Makeup brushes are some of the most valuable products in your makeup bag. However, makeup brushes are usually much more filthy than you could ever imagine. In fact, your makeup brushes can actually wreak absolute havoc on your skin. Here's a look at the dirty truth about your makeup brushes.
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00:00Makeup brushes are some of the most valuable products in your makeup bag.
00:04However, makeup brushes are usually much more filthy than you could ever imagine.
00:09In fact, your makeup brushes can actually wreak absolute
00:12havoc on your skin. Here's a look at the dirty truth about your makeup brushes.
00:18Makeup brushes may be more high-maintenance than you probably realize.
00:22If you are someone who wears makeup every day,
00:24it's safe to say that makeup brushes are a necessity for you.
00:27Makeup is awesome. I love makeup so much."
00:33And even if you only wear makeup a few times a week,
00:36your makeup brushes probably see quite a bit of action. Because of that,
00:40your makeup brushes should be washed regularly.
00:43In fact, Stowaway Cosmetics founder Julie Fredrickson told the Fashion Spot that she
00:48recommends people clean their makeup brushes after every single use, even if that means
00:53you have to wash them daily. She told the publication the proper way to clean the brushes,
00:57explaining,
00:58"...dab some on a cotton swab, twirl the brush, and that is enough. Then, once a week,
01:04do a thorough cleaning with a cleanser that isn't too harsh. I personally use Dr. Bronner's."
01:10If you have sensitive skin, then you know how awful it can feel when something irritates your
01:14face. Unfortunately, that might become the new normal for you if you never wash your makeup
01:19brushes, as these applicators can seriously irritate your skin when they're dirty.
01:24Not only does not washing your makeup brushes cause them to become dirty, but it dries out
01:30your brush's bristles, which can seriously hurt your skin next time you go to powder your forehead.
01:35Sean Town, global educator for Jane Iredale, told New Beauty that a brush with dirty,
01:40dry bristles can end up pushing the makeup into your skin, causing your pores to clog
01:46and become irritated.
01:48If you're using makeup brushes that aren't regularly cleaned,
01:51you may find your glow growing dimmer with every use.
01:54As it turns out, you need to wash your makeup brushes regularly if you want your radiant,
02:00summertime glow to remain constant. Dr. Elizabeth Tansey, a dermatologist
02:05and the founder of Capital Laser and Skin Care, spoke of this topic to Redbook.
02:09Sebum is the waxy or oily material produced by the skin that comes out through the pores.
02:14When that sebum builds up on a brush, it just gets applied right back to the skin. Too much
02:20sebum on the surface of the skin reduces the reflection of light off the skin, which can
02:24make it look dull. Sure, you can buy a $300 serum that's supposed to brighten your skin tone,
02:30but if you aren't cleaning your makeup brushes, even the most expensive products
02:34won't do much for your skin.
02:36While it's virtually impossible to avoid getting any wrinkles during your life,
02:39it's understandable to want to do what you can to avoid them. And there are definitely
02:43things you can do to prevent wrinkles, such as using sunscreen, watching your diet,
02:48or just springing for Botox. Unfortunately,
02:51dirty makeup brushes can throw all that hard work away if you aren't careful.
02:56Dr. Debbie Palmer, a dermatologist and the co-founder of Dermatology Associates of New York,
03:01told Good Housekeeping that your makeup brushes can actually aid you if you don't wash them.
03:06Dirty makeup brushes can expose the skin to oxidative stress from free radicals,
03:11which causes a breakdown of collagen and elastin, and can result in premature aging.
03:16For most people, the point of makeup and skincare is to preserve your skin's youth and look as
03:21radiant as possible, so having your makeup brushes actually make you look older definitely
03:26defeats the purpose.
03:28Just how dirty do your brushes actually get?
03:31Well, as it turns out, there's a reason experts recommend regularly washing them,
03:36and it's not just to remove old makeup products that are stuck on the bristles.
