In the modern age, most girls wear makeup—and it’s typically designed to make us feel better about ourselves. But can makeup actually do this by altering our brain chemistry? In an emerging trend, cosmetic companies are creating products that can latch onto brain receptors and alter our moods. Physician’s Formula has created a “Happy Booster Bronzer,” claiming that the blend of substances in the makeup can mimic endorphins—which are responsible for our excitement and satisfaction. Firmenich has created a “Smiley Perfume,” a citrus and bergamot scented fragrance to stimulate the same brain receptors that induce euphoria. It’s even marketed as “the world’s first antidepressant perfume.” Kroia has created a moisturizing cream that hinges on the homeopathic practice of chromotherapy—exposing yourself to colors associated with certain “energies” that alter your frame of mind. Each moisturizer, available in several different colors, is infused with ingredients that emit particular wavelengths of light.

Although a neat creation, this mood altering makeup is under much skepticism. People are doubtful that the necessary compounds can be absorbed into the bloodstream through the skin. And while skepticism exists in the practicality of these products, the fact that we have come to the point of needing makeup infused with chemicals that induce happiness does shed a revealing light on society. Makeup itself can be thought of as a way to empower women. It is not necessarily about a standard of beauty promoted by society—but rather about being comfortable and confident in one’s own skin. It allows individuals to express themselves in their own unique art form. However, when we move to the need of infusing makeup with mood altering chemicals, we deviate from organic empowerment to inorganic empowerment. This raises questions about the true happiness of our society. Have we become so insecure and so depressed that we cannot even generate our own happiness organically? While it is possible that the development of products like this may just merely enhance our already apparent happiness, it is also very possible that they may actually move our society in a direction of artificiality. The appearance of these chemicals in such a common item like makeup promotes the normalization of a manufactured happiness—and we must not let the idea that organic happiness and manufactured happiness are the same cloud our minds.

Ultimately, while the idea of mood changing makeup sounds clever and innovative at first glance, it actually does reveal some unsettling truths about our society today. With so many different standards to live up to, and with the rise of new technology, we are unhappier than ever and have turned to altering our brain chemistry to reach the simple state of mind that is happiness. If this trend of artificiality continues, a frightening path will ensue—one in which our humanity may start to diminish. Although mood changing makeup is just a harmless start, we must avoid further and more extreme inorganic alterations to our brains to ensure that we do not end up in a world where true depression is obscured by counterfeit happiness.