Cosmetic Contamination Awareness Among Adolescent Females

Leah Persaud

Brooklyn Technical High School Brooklyn, NY

Abstract
Cosmetic Contamination Awareness Among Adolescent Females Many people use cosmetics unaware of the potential dangers that can threaten their health while using them. From previous studies, researchers concluded that cosmetics such as lotions, shampoos and old facial and eye makeup have the ability to induce microbial growth and possibly cause infections. Makeup can get contaminated by in use contamination, poor handling procedures during manufacturing and defects in preservative capacities of makeup. Preservative capacity is the ability to inhibit spoilage organisms and prevent growth of pathogens. The objective of this study is to determine whether female teenagers know the dangers of makeup contamination. This was tested by observing makeup use practices of adolescent females through the medium of analyzing questionnaires. These surveys included questions that asked the female about their makeup practices such as how often they use makeup, if they share or borrow makeup, etc. A method similar to the Likerts Scale was used to calculate the score of each individual to determine how well they know how to use makeup. After factoring in the recommended procedures for using makeup and calculating the possible points for each answer, the participant whose score is 40 or more uses makeup poorly while the participants score below 15 points uses makeup properly. Scores from 16-25 is deemed decent use and scores from 26- 39 is less acceptable. Overall, the probability of infection due to poor makeup use cannot be determined because there are numerous factors such as how often makeup is used, that affect the chances of a person developing an infection. Even so, there should be more emphasis put on informing females about makeup contamination.

Introduction
Makeup. Humans apply it for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering ones appearance (FDA.gov). Whether its for putting on a show or just to play dress up, weve all used or seen it being used at least once in our lives. Makeup, which includes eye shadow, liquid foundation, lipstick, or mascara, is used by both genders, but is predominantly used by more females than males. Makeup can easily alter a womans appearance and this is why its exceedingly popular among todays younger generation. Makeup can do wonders for women, but if not handled properly makeup can pose a threat to their health. How would one know if makeup was contaminated? Would you be able to smell it? See it? Mostly likely the answers to these questions are no. Many women do not know that makeup can harbor bacteria and spread an infection. Some women even share makeup and applicators with friends and family, increasing their chances of facial infection. Others do not replace makeup until its completely finished despite how long ago they purchased it. Cosmetic contamination awareness is even worse at a younger age. There are several ways makeup can be contaminated. It could be caused by inuse contamination, with the user repeatedly applying makeup to the skin using an applicator, or finger and then putting it back into the makeup. Another possible way makeup can be contaminated is by poor handling procedures during manufacturing, which can cause defects in the preservative capacities of makeup. How makeup is stored can also determine whether it is more likely for bacteria to grow or not. Clearly,

there are many ways makeup can become contaminated but what is already known about how makeup is that it can cause infections. Microbial contamination of cosmetics has been studied since the 1960s. It is known that eye cosmetics have the ability to harbor numerous microorganisms. Also, the unrestricted use of cosmetic testers, for which there are no sterile applicators, can spread bacteria from one person to another and possibly cause eye infections (Dawson et al, 1981). Proper use of makeup may drop the risk of infection, but it has been shown that closure design plays an important role in the safety of cosmetics. Flip caps and pump tops are the best ways of closing shampoos and lotions (Brannan et al, 1990). It is even concluded that poorly preserved cosmetics can be protected with the right packaging. In other words the risk of bacteria growing in these products can be lessened with proper packaging. The quality of makeup is also an important factor in whether makeup can become contaminated or not. Preservative systems in cosmetics inhibit the spoilage of organisms and prevent the growth of pathogens (Perry, 2001). Preservative systems, however, can loose their effectiveness, as the makeup gets older. Within a month of purchase mascara can begin to harbor bacteria (if exposed). If the conditions are sufficient, then bacteria can still continue to grow after 24 months, showing that the preservative systems can become less powerful with age (Badauria, 1980). Products that come from local manufacturers, which are presumably less expensive, can be more prone to microbial contamination. Bacteria found in these locally made cosmetic products include E.coli, which indicates that there may have been fecal contamination before use. Contamination rates of cosmetics in North America and Europe are 2 - 43%