03:40According to the American Academy of Dermatology, makeup brushes that aren't
03:44regularly cleaned can actually cause fungal infections, such as E. coli,
03:49which can cause diarrhea, urinary tract infections, and respiratory illnesses.
03:54If that wasn't bad enough, those infections could even cause a life-threatening staph infection.
04:00A study published in the Journal of Applied Microbiology looked at the presence of bacteria
04:05in makeup products and found that 70 percent to 90 percent of the products
04:10contained fungus and bacteria, including E. coli.
04:14Since you probably don't want to spread all of that bacteria around your face,
04:18cleaning your makeup brushes is of utmost importance. No one wants fungus on their
04:23cheekbones, no matter how much glow your favorite bronzer gives you.
04:26All of that was going on my face. That's just gross."
04:30As if E. coli wasn't bad enough, there's other types of bacteria that can cause
04:35inadvertent damage thanks to your makeup brushes. They're helpful when trying to make
04:39your eyes pop with the right eyeshadow combo, but if you're not careful, your makeup brushes
04:43could accentuate your eyes in a completely different way. When you think of pink eye,
04:48you probably picture red, watery eyes caused by a disease that usually only affects schoolchildren.
04:53But as it turns out, your unwashed makeup brushes could potentially be carrying pink eye bacteria,
04:59which means you could be just one smoky eye look away from contracting the nasty disease.
05:04Now, while it's unlikely that you'll get pink eye from just not washing your makeup brushes,
05:09your chance increases when you share makeup brushes with other people.
05:13If you think about toothbrushes, people don't share toothbrushes very often, do they?
05:18But in a way, makeup's exactly the same.
05:20In fact, the Missouri Department of Health and Human Services even gives a warning about
05:25sharing makeup tools on the department's website. Do not share eye makeup, face makeup,
05:30makeup brushes, contact lenses, and containers or eyeglasses.
05:35Aside from deadly bacteria and makeup brushes just being plain dirty and gross in general,
05:40they can cause a lot of other issues for your skin, such as acne.
05:44Even if you wash your face regularly or even if you use clean makeup products that claim
05:49they don't clog up your pores, your makeup brushes can still cause breakouts.
05:54Laramie Glenn, a professional makeup artist and founder of Book Your Look,
05:58told Good Housekeeping that dirty makeup brushes are to blame for a lot of skin issues.
06:02If you've been breaking out and you've tried or ruled out everything else,
06:06your makeup brushes could be at fault.
06:08It's probably safe to say that no one wants to revisit those old breakouts from their hormonal
06:13high school years. Like, ever. Believe it or not, even after all you've heard, we're here to tell
06:19you that it gets even more disturbing when you take a closer look at your makeup brushes.
06:23As it turns out, your makeup brushes can also attract an entirely different kind of disgusting
06:28creature — bugs. That's right, the bristles that you use every day to apply your makeup
06:34can have tiny bugs hidden amongst them.
06:37Lynn Sanders, a cosmetic scientist and the founder of Cosmetics a la Carte,
06:42told Glamour that even though you can't see them,
06:44there are probably bugs hiding out within the bristles of your makeup brushes. As Sanders
06:49explained, under the microscope, you may see the remains of mites on your brushes.
06:54Most of us have these tiny creatures, about a third of a millimeter long,
06:58residing at the base of our eyelashes and nose hairs living off old skin cells and sebum.
07:02They're generally considered harmless, but they may be implicated in acne.
07:08While most can agree the germs, bacteria, fungi, and sometimes even bugs hiding out
07:12in your makeup brushes are disgusting, some folks still might not think it's
07:17really necessary to wash their handy brushes every day. However, there's another, somewhat
07:22more obvious side effect of using dirty makeup brushes that may make you want to invest in a
07:26good brush cleaner, like yesterday. The dirtier your makeup brushes, the less effective it becomes.
