Novelty
Makeup and Color Additives Dangers
If you want to make
your own healthy cosmetics check the Cosmetic Maker here
Painting your face
can be a big part of the fun on Halloween and lots of
other special occasions. Most of the time people do this
without a problem, but not always. Here are some pointers
to help keep your fun from leaving you with a rash,
swollen eyelids, or other grief.
Painting Your
Face:
Special Effects Without Aftereffects
Decorating your
face with face paint or other makeup lets you see better
than you can if you're wearing a mask. A mask can make it
hard to see where you're going and watch out for cars.
But make sure your painted-on designs don't cause
problems of their own.
- Follow all
directions carefully.
- Don't decorate
your face with things that aren't intended for
your skin.
- Like soap,
some things are OK on your skin, but not in your
eyes. Some face paint or other makeup may say on
the label that it is not for use near the eyes.
Believe this, even if the label has a picture of
people wearing it near their eyes. Be careful to
keep makeup from getting into your eyes.
- Even products
intended for use near your eyes can sometimes
irritate your skin if you use too much. Take it
easy!
- If you're
decorating your skin with something you've never
used before, you might try a dab of it on your
arm for a couple of days to check for an allergic
reaction BEFORE you put it on your face.
This is an especially smart thing to do if you
tend to have allergies.
Color Additives:
The "FDA OK"
(Or, A Little Detective Work Won't Hurt)
A big part of
Halloween makeup is color. But this is your skin we're
talking about. Think about what you're putting on it. You
might not want to put the same coloring on your skin that
a car company uses in its paint.
Luckily, you don't
have to. The law says that color additives have to be
approved by FDA for use in cosmetics, and that includes
the just-for-fun kind that people use on Halloween. It
also includes theatrical makeup.
Plus, FDA has to
decide how they may be used, based on safety information.
A color that's OK on your tough fingernails or your hair
may not be OK on your skin. Colors that are OK for most
of your skin may not be OK near your eyes.
How do you know
which ones are OK to use, and where? Do some detective
work and check two places:
1. The list of
ingredients on the label. Look for the names of the
colors. THEN...
2. Check the
Summary of Color Additives on FDA's Web site. There's a
section especially on colors for cosmetics. If there's a
color in your makeup that isn't on this list, the company
that made it is not obeying the law. Don't use it. Even
if it's on the list, check to see if it has FDA's OK for
use near the eyes. If it doesn't, keep it away from your
eyes.
For That Ghoulish
Glow
There are two kinds
of "glow" effects you might get from
Halloween-type makeup. Ready for some ten-dollar words?
There are "fluorescent" (say
"floor-ess-ent") and "luminescent"
(say "loo-min-ess-ent") colors. Here's the
difference:
Fluorescent
colors: These are the make-you-blink colors sometimes
called "neon" or "day-glow." There
are seven fluorescent colors approved for cosmetics, and
like other colors, there are limits on how they may be
used. None of them are allowed for use near the eyes.
(Check the Summary of Color Additives again.) These are their
names: D&C Orange No. 5, No. 10, and No. 11; and
D&C Red No. 21, No. 22, No. 27 and No. 28.
Luminescent
colors: These colors glow in the dark. In August
2000, FDA approved luminescent zinc sulfide for limited
cosmetic use. It's the only luminescent color approved
for cosmetic use, and it's not for every day and not for
near your eyes. You can recognize it by its
whitish-yellowish-greenish glow.
When the Party's
Over...
Don't go to bed
with your makeup on. Wearing it too long might irritate
your skin, and bits of makeup can flake off or smear and
get into your eyes, not to mention mess up your pillow
and annoy your parents.
How you take the
stuff off is as important as how you put it on. Remove it
the way the label says. If it says to remove it with cold
cream, use cold cream. If it says to remove it with soap
and water, use soap and water. If it says to remove it
with eye makeup remover, use eye makeup remover. You get
the picture. The same goes for removing glue, like the
stuff that holds on fake beards.
And remember, the
skin around your eyes is delicate. Remove makeup gently.
Now, go have a good
time, and a safe one.
But Just in
Case...
What if you
followed all these steps and still had a bad reaction?
Your parents may want to call a doctor, and they can call
FDA, too. We like to keep track of reactions to cosmetics
so we know if there are problem products on the market.
People can report a bad reaction to face paint, novelty
makeup, or any other cosmetic product to:
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