and considering that undeveloped countries may not have strict regulations for manufacturers, it is important to be aware of foreign cosmetics imports (Okeke, 2001). Labels on cosmetics may also lack essential information to ensure the safety of the product. In some studies, labels did not have dates of manufacture or dates of expiration (Hugbo et al, 2003). Research has also revealed many defects in makeup manufacturing. More companies are taking better precautions and the quality of makeup is being improved thanks to studies that have been previously conducted. Even so, it is still up to the consumer to properly handle makeup and applicators to avoid infection. Nowadays the age range of female makeup users is very wide. The age that females begin wearing makeup gets younger and younger with every new generation. If consumers are knowledgeable about general handling methods of cosmetics then adolescent females should be able to have a low incidence of infection. The purpose of this study is to determine the awareness of cosmetic contamination among adolescent females.

Methodology
This cross-sectional study examined the awareness of cosmetic contamination among adolescent females. It determined whether females knew how to properly handle makeup, specifically, how to use and remove it when to replace it, where to keep it, etc. Adolescent females were chosen for this study because females are the primary users of makeup. Also in the high school environment, cosmetics are used frequently among female adolescents because most of them are concerned of how they look. Data collected in this study came from a twenty-question survey that was administered to female high school students. The survey was distributed in a New York City public school during the months of October to November 2007. Teachers who had female students in their classes were asked by the researcher to handout the questionnaire to female students who have not previously taken the survey. This was done to prevent overlapping of results. The grade range of these students was from ninth to twelfth grade. Participants were asked to check off the answers that applied to them in the questionnaire. A survey was used as a means of data collection because it provided the best possible way to determine the awareness of female adolescents regarding the use of cosmetics. The closed institutional environment allowed surveys to be administered and taken in an easy manner in which results could be collected quickly. In terms of secondary data, there were no completed surveys that concerned the use of cosmetics among female teenagers. The Brooklyn Technical High School Institutional Review Board approved the survey and parental consent was not needed because each survey was anonymously and there was no risk.

The survey was arranged in four sections, general use, specific use, background information of prior cosmetic infections, and shopping techniques when buying makeup. The first section asked of general use of facial makeup in which the responses where yes or no. If the response were yes, the participant would continue with the rest of the survey and check of the types of makeup that she used and how often it was used within a week. The next section of the survey concerned how makeup was applied, who used it, when it was replaced, where it was stored and how it was removed. This section was included to determine whether the participant knew how to properly handle makeup and its applicators. The third section asked whether the participant had a prior facial or eye infection due to makeup only. This would reveal the general frequency of infections due to cosmetics among adolescent females. The last section of the survey pertained to where the participant bought their makeup and whether she used cosmetic testers in stores when shopping for cosmetics. This fourth section would be used to determine the probability of female teenagers developing a facial or eye infection along with section three. In terms of statistical analysis, the response from sections three (specific use) and four (shopping techniques) would be applied to a method similar to the Likerts scale to determine the probability of females developing a facial or eye infection. The responses elicited will be coded from a point scale of 1 to 5, 1 meaning least likely it is to develop an infection and 5 meaning the most likely it is to develop an infection. For example, a question that asked How often do you replace your makeup? in which the answers include every 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, etc., the answer choices would be given a specific number from 1 5. Since the recommended amount of time to

replace makeup is 3 months, the answer of 3 months would be given the lowest number of points, 1 and the answer of over 12 months would be given the maximum number of points, 5. For each of these questions that pertain to the use of makeup (ex. How often it is replaced) and contains answer choices that concerns the recommended use of makeup (every 3 months, 6 months etc.), this type of statistical analysis would be applied. In total it would include twelve of the twenty questions. Each participants score will be summed. After factoring in the recommended procedures for using makeup and calculating the possible points for each answer, the participant whose score is 40 or more uses makeup poorly while the participants score below 15 points uses makeup properly. Scores from 16-25 will be deemed decent use and scores from 26- 39 will be less acceptable.

