make sure that you avoid it. Instead of risking any of these problems or infections, make sure that you clean your makeup brushes at least once a week with a professional makeup brush cleaner that will clean and dry your favourite tools in seconds. We also recommend that you change your makeup bag every five months or so, as dirt can become ingrained in the fabric and easily transferred onto your brushes.