07:32Not only are you spreading around germs on your face by using a makeup brush that
07:36hasn't been properly cleaned in months, but you're also not getting your money's
07:40worth out of your go-to applicator. Artiste founder Matthew Waitsmith had this to say
07:45the fashion spot when comparing the usefulness of a dirty brush to a clean one.
07:49A dirty brush doesn't perform as well when distributing product. When a brush is dirty,
07:54many people try to push harder on the brush to get a result. And with all that we've learned
07:58about dirty brushes, it's probably not the best idea to be pressing it even harder against your
08:03face. If you're the type of person who stays on top of their makeup brushes cleaning routine,
08:09good for you. But regularly cleaning your brushes doesn't mean they're going to last forever,
08:14nor should they. Sure, you might have spent a large amount of money on your beloved and durable
08:19makeup brushes, but if you don't replace them when needed, those expensive brushes
08:23aren't doing you or your skin any good. Famous makeup artist Bobbi Brown told Allure that it's
08:29important to spend time going through your old makeup brushes and throwing some away.
08:33It's time to toss your makeup brush when the bristles start to fray,
08:36shed, or lose their shape. I can't emphasize enough that the right tools are as important
08:41in getting the look you want as the actual makeup itself. If your brushes become too
08:46pinched or squashed, then they simply will not be up to the job.
08:50Makeup brushes aren't the only items in your makeup bag that need to be thrown away
08:54and replaced from time to time. Beauty and skincare products like foundation,
08:59eyeshadow, mascara, eyeliner, and even sunscreen all have expiration dates. And if you choose to
09:04apply expired makeup with old, dirty makeup brushes, you'll only be worsening the negative
09:09effects old makeup can have on your skin. According to Insider, a study from the Journal
09:13of Applied Microbiology found that people who used expired makeup products had even more bacteria on
09:19their makeup brushes. Most products have an expiration date spanning anywhere from 3 to 12
09:25months, according to the website. However, many people didn't pay attention to the expiration date
09:30on their makeup products, which caused any antibacterial ingredients within those makeup
09:35products to lose their power, and left room for more and more bacteria to form. So if you add the
09:41bacteria from expired makeup products to the bacteria in old, unwashed makeup products,
09:47you can guess what happens — even more bacteria on your face.
09:51When you're using contaminated makeup, you can get mild breakouts all the way to
09:55boils and even abscesses on your face.
09:58You might use makeup brushes to cover blemishes on your face, but if you're not careful,
10:03making this makeup mistake might actually cause that pesky blemish to reappear.
10:08One of the most annoying, uncomfortable things that can happen to your face is a cold sore.
10:13According to the Mayo Clinic, this blemish is actually caused by a strain of the herpes virus,
10:18and if you get one, it may seem like it takes forever for it to fully go away.
10:22And if you aren't careful, you could prolong a cold sore's unexpected visit.
10:27Sonia Kashuk, makeup artist and owner of her own brand of makeup,
10:31told Refinery29 that after battling an infection of the eye or a cold sore,
10:35one of the most important things you can do is wash your makeup tools.
10:39If you have an eye infection or a cold sore, you should wash all of your tools
10:43and throw away any cosmetics you used during that time.
10:47Cold sores are bad enough, but can makeup brushes cause you to catch herpes itself?
10:52According to some experts, the answer is yes. In fact, in 2017,
10:58CNN reported that a woman who claimed she caught herpes from testing makeup
11:02was actually totally valid in her assumption.
11:05According to CNN, since herpes on your face can last for 10 days or so,
11:09any makeup brushes used within this time span could pick up the virus
11:13and spread it to other parts of your face.
11:15As microbiologist Amrine Bashir explained, makeup brushes that touch these herpes-infected
11:21parts of the face can then spread the infection to other people.
11:25Be especially careful if you have any kinds of cuts or sores. As Dr. Bethany Schlosser,
11:30the director of the Women's Skin Health Program at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, told Self,
11:36the risk is always greater if there's an open sore already or an irritation of the skin.
11:41Any kind of microscopic nick in the skin could set you up for potentially getting an infection.