Results
In total, approximately 500 copies of the survey were given out to teachers to hand out to their female students. 450 copies of the survey were returned. Even with this outcome, only 322 copies could be used because 129 copies were invalid due to incomplete and incorrect answering of questions. Out the 322 remaining surveys, 258 of the students said that they use makeup and 64 said that they do not. The rest of the analysis focuses on other factors that affect makeup use based on the surveys that were answered yes. Table 1: Makeup Use Uses Makeup Do not Use Makeup 258 64 Percent 80% 20%

Chart 1:

Types of Makeup Used

17% 14% 5% Eye Shadow Blush Foundation 12% 25% 7% 20% Powder Eyeliner Lip Makeup Mascara

The pie chart shows the types of makeup used among the female students who were surveyed. The most common type of makeup used was lip makeup (lipstick, lip liner, and lip-gloss), while the least common was blush.

Range of Participant's Scores

Chart 2: 8 78
1 to 15 16 to 15 26 to 39 40 or <

63

109

Using the method described, the scores of each female who answered yes were calculated. The females who answered no (not displayed here) received a score of 0. In chart 2, the range of scores is seen. The most popular range was 16- 30 in which 109 females scored between 16-30 while the least popular range was over 40. This chart also shows how many females used makeup well or poorly.

Graph 1:

Times a Week Makeup Is Used In Relation Females' Scores

60 50 40 30 20 10 0
3 to 4 times week 5 to 6 times a week 8 or more times a week 1 to 2 times a week Occasionally

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The correlation between the calculated scores and how often makeup is used is displayed in the graph 1. The different clusters are representative of the specific scores for each response population. Each response population is the group of females that chose a specific response or answer. The number scale shown on the rings (060) is the scale of the scores each female received based on how she answered her survey. The peak of each specific cluster is the highest score that each response population received. From this graph, the people who used makeup more than 8 times a week (purple cluster) scored a higher percentile than those who used makeup occasionally or 1-2 times a week (red cluster).

Table 2:
Average of Scores In Relation to How Often Makeup Was Used Per Week 1 to 2 times a 8 or more times a Occasionally 3 to 5 times a week 6 to 7 times a week week week 21 18 19 20 27

The average score of each response population was calculated. The averages of each response group also shows that those who used makeup more than 8 times a week had a higher score than those who used it occasionally or 1-2 times a week.

Chart 3:
Percent of Females That Use Specific Applicators to Apply Makeup
4% 31% 24% Bristle Brushes Sponges Cotton Swabs Roll On Fingers Other

16% 12%

13%

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The most used make up applicator were bristle brushes (31%) and fingers (24%) compared to the least used cotton swabs (12%) and sponges (13%). 16% of females said they used roll on applicators to apply their makeup.

Graph 2:
How Well Females Stored Makeup In Relation to How Well Females Stored Applicators
250

200 Number of Females

39 22

150

100 157 50 16 0 Yes 2 7 No 5 10 Sometimes

Sometimes No Yes

Response (How Well MAKEUP is stored)

Graph 2 shows how well makeup and applicators were stored in relation to each other. For example, in the response group who said that yes they stored makeup properly usually said they stored their applicators properly because out of the 218 females who said yes they stored makeup properly, 157 or 72% said they stored their applicators properly as well. The average score of each response group for this question was also taken and it was found that the average score for the group that stored makeup properly had a

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lower average score (19) than that of the group that said no they did not store makeup properly (33). 28 females said that they store makeup properly sometimes.

