Incidence of fungi in shared-use cosmetics available to the public.
A survey was conducted to assess both the potential health risk from shared-use cosmetics caused by microorganisms and the microbial efficacy of preservatives in cosmetics. Samples of 3027 shared-use cosmetic products were collected from 171 retail establishments nationwide. Fungi were present in 10.4% of the products, and 3.9% contained fungal pathogens or opportunistic pathogens. The 423 fungal isolates identified represented 33 genera and at least 69 species. A disproportionately large share of the fungal isolates were from eye products; fewer were from lip products. Pathogenic or opportunistic pathogens made up 32.2% of the fungal isolates. A slightly lower percentage of samples that contained preservatives had fungi, a fact suggesting that preservatives reduce the incidence of fungi in cosmetics. Results of this survey indicate potential microbiological problems concerning the safety of shared-use cosmetics.