Shelf life of Yonka-Paris skin care products

I get asked this question a lot: What is the shelf life for my Yonka products? In the past I have asked this directly to the trainers at headquarters, and at one time, here is what I was told: Unopened products are good for up to 2.5 years; once opened, Yonka products are good for 6 months to 1 year. However here is a more recent company guideline:

• Unopened—18 months (1.5 years)
• Opened—3-6 months

I suggest the more conservative recommendation. However, I have had unopened Yonka products in my home for more than 2 or 3 years, then opened the product and it was perfect. But this might not always be the case. The caveat is these unopened products were kept in the bottom cabinet under my bathroom sink where there was no light or heat getting to them. This is the most important factor in how long any products, not just Yonka, will last opened or not. When exposed (especially prolonged) to heat, all bets are off.

One of the main reason Yonka products can last so long, especially unopened, is due to the high concentration of essential oils almost every item in the line contains (but not all do). These ingredients are preservatives on their own along with their other attributes, such as antibacterial components as well as a host of others like calming and soothing. Essential oils, pure in glass bottles, also need to be stored in a preferably dark (as in no sun can get to them) place that isn’t affected by temperatures, especially and specifically heat.

The best tell-all sign a product has gone bad is by its smell. If something smells funky and different than what you remember a cream or whatever product you’re looking at used to, then it’s time to throw it away. I wouldn’t even give it a thought—if it smells bad, say bye-bye.

Consistency is another way to possibly determine if a product has gone bad. With some Yonka products—concentrates and serums in particular—they separate, which is not a “bad” thing. But if a creme you’ve had for a while or that got exposed to sunlight (in your car for instance) comes out runny and not holding together like it had in the past, I’d toss that one too. See a link below for a more detailed article on how to determine if your products are still good.

Something else to keep in mind: If you are by chance (and I use that phrase literally!) buying any Yonka products from anyone other than an authorized dealer, such as a salon or other approved Yonka-outlet, there really is no guarantee of its freshness. You don’t know how these products have been stored, so even though Yonka provides clear expirations dates, you simply don’t know what you’re getting when purchasing this way. Therefore I highly recommend getting any and all of your Yonka products from a reliable, Yonka-approved source.

CLICK HERE for an information page on the Yonka website explaining in detail their stance on unauthorized sales along with a list of unauthorized sellers.

For more information, see:

• What is the SHELF LIFE of skin care products? And how to tell if a product has “gone bad”
• Yonka moves to airless jars for their skin care creams
• Get every last drop of your creams with a tube wringer!