Chart 4:

Females Who Share or Borrow Makeup (258)

13 10 2
Does not share

1 to 2

121

3 to 4

5 or more

112
Does not know the number of people they share with

The number of females who share or borrow makeup is outlined in chart 4. In total, 137 females share or borrow makeup and 121 do not share or borrow makeup. Nearly 81% of the females who share or borrow makeup, share it with 1 to 2 people. 9% share it with 3 to 4 people, 7% share it with 5 or more people. Three percent did not know the number of people they share makeup with

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Graph 3:

Scores In Relation to Females Who Share or Borrow Makeup

60 50 40 30 20 10 0

Yes Makeup is Shared or Borrowed

No Makeup is Not Shared or Borrowed

This graph is similar to graph 1 but this graph displays the cluster of scores in relation to those who share or borrow makeup. The highest peak is exhibited in the cluster that responded, yes that they share or borrow makeup. The purple cluster almost entirely overlaps the green cluster

Graph 4:
Correlation of Scores to How Often Females Replace Their Makeup
60 50 40 30 20 10 0

Every 3 Months Every 6 Months Every 9 Months Every 12 Months More Than 12 Months

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The correlation of scores and how often makeup is replaced is shown in this graph. The highest peak was within the cluster of scores of females who answered that they replaced makeup more than 12 months after they bought it. The lowest peak was the response group that answered that they replace makeup every 3 months and every 9 months.

Graph 5:
Number of Females

Females Who Use Cosmetic Testers In Relation to How They Use It

140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0

28 110

Does Not Use Testers Is Helped By a Salesperson Self Serve

97 6 17

0 Always Use Sometimes Never Use Testers (23) Use Testers Testers (110) (125) Response

Females who use cosmetic testers when shopping for cosmetics were recorded in correlation to how they used the testers. Generally, females used cosmetic testers in stores themselves without the help of a sales person. 110 females never use cosmetic testers.
Those Who Used Cosmetic Testers (When Available) In Relation to Their Scores
60 50 40 30 20 10 0

Graph 6:

Always Use Cosmetic Testers Sometimes Use Cosmetic Testers Never Use Cosmetic Testers

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The correlation between scores and whether or not females use cosmetic testers in stores is shown in graph 6. Like in the other cluster graphs the females who had a higher score were clustered together and those who had lower scores were clustered together. Out of the 258 people who answered that they use makeup, only 18 people reported that they ever got a facial or eye infection. Eleven people reported that they didnt know whether they had an infection due to makeup use. A few people reported that they had an allergic reaction to the makeup. Another said that their eye became swollen and a rash developed on their face but they did not know if it was due to makeup. Another female said that she contracted facial and eye infections but did not specify what kind of infection. One person reported itchy, and watery eyes due to their eyeliner. Several other people also said they had red eyes and one person even had pink eye. An additional student said that she had an eye infection in which her eye turned red and puffy. The most common infections included acne breakouts and rashes.

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Discussion
More than two thirds of the adolescent females who took the cosmetic survey used makeup. Out of the 258 who used makeup, 142 used makeup correctly, 109 used it adequately, 63 close to poor and 8 poorly. It was determined that the probability of infection was low since most respondents used it correctly. However, the overall range of scored does not show the entire picture. How often a person uses makeup and what kind of makeup they use has to be taken into consideration. For example, in the raw data, scores of females who used makeup occasionally ranged from 4- 45, which is from good use to close to poor use. Also, the participants who used makeup more than 8 times a week also has a wide range from 4- 54, showing that even if makeup is used more than 7 times a week, some people know how to use it well. Generally, however, when the average score of each response group was taken, those who used makeup 8 or more times a week had the largest score in the group (27). Those who use makeup occasionally came in second (20). Both examples also show that if you use it frequently or seldom, how you use makeup can affect your chances of developing a facial or eye infection. The cluster graphs (graphs 1, 3, 4,6) show the correlation between the behavior of a female who uses makeup and her score. The graphs help show the relationship between the females in a specific response group. The response group with the highest peaks contained the highest scores and generally those groups did what is not recommended when using makeup. They would overlap the group that contained the lower peaks, which contained the lower scores. An example of this is in graph 3, which examined the correlation of scores and whether females shared makeup or not. The

