WHAT IS MASCARA?

Beauty looks that beauty does and no doubt, giving beauty to eye lashes through mascara enhances beauty that becomes impressive as first introduction but it can cost much with excessive use and should be avoided to save natural décor of eyes.

Moses would be subjected to litigation on the day of judgement as he had provided the ingredients which sharpened the sword of the lover, a poet in the high flight of imagination is blaming Moses for the sharp eyes of the lover which get sharper with the use of mascara. The Moses quested for seeing God and witnessed the divine light on the Mount Sinai which turned into Kohl that is believed to be used by women for the embellishment of eyes and mascara is perhaps the advance form of the kohl.

However, it cannot be said in certain who had first used the substance to make the eyes look brighter, bigger, and attractive or in which country the use of mascara got started but its footprints could be found in the olden civilizations because embellishment of eyes is associated with human instinct to look beautiful. In many tribal setups in Africa, among the tribes of the Red Indians in America, the tribesmen belonging to South and North America and even in India decoration of eyes was common among both men and women because it was part of their culture and civilization. In many civilizations, the priests and religious people used the substances to decorate their eye lashes to have distinguished position in the society. The Egyptians were the early people who gave new meaning to use of cosmetics and the use of mascara was popular among the women of pre-historic era of the Egypt as the women used kohl and crocodile dung to decorate the eyes.

EYES, INDEX OF PERSONALITY

It is usually said that beauty lies in the eyes of beholder. On the other hand, it is the eyes which give the first introduction of personality, behaviour, thoughts, beliefs, reactions such as love and hatred, smile and anger, acceptance or renunciation, respect and insult, welcoming or unwelcoming and so on. The first contact of a person with other one takes place through eyes and smiley, darkened, glowing and sharpened eyes leave a lasting impression on the others. The eye lashes are darkened, thickened and made brighter and glowing with mascara to throw an introduction having deeper impact.

MASCARA COMPOSITION

In olden times, the eye lashes were decorated with the substances like kohl, soot mixing with some oil and other such things but in modern world the mascara is composed of carbon black pigment or iron oxide, a preservative and waxes or thickening oil such as lanolin, mineral oil, paraffin, petrolatum, castor oil, carnauba wax and candelilla wax.

MASCARA IN MODERN WORLD

The use of mascara by the European women had started in the medieval period but it was not welcomed by the clergy and it remained restricted to a small segment of the society. It was in the Elizabeth-1 period when new innovations in makeup were introduced and mascara also became part of the beauty products. With the industrial revolution, Europe experienced many changes as the Europeans got more liberal and they broke many social and religious shackles. This modernity gave boost to the women participation in all walks of life and thus the makeup became a necessity and the women began to adorn their eye lashes as part of self-projection and self-expression. The innovations in the production of beauty products also made it easy to use different beauty items including mascara. The photo industry, visual art, motion pictures, and other such things made it essential for the actors and models to use beauty items for the better presentation.

MASCARA MAY BE HARMFUL

As it is universally acclaimed fact that excess of everything is bad, it is true with mascara and its use on daily basis may cause dry eyes, red eyes, irritation and allergies. The worst may occur with the loss of eye lashes and eyes without lashes are akin to flower without colour. The mascara can also give rise to bacterial growth on the eyelids and inside the eyes which can affect the cornea and even eyesight because the substances and chemicals used in this beauty product may prove to be detrimental.

HOW TO KEEP BAD EFFECTS OF MASCARA AT BAY

Some beauty scientists believe that mascara is not harmful at all. However, its excessive use can prove to be detrimental for the eye lashes, eyelid and even to the eyes and its surrounding areas. Its bad effects can be avoided with careful treatment as it should be replaced on daily basis before going to the bed. The mascara should never be shared with anyone and should be personal because it can cause growth of harmful bacteria and can cause irritation, swelling and red eyes. The waterproof mascara is more harmful because it is hard to remove and can cause more risk to the eyes.

In the nutshell, it is clear that tempering with nature invites wrath of nature. The eye lashes are the gift of nature to shelter the eyes from outside harms as they do not allow dust particles, smog, debris to go inside the eyes. They also save eyes from the air pressure and their black colour enhances the vision. So, the eye lashes are the first defence line of the eyes provided by mother nature. Decoration of the eye lashes with the beauty product is human intervention which can be detrimental to the eye lashes and eyes which are one of the greatest gifts of nature as without eyes world becomes colourless. So it is advisable that mascara should be used with a lot of care and caution following all the parameters suggested to keep the eyes healthy and safe.

FAQs (Frequent Asked Questions)