Can Make Up Cause Eye Problems?

Make up is as routine in some women’s lives as waking up and eating breakfast. Make up helps you feel confident in your appearance and can be fun to use!  We wanted to take a minute to detail some safety tips regarding your make up to keep you from potentially hurting yourself while getting ready for the day.

Main Makeup Issues for Eyes

There are a few main issues that come up regularly when it comes to make up around the eyes:

Allergic Reactions – it is important to pay attention to how your skin, eyes and face feel after applying makeup, especially if you are trying a new brand or type. Some ingredients in makeup can irritate your skin if you are allergic to it.

Conjunctivitis (Pink Eye) can be passed through make up or make up brushes and applicators if the bacteria has started to grow in the make up or on the applicators.

Cornea Scratch – If you have ever applied eyeliner, eyeshadow or mascara we would be willing to bet you have missed once in a while. We have all been there but accidentally scratching your eye with an eyeliner pencil can cause cornea scratches which can cause pain and even infection

Eyeliner and Eye Shadow

The two types of eye make up that cause the most risk are eyeliner and eye shadow.

Eyeliner – If worn too close to your eye, pieces of eyeliner can get into your eye. These pieces can cause a build up in the eye and create issues like irritation, infections and blurry vision.

Eye Shadow – the biggest danger with this makeup could be the ingredients. Generally most eye shadows are safe. There are some that contain ingredients like Formaldehyde, Aluminum, Parabens and Coal Tar. These ingredients can be harmful to your skin. It is important to check the ingredients in your eye makeup.

Tips for Safe Eye Make up Use

• Use clean makeup applicators
• Apply eyeliner on the outside of the lash line
• Remove your eye make up at the end of each day
• Don’t hang on to make up too long
• Rinse eye’s thoroughly if makeup gets in them
• Don’t apply makeup while driving or in a car
• Replace your make up after an eye infection

All in all the risks of using makeup outweigh the benefits in most cases. We just always like to educate our patients to create good habits to start with so they can avoid bigger issues in the long run.