5 Ways to Tell if Your Products Have Expired
Unfortunately most cosmetic companies do not put expiration or best-by dates on their products, so we’re left to decode our products’ condition on our own. Here are five ways to check how yours are holding up.
1. Change in odor
Fragrances, which are made of dozens of different ingredients, can react with the rest of the product. When one element of the product reacts with another, it’s original form is changed, so testing the smell of a product is a good means of knowing how the rest of it is holding up. While a faded scent is totally normal, a rancid or sour scent can be a sign that something is not right. Better safe than sorry.
2. Color shifting
Colors of products are very sensitive to light, so those in a clear package are likely to shift a bit in color. A slight color change can be more of an aesthetic issue than a functional one, but of course common sense is in order here: if your red lipstick suddenly has a super orangey hue, perhaps it’s time to ditch the stick and invest in a new tube.
3. Texture changes
Consistency changes are often subtle; however, they can be extremely telling about the state of a product. An example? If your skin lotion looks extra thick or thin, or if it seems too grainy, these may be early indicators of emulsion instability. Ok, so what does that mean to a normal person? The oil and any water-soluble chemicals are separating–not good!
4. Microbial contamination
This looks just as gross as it sounds. If you see black spots or fuzzy growth in your product, it might be contaminated with bacteria or fungus. Throw it out IMMEDIATELY or you may be at risk for infection!
{Helpful tip! Don’t ever add water to get the last bit of a product out. This will dilute the preservative system and could potentially allows nasty bugs to reproduce!}
5. Physical separation
Easy. If the product has separated into two layers, it has gone bad. Often you cannot simply fix it by remixing it. This is especially true of cosmetics that have active ingredients like sunscreen and dandruff shampoos. Once the active ingredient has separated from the rest of the formula, it may not work properly anymore.
~Ashley Taylor
