Makeup & Your Eyes
Eye makeup can be dangerous if used incorrectly. Follow these tips to protect your eye health:
- Discard eye makeup every three months.
- Discard all eye makeup after an eye infection.
- Never share eye makeup.
- Avoid store samples.
- Only try one new eye makeup at a time if you have allergies.
- Clean your eyes before putting on makeup.
- Never apply makeup in the car.
- Avoid flaky eye makeup (e.g. glitter) that enter your tear film and cause infections
- Even though Latisse is FDA approved, it can still cause side effects.
- If you plan to use Latisse to enhance your eyelashes, you should first read about the possible side-effects.
- Remove all eye makeup every night before bed.
Makeup is gritty and, when applied to your face, it can easily get into your eyes. Once there, it can take your eyes weeks to recover from the different powders and oils used.
If you do wear eye make-up, make sure to remove it completely at the end of the day, replace your eye makeup regularly, and don't share eye makeup with anyone.
For more information about safe cosmetics, read the article by our teen writer, Christina Hartje-Dunn.
Back to top

Written By: Madison Brown-Moffitt,
college writer
Revised By: Joann Shih, teen writer
Reviewed By: Nancy Brown, Ph.D. &
the PAMF Department of Optometry
Last Reviewed: October 2013
Below are links PAMF accessed when researching this topic. PAMF does not sponsor or endorse any of these sites, nor does PAMF guarantee the accuracy of the information contained on them.
Using Eye Makeup, GetEyeSmart.org.