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larger cluster was the response group that answered, yes that they shared makeup, and the smaller cluster was the response group that answered, no that they do not share makeup. The larger cluster actually overlaps the smaller showing that the amount of females who share makeup is greater than those who do not. The cluster is larger because it contains the higher scores as well. The higher the scores, the worst the response population uses makeup. Those graphs which contained a larger cluster, which represents the response population that did what is not recommended, is graph 3, which shows whether females share makeup, and graph 6, which shows the number of females who use cosmetic testers. Sharing makeup is not recommended because essentially you are increasing the chances of microbial growth and infection for all users. Using cosmetic testers available in public stores is even worse because it is impossible to figure out who used it before you and whether they had an infection or not. Nearly 53% of females that were asked if they shared or borrowed makeup responded yes they did. 148 females used cosmetic testers and nearly 77% responded that they apply the testers themselves. Without a salesperson to monitor females who use testers, the chance of spreading infection can increase dramatically. These numbers increase the chance of females received a facial or eye infection due to improper use of makeup. In graph 2, the replacing of makeup was, essentially, proportional to the replacing of makeup applicators. This suggests that when makeup is replaced, usually, that is when the applicators are replaced. This is especially important because different types of makeup need to be replaced at different times and applicators should be replaced more often because they are the carriers of bacteria from the skin to the cosmetic.

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Using old applicators in new makeup also introduces bacteria from skin in the makeup, increasing chances of infection. Generally the females that were surveyed showed that they knew how to remove makeup and store their makeup. Out of 258 surveyed females, 178 said that they remove makeup with soap and water and 102 said they use makeup removers. Out of those who were surveyed, 133 store makeup on dressers and 136 store them in makeup bags designated for makeup only. These are good practices in such that they are not moist areas or humid areas where bacteria can grow like the bathroom. Overall, the probability of infection due to poor makeup use cannot be determined because there are numerous factors that affect whether a person uses makeup properly or not. There were some people who scored higher than others and used makeup once in a while compared to those who used it 8 or more times. What type of makeup a person uses also affects whether their probability of infection increases or decreases. Thus, when calculating the scores, the type of makeup females used should have been taken into account and it should have been compared to how often females replace their makeup because different types of makeup need to be replaced at different times. For example, mascara should be replaced at least every 3 months while lipstick should be replaced every 2 years. What is surprising is that the Federal Drug and Food Administration do not require manufacturers to include expiration dates of their cosmetic products on labels. This can significantly hurt females who do not know that old makeup has the potential to harbor bacteria. Some problems that occurred during the experiment were obtaining enough completed surveys for analysis. In addition, several edited copies of the survey had to

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be made to decrease confusion for the females completing the survey because some questions were not clear. This caused females to improperly answer questions making nearly 28% the surveys void. More responses to questions should have been added. Hopes for future research is to test cosmetic testers as well as old makeup for bacterial growth.

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Bibliography
Bhadauria R. and Ahearn D.G. (1980) Loss of Effectiveness of Preservative Systems of Mascaras with Age. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 39(3), 665-667. Brannan, Daniel K. and Dille James C. (1990) Types of Closure Prevents Microbial Contamination of Cosmetics During Consumer Use. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 56(5), 1476-1479. Hugbo, Peter G. Onyekweli Anthony O. and Igwe, Ijoma (2003). Microbial Contamination and Preservative Capacity of Some Brands of Cosmetic Creams. Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, 2(2) 299-234. Okeke, I. N. and Lamikanra, A. (2001) Bacteriological Quality of Skin Moisturizing Creams and Lotions Distributed in a Tropical Developing Country. Journal of Applied Microbiology. 91, 922-928. Perry, Brian. (2001) Cosmetic Microbiology. Microbiology Today, 28(11), 185-187.

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