Halloween Special for Kids and Parents
All About Novelty Makeup
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 After-effects!
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 by following these tips:
- 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:
- The list of ingredients on the label. Look for the names of the colors.
THEN...
- 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 FDA's "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.
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