3 Common Household Items You Should Toss

It happens in every household. We accumulate so many possessions (food, makeup and otherwise) and then have so much trouble letting go of things. There could be a multitude of reasons. Perhaps you spent a ton of money on something, or maybe you just “love” it so much or maybe even you think that one day you will eventually use it.

One of the challenges with this type of thinking is that some things have a ”best before” date. This doesn’t necessarily mean it expires before that date or that you “best consume it” before this date. But for many items, food and makeup in particular, it speaks to a shelf life. Once you open the product that best before date goes right out the window.

Food – Does it need to smell funny?

Take foods for instance. That best before date we see on the pre-packaged foods means its taste, nutrition and safety are pretty much guaranteed before that date. But once opened, that date is irrelevant. Even if something doesn’t have a foul odor or still tastes fine, it doesn’t mean it’s safe to consume. Bacteria and other organisms can still be growing in the food before any foul odor or foul taste is detected. So if you are ever in a position when you are wondering if something is still okay to eat, it probably isn’t. Toss it and be safe.

Cosmetics and clutter

Makeup is another challenge. The amount of money the average woman spends spends on cosmetics makes it very difficult to toss that foundation bottle you bought last year that still has some left, or that mascara that you’re pretty sure you could get another few weeks’ use of. The issue is that liquids go bad pretty quickly once opened and exposed to air. Even those little samples you get at the store can go from nice to nasty pretty quick.

Pump style containers that hold your moisturizer or foundation tend to last longer than ones in a jar because with jars of liquid your fingers (that hold bacteria) are constantly being dipped into the container thus lending to faster contamination. The general rule of thumb is 6 months for moisturizer or foundations in a container, up to a year if you have a pump mechanism for either. Of course, if the product seems to smell a little funny all of a sudden, then it’s time to toss it.

Powdered makeup last the longest provided you keep your brushed clean.  You can usually count on two years for powdered products.

Mascara is the worst. Once you open that tube you should toss it after 3 months tops! Don’t play the chance game with your eyes! If you have ever had pink eye you know exactly what I mean.  Use a Sharpie and mark the date of that sucker so you don’t take the chance of keeping it longer than you should.

Bed pillows bacteria

This last one is something we see in almost every home we work in. Bed pillows. They have a shelf life as well, especially if you are not protecting them in a thick pillow protector. Without protection, your pillows should be tossed out after one year. The reason for this is that grease from your scalp and oils and bacteria from your face and mouth soak into the pillow leading to bacteria growth which yellows the pillow and is a wonderful breeding ground for dust mites. Yuck! Do you really want to take the chance that you sleeping companions are dust mites?!

With more expensive pillows you should be getting them professionally cleaned every couple of years. But if you see any yellowing on your pillow or have had it over a year without a pillow protector, toss that baby in the trash and give yourself and your family a nice gift of a fresh, new pillow to sleep on.

If you have any questions about the shelf life of any other items you may have in your home, just contact us and we will answer your questions.
In the meantime, play it safe and don’t risk your health and safety!