Mascara: Should It Stay or Should it Go?

We all go through it..You smell, shake, and poke a cosmetic or kitchen product, wondering if it's still safe to use. You can't remember when you bought it, but it smells, looks, and feels perfectly fine. Is this one of those products you are supposed to throw out after a few months, or does it have a long lifespan??? Who knows if there isn't an expiration date on it.

After some real digging for information, MSNBC.com came to find hard-and-fast rules of the shelf lives of five common household items. So here is the first one...

Mascara

A lot of people think that a tube of mascara that has been opened can be safely used until it dries up or becomes clumpy. This is so not true. Regardless of how it looks or feels, the older mascara gets, the more likely germs are growing in it. And every time you pull out and put back the wand, you're pushing germy air right into the tube.

Conclusion: Throw it out after three months, every time.

Stay tuned for more Should it Stay or Should it Go features...