Teens and tweens are becoming major consumers of skin care products, fueled by social media influencers and their elaborate beauty routines. Are these products safe for younger kids?
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Teens and tweens are becoming major consumers of skin care products. Some are responding to young influencers demonstrating pricey skincare routines on social media, but do kids really need them? NPR’s Maria Godoy finds out.
MARIA GODOY, BYLINE: Like a lot of teens, 14-year-old Stella Siers cares about having clear skin.
STELLA SIERS: I try and take care of it as much as I can, so if, ooh, I see a pimple, I’m going put a patch on it. I’m going to take care of it, ’cause it’s just important that my face is healthy and looking good.
GODOY: To keep her skin free of the bumps and pimples that come with adolescence, she relies on a multistep routine that includes an acne face wash, a mild moisturizer, a hydrating serum and sunscreen. One of her favorite products was made famous on TikTok. It’s a watermelon toner which comes in an eye-catching translucent pink bottle.
STELLA: I love it. It’s my favorite. I got all of it. That’s, like, the only thing I’m like, ooh, that looks nice – I’m going to get it.
GODOY: Like millions of other teens and tweens, Stella says she’s tempted to try skin care products that pop up on her social media feed.
FADEL: I see it, and I’m like, OK, everyone has this. Let me try it out.
GODOY: Now, Stella’s mom is a nurse practitioner, so she steers the teen away from ingredients that aren’t appropriate for her age – things like retinol, which increases cell turnover but can also make skin more sensitive to the sun. but not all kids or parents are as aware of potential pitfalls. Dr. Carol Cheng is a pediatric dermatologist at UCLA. She says she’s been seeing more kids and adolescents come in with rashes caused by layering on too many products in pursuit of a flawless look, promoted on Instagram and TikTok as glass skin.
CAROL CHENG: Unfortunately, that can backfire, causing redness, peeling, flaking, burning, and so we see patients coming in for these concerns more than we did a couple years ago, at younger ages.
GODOY: In some cases, she says, patients as young as 8 or 9 are coming in with bad reactions to these beauty products. One problem is that kids and their parents may not realize that some of these viral beauty products include active ingredients such as chemical exfoliants, known as AHAs and BHAs, that help remove dead skin cells and oil. While those ingredients can be appropriate for teens with oily skin, Cheng says they’re too harsh for the thinner skin of preteens.
CHENG: Their skin barrier can be compromised more easily. Their skin’s more sensitive. Their skin’s not as robust, and so any of these products can affect their skin more easily and cause irritation.
GODOY: So what should a skin care routine look like for a tween or young teen? Dr. Elizabeth Houshmand is a dermatologist in Dallas who sees many patients in this age group. Her advice is to keep it simple.
ELIZABETH HOUSHMAND: Basic skin care for that demographic should just be a very mild, gentle cleanser, maybe some moisturizer and a sunscreen – nothing more.
GODOY: She says for teens battling acne, over-the-counter products with ingredients like benzoyl peroxide are fine, though it’s a good idea to check in with their pediatrician or a dermatologist. Houshmand says one upside of this social-media-fueled interest in skin care is that it’s an opportunity to educate teens and tweens that good skin begins with healthy habits.
HOUSHMAND: I always tell patients, I can’t give you beautiful skin unless you are healthy and you take care of yourself because the skin really reflects what’s going on internally.
GODOY: She says exercise, a balanced diet and a good night’s sleep can all play a role not just in good health, but good skin, too.
Maria Godoy, NPR News.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
Copyright © 2024 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
