This holiday season stores like Sephora and Ulta were packed full of young girls, between ten to fifteen years old. Skin care products were flying off the shelves with young girls trying to make their skin not wrinkle. Things like cleanser, toner, serums , and moisturizers were being taken by these children who barely know what they are or they do. However, it comes with the question: do these young girls really need these products? One of the larger issues I see is that their parents are allowing their kids to make these purchases without doing research into them. Skin care while can be helpful and can maintain or skin is simply not needed by girls under twelve, the dermatologist recommended age.
A normal skin care routine for a young girl is a cleanser, toner, sun screen, and moisturizer. These few products will do good for a young girl going through puberty. They don’t need harsher products do their skin being so young and sensitive. Things like sermus and exfoliants often irritate the skin. This can lead to rashes and a burning sensation on the skin. Many do not need those products yet parents continue to let their ten year old daughter buy them because she saw it on Tik Tok or Instagram.
Many different skin care routines are shown on social media. This paints a picture that a skin care routine is needed. Young girls see these products and decide that they need them without doing research on the effects of the product. This puts our young kids at risk of damaging their skin.
One of the main products in concern is retinol. Retinol is a product that increases skin cell production to unclog pores and prevent wrinkles. This product is often very harsh on young skin as it is ment do women ages 18-24. Some dermatologists will recommend retinol for extremely dry skin or if there is a specific need for it but most don’t need it until early adulthood. Parents are buying their kids this product without doing their research. This has led to many kids feeling a burning sensation underneath their eyes and getting rashes. On top of how expensive this product is.
Many skin care products are getting rather expensive especially if you buy them at stores like Sephora. Many parents are emptying their bank accounts trying to please their kids with the next Drunk Elephant products. With this increase in spending came a sense of entitlement in these kids. Many sephora workers report young girls acting extremely rude and entitled. With little girls running all over Sephora and fighting over a Dior lip oil. Many of these parents leave these kids unsupervised, per the reports. It is not a Sephora employee’s responsibility to parent and chase these kids.
Parents need to take more responsibility for what they are buying their kids. Young girls do not need tons of skin care products and they certainly don’t need retinol. These products are excessively expensive and often lead to kids having a bad attitude. These skin care routines are excessive and people need to research what is being put on their kid’s skin.
Work Cited
Choudhury, Sourab. “Guiding Parents through a Safe and Effective Pediatric Skincare Routine.