Prevention and control of microorganisms in the production of cosmetics

Cosmetic microbial contamination
With the improvement of people's living standards and the pursuit of health and beauty, cosmetics have become increasingly popular and have become a necessity. Safety, practicability, efficacy and stability are the necessary conditions for cosmetics. Microbiological safety is an important part of cosmetics hygiene and safety.
In order to protect the microbiological safety of cosmetics, China has formulated and promulgated the "Hygienic Standards for Cosmetics" (GB7916-87), "Methods for Testing Microbiological Standards for Cosmetics" (GB7918.1-7918.5-87), and "Cosmetic Manufacturers" since 1987. Hygienic norms (2001), "Hygienic Standards for Cosmetics" (released in 1999, revised in 2002) and other related standards and specifications, the total number of colonies, fecal coliforms, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, The five microbial indicators of mold and yeast and the corresponding test methods, the total number of cosmetic cosmetics for eye cosmetics, lips and other mucosal cosmetics and infants and children's cosmetics shall not exceed 500 CFU/mL or 500 CFU/g, and the total number of other cosmetic colonies shall not exceed 1000 CFU/mL. Or 1000 CFU/g, no fecal coliform, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus should be detected per gram or per milliliter of product. The total number of molds and yeasts in cosmetics should not exceed 100 CFU/mL or 100 CFU/g. Since the promulgation of the standard, the monitoring results of the provincial and municipal health supervision agencies over the years have shown that there is a certain proportion of microbiological indicators exceeding the standard is a common problem, mainly because the total number of colonies exceeds the standard, followed by fecal E. coli, mold and yeast, and fewer countries. The monitored pathogens are detected. According to the analysis results of the products submitted by some micro-analysis enterprises in Guangdong Province from 2002 to 2003, the total over-standard rate of bacteriological indicators of 166 samples was 6.0%, and the total over-standard rate of mold and yeast was 7.2%. Identification, bacteria mainly Bacillus, accounting for 28.6% of the total number of bacteria, Pseudomonas, accounting for 24.1%, Staphylococcus, accounting for 18.5%, other bacteria accounted for 28.8%, including Serratia, alkali production Fungi, Micrococcus, Aeromonas, Enterobacter, Klebsiella, Agrobacterium, etc. Molds and yeasts mainly include Trichoderma, Aspergillus, Rhizopus, and Neurospora , Aureobasidium, Candida, etc.
2. Sources of microbial contamination and prevention and control
Cosmetics are complex in composition and contain many nutrients that are good media for the growth of contaminated microorganisms. In the entire production process of cosmetics, from raw materials into the factory, through multiple processes to make products, various factors may lead to microorganisms. Pollution. Analysis of the source of microbial contamination in the production of cosmetics, taking appropriate prevention and control measures, is essential to ensure product quality.
(1) Raw materials
Cosmetics are compounded mixtures of various raw materials that have been rationally blended. The raw materials are various and have different properties. There are oily raw materials, silty raw materials, colloidal raw materials, surfactants, solvent raw materials, flavors and fragrances, dyes, Pigments, etc. Among these raw materials, natural animal and plant ingredients and their extracts such as gelatin and collagen peptide hydrolysate, placenta extract, leeches, lanolin, ginseng, angelica, aloe vera and their extracts are highly susceptible. Microbial contamination, followed by the possibility of microbial contamination, thickeners, powders, surfactants, dilute solutions, etc., relatively speaking, oils, higher fatty acids, alcohols, spices, acids, alkalis and other raw materials by microorganisms The possibility of pollution is small.
Products with heating process in the production process, such as heating to 85 ~ 90 ° C, for 20 ~ 30min, can kill most of the bacteria (except for spores), for raw materials that can not be heated during processing, if it is known The amount of bacteria is large, and it can be treated in advance by an appropriate method (such as gas sterilization, irradiation sterilization or filter sterilization). Qualified raw materials should be stored in the following requirements: all raw materials are stored off-site; raw material warehouses are often cleaned and disinfected; warehouses are kept as constant temperature and humidity as possible; storage tanks for liquid raw materials are covered; Use in sequence to reduce storage time; when the storage period of raw materials is long, the microbial indicators should be tested before use.
(2) Water
The position of water in the entire cosmetic production process is extremely important. The proportion of water in general cosmetic formulations is about 30% to 70%, and the amount of water used in process production is greater. Ordinary drinking water contains a certain amount of Ca2+, Mg2+, Fe3+, Mn2+, Na+ plasma, organic matter and microorganisms, and is not suitable for the manufacture of cosmetics. With the rapid development of science and technology, various water purification technologies have been introduced, such as microfiltration (MF), ultrafiltration (UF), nanofiltration (NF), ion exchange, reverse osmosis (RO), and electrodialysis (ED). Separately or in combination, pure or ultrapure water can be obtained that meets the requirements for cosmetic preparation and production water.

It must be pointed out that in pure water or ultrapure water treated by ion exchange or reverse osmosis, a certain amount of microorganisms still exist, and must be disinfected and sterilized. The commonly used methods include ultraviolet disinfection, ozone sterilization, and boiling sterilization. , chemical disinfectant disinfection, etc.

(3) Pipes and equipment

Cosmetic production equipment includes emulsion tanks, storage tanks, pipes, valves, joints, flow meters, filters, pumps and filling machines. Most cosmetic manufacturers have a wide variety of products, and the equipment is shared by a variety of products. The production equipment is not designed to be clean and hygienic. It is difficult to disassemble and it is difficult to completely clean and disinfect. Microorganisms are produced on equipment and pipes, and the products will be continuously polluted when they flow.

In order to kill microorganisms in production equipment and pipelines, the equipment and pipelines must first be cleaned to completely remove the adhered dirt, so that the dirt becomes a protective umbrella for microorganisms, which affects the disinfection and sterilization effect. For different types of equipment, one or several cleaning methods such as soaking, spraying, partial cleaning, high pressure washing and internal circulation cleaning can be used respectively. For the sediments and adhering dirt which are difficult to remove on equipment and pipelines, Soaking, dissolving, heating and mechanical action can be removed, especially in the dead corner residue, which can be removed after disassembly, and these residues are an important source of microbial growth. The places where the residue is easy to accumulate include valves, outlets and inlets. Filters, pistons and pumps for filling machines, etc.

Equipment and piping must be disinfected after cleaning. Common disinfection methods are steam sterilization and chemical disinfection. When steam sterilization is used, the disinfected equipment must be heat-resistant. The disinfection effect is related to the contact time. It is generally required to disinfect the open container for 30 minutes. If it is a pressure-resistant container, use autoclave, the contact time can be shortened to 5-15 minutes. . The advantage of steam sterilization is that the effect is good, no need to rinse after disinfection, the disadvantage is that the energy consumption is large, there must be a boiler. The same type of disinfection method is also hot water disinfection, circulating with hot water of 90 ° C, suitable for pipeline disinfection. Chemical disinfection is the use of a variety of chemical disinfectants for disinfection, is a cold disinfection, no need to heat. Chemical disinfectants commonly used in cosmetic pipes and equipment include ethanol, chlorine dioxide, peracetic acid, sodium hypochlorite, etc. Chemical disinfectants are used to disinfect equipment and pipelines. The material and disinfectant properties must be fully understood. Disinfectant concentration and action time to ensure disinfection effect. In order to avoid the long-term use of a single disinfectant to cause microbial resistance to disinfectants, it is better to have a longer-term plan for disinfection of equipment, using different types of disinfectants in turn.

(4) Packaging

It is not uncommon for the contents of cosmetics to contaminate microorganisms due to containers and accessories. The sanitary environment of the container manufacturer may not guarantee the cleanliness of the containers during production, storage and transportation. Therefore, the packaging containers should be processed according to the following procedures before use. Cleaning and disinfection treatment: 1 rinse with water; 2 soak for 10~30min; 3 clean with deionized water; 4 put the washed packaging container in the basket and transport it to the drying room for drying; The dried packaging container was transported to a sterile room with the mouth facing up and irradiated with an ultraviolet lamp for 30 minutes for use.

(5) Production environment

The air that has not been cleaned contains a variety of microorganisms, which can cause pollution to the products in the manufacturing, standing, filling, and packaging of cosmetics.

There are no special specifications for the design of the cosmetics factory. Refer to the existing design specifications for clean plants (GB50073-2001) to meet the requirements of the “Hygienic Specifications for Cosmetics Manufacturers”: the total number of bacteria in the air of the production workshop shall not exceed 1000/m3. Semi-finished storage rooms, filling rooms, cleaning container storage rooms, changing rooms and buffer zones must have air purification or air disinfection facilities. It is recommended to install an air filtration system with high, medium and low efficiency filters in the production workshop to meet the requirements of clean air entering the workshop; UV lamps should be installed in the workshop, 30 minutes before starting production every day; or ozone generators should be used. The ozone disinfects the air in the production workshop; if it can be periodically fumigated or sprayed with drugs (chlorine dioxide, peracetic acid, etc.), it can ensure high air cleanliness and greatly reduce the contamination of the product by microorganisms in the air. Danger.

(6) Operators

Normal people's skin, hands, hair, clothes, shoes, etc. all have a large number of microorganisms. The operators involved in production are the sources of pollution that cannot be ignored in the production of cosmetics. In order to prevent such pollution, the following items should be noted: 1 Enter the production workshop Before wearing clean overalls, work caps, work shoes, masks, gloves, etc.; 2 every time you enter the area where cleanliness is required to start work, you should thoroughly disinfect and wash your hands; 3 each time you complete unsanitary actions or work, you should thoroughly Disinfecting and washing hands; 4 Persons suffering from skin diseases, purulent diseases, finger wounds or colds should temporarily remove jobs directly related to the contents.

Three conclusions

In short, the prevention and control of microorganisms is a systematic project. Due to the ubiquity of microorganisms, the negligence of any link in the production process of cosmetics may lead to the investment and efforts of other enterprises in vain, only to improve the overall quality. Consciousness, from the raw materials, equipment, technology, packaging, environment, personnel and other aspects of strict control, while doing a good job of monitoring the microbial links in each link, can fully guarantee the microbiological safety of cosmetics.

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