In Bangladesh cosmetics are being produced disregarding the Good Manufacturing Practices. So, this study aimed to test the level and nature of bacterial contamination of such cosmetics. A total of 27 cosmetics comprising eight lipsticks, nine powders, and ten creams were bought from New Market and Tejgaon areas of Dhaka city and tested. Bacteria was detected in 85.2% of samples. Majority of the samples (77.8%) exceeded the limit given by the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI), Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Both Gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Salmonella spp.) and Gram-positive bacteria (species of Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, Bacillus and Listeria monocytogenes) were identified. Hemolysis was observed in 66.7% Gram-positive and 25% Gram-negative bacteria. Multidrug resistance was tested in 165 randomly selected isolates. Every species of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria exhibited varying levels of multidrug resistance. The highest levels of antibiotic resistance were in broad-spectrum antibiotics (ampicillin, azithromycin, cefepime, ciprofloxacin and meropenem) and narrow-spectrum Gram-negative antibiotics (aztreonam and colistin). Multidrug resistance was 12-78% in Gram-negative bacteria and 12-100% in Gram-positive bacteria. Coagulase and DNase were identified in 97.5% and 5.1% of Staphylococcus aureus isolates respectively. Our findings indicate that these cosmetics pose a risk to the public's health.
© 2023. The Author(s).