Herpes and Other Germs Lurking on Makeup

By

A woman in the US is suing a cosmetics store because she claims that she caught herpes from their lipstick tester.

[2]In case you’re wondering if this is even possible, as a microbiologist, I can tell you that it most certainly is.And it’s not just herpes that can lurk in makeup.

[3]But let’s look at herpes first.

This very common virus is mainly spread by skin-to-skin contact, kissing and sex, but it can also be transmitted in droplets1droplet帶菌飛沫。of spit2spit唾液；唾沫。left by an infected person on towels, cups, cutlery and, yes,lipstick.

[4]Globally, it’s estimated that 67%of people are infected with the Herpes simplex virus(HSV-1).But it’s a hidden enemy—a person doesn’t need to have visible signs of the virus to spread the infection.The virus lives in facial tissues where it can shed and spread.

[5]It doesn’t always show up on the skin as a blister immediately after it has infected a person, instead it can stay hidden and appear after a few months.

[6]Because of this, it’s impossible to say with certainty if the American woman caught herpes from this particular store tester, or elsewhere.

[7]Herpes causes blisters on the lips and around the mouth that can last up to ten days.Lipsticks and makeup brushes that touch these parts of the face can then spread the infection to other people.

[8]Fortunately, herpes is a fragile virus and typically only survives outside the body for ten seconds.But it can survive longer in warm and moist environments, such as in sweat.It can also survive between two to four hours on plastic, chrome and water, so there are lots of ways the virus can spread.

[9]There is no cure for a herpes infection, although treatments are available that will reduce the length of

美國(guó)的一位女士起訴了一家化妝品店，因?yàn)樗暦Q(chēng)用了店里的口紅試用裝后感染了皰疹病毒。

[2]也許你會(huì)感到疑惑：這可能嗎？作為微生物學(xué)家，我可以告訴你，這極有可能。而且不僅僅只有皰疹病毒會(huì)潛伏在化妝品里。

[3]我們先從皰疹病毒說(shuō)起吧。

這種常見(jiàn)病毒主要通過(guò)皮膚接觸、接吻和性交傳播，然而也可通過(guò)感染者留在毛巾、杯子、餐具以及口紅上的唾液飛沫傳播。

[4]據(jù)估計(jì)，全球67%的人已感染了單純皰疹病毒。但該病毒是一種隱藏的敵人——傳播者不一定表現(xiàn)出明顯的病毒感染的癥狀。這種病毒生存在面部皮膚組織中，可隨其脫落并傳播。

[5]感染該病毒后，并不總是立即表現(xiàn)為皮膚上起水皰，相反，此病毒能潛伏幾個(gè)月之后再出現(xiàn)癥狀。

[6]正因?yàn)槿绱耍覀儫o(wú)法確定這位美國(guó)女士是因使用這家商店的試用裝感染了皰疹病毒還是在其他地方感染的。

[7]皰疹病毒會(huì)導(dǎo)致嘴唇和嘴巴周?chē)鹚挘羁沙掷m(xù)10天。而使用觸碰過(guò)這些患病部位的唇膏和化妝刷就可能傳染他人。

[8]幸運(yùn)的是，皰疹病毒是一種脆弱的病毒，通常只能在體外存活10秒鐘。但在溫暖而潮濕的環(huán)境，比如汗液中，它卻能夠存活更長(zhǎng)時(shí)間。它在塑料、鉻和水的環(huán)境中能存活2-4小時(shí)，因此可通過(guò)多種途徑傳播。

[9]盡管治療可縮短感染期，但這種病毒感染卻無(wú)法根治。

An old problem

[10]Microbiologists have known about the link between beauty products and pathogens since the mid-1940s when talcum powder contaminated with Clostridium tetani bacteria caused the death of a newborn baby.

[11]Since the 1960s, contamination linked to other opportunistic3opportunistic機(jī)會(huì)致病性的（對(duì)免疫系統(tǒng)差的人有害）。patho-gens, including Salmonella, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, has been reported by microbiologists across the globe.

[12]Cosmetic products contain preservatives to help slow down the growth of microbes, but they can become contaminated if people use non-sterile applicators or fingers to apply products, or if the products are poorly handled and stored; for example, products stored in warm and humid or damp conditions such as the bathroom.

[13]Makeup brushes also have the potential to act as suitable homes for bacteria to thrive.Often, beauty blenders and brushes are dampened to help the application of eyeshadows or foundation.But this environment has the potential to promote rapid bacterial growth.

[14]In 2015, it was reported that a 27-year-old Australian woman became paralysed after contracting an MRSA infection that attacked4attack侵害，侵染。her spine.She used a brush to apply makeup that belonged to a friend who had a Staphylococcus infection on her face, and became contaminated5contaminate感染。with the organism6organism〈醫(yī)〉細(xì)菌，病菌。.

[15]Staphylococcus is a common bacteria that doesn’t typically cause harm and lives on the skin or in the nose.However, MRSA(Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus)is an antibioticresistant strain of Staphylococcus.

遺留難題

[10]20世紀(jì)40年代中期，發(fā)生了一起使用感染了梭狀芽孢桿菌的滑石粉導(dǎo)致新生兒死亡的病例，自此微生物學(xué)家認(rèn)識(shí)到美容產(chǎn)品和病原體之間的聯(lián)系。

[11]20世紀(jì)60年代以來(lái)，世界各地的微生物學(xué)家報(bào)告了其他包括沙門(mén)氏菌、肺炎克雷伯菌和銅綠假單胞菌在內(nèi)的條件致病菌相關(guān)的感染病例。

[12]化妝品含有防腐劑以減緩微生物的生長(zhǎng)，但如果人們使用非無(wú)菌的涂抹工具或手指來(lái)上妝，或操作及儲(chǔ)存不當(dāng)，比如將化妝品放在浴室這種溫暖而潮濕的環(huán)境中，化妝品便會(huì)受到污染。

[13]化妝筆刷也可能成為滋生細(xì)菌的溫床。通常，畫(huà)眼影或上粉底會(huì)打濕粉撲和筆刷，而這種環(huán)境卻可能加速細(xì)菌繁殖。

[14]據(jù) 報(bào) 道，2015年，一名27歲的澳大利亞婦女感染了MRSA（耐甲氧西林金黃色葡萄球菌），之后該細(xì)菌侵入脊椎導(dǎo)致其癱瘓。她朋友的臉部感染了葡萄球菌，而她用了這位朋友的筆刷化妝，進(jìn)而感染了此病菌。

[15]葡萄球菌是一種常見(jiàn)的細(xì)菌，寄生于皮膚或鼻子部位，通常不會(huì)造成傷害。然而，MRSA是一種抗藥性的葡萄球菌菌株。

Irreversible blindness

[16]Mascara wands and eyeliners not only beautify the eyes, but can cause irritation7irritation〈醫(yī)〉疼痛，發(fā)炎。and conjunctivitis8conjunctivitis結(jié)膜炎。, caused by both bacteria and viruses, including herpes simplex.

[17]Studies have revealed that 43%of eyeliners and mascara wands contain contaminants.I know many friends who have been left with a“pink eye”after sharing mascara or using ancient mascara that has been sitting in their makeup bags.

[18]Symptoms of pink eye include redness, watery discharge and, in extreme cases, irreversible blindness.

[19]Lashes aren’t just there to make us look pretty, they serve to block out dirt and bacteria, and using products on the eyes can cause contamination of the product.With time, bacteria can build up in the cosmetic container, increasing the risk of eye infection every time the product is used.

[20]If all of these horror stories tell us one thing, it’s stay away from sharing makeup products, both among your friends and especially in cosmetic stores.

[21]Always keep your own cosmetic products clean and use single applicators where possible.You wouldn’t share your toothbrush with strangers, so why make an exception with your cosmetics?■

永久性失明

[16]睫毛刷和眼線筆用于美化眼睛，但也會(huì)引起由細(xì)菌和病毒（包括單純皰疹病毒）所導(dǎo)致的刺激性反應(yīng)和結(jié)膜炎。

[17]研究表明，43%的眼線筆和睫毛刷都含有污染物。我認(rèn)識(shí)很多朋友，她們?cè)诠蚕砹私廾嗷蚴褂昧朔旁诨瘖y包里的老式睫毛膏后，都得了“紅眼病”。

[18]紅眼病的癥狀表現(xiàn)為紅腫、流淚，甚至極端情況下會(huì)導(dǎo)致永久性失明。

[19]睫毛不只是為了好看，更是為了阻擋灰塵和細(xì)菌，而在眼部涂抹化妝品便會(huì)導(dǎo)致產(chǎn)品的污染。隨著時(shí)間的推移，細(xì)菌會(huì)在化妝品容器中繁殖積累，增加每次使用化妝品時(shí)眼部感染的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。

[20]倘若所有這些恐怖事例給我們一點(diǎn)啟示的話，那就是在朋友之間，特別是在化妝品店里，要避免共用化妝品。

[21]請(qǐng)始終保持自用化妝品清潔，并盡可能使用單獨(dú)的化妝工具。你不會(huì)和陌生人分享你的牙刷，但為什么化妝品就破例了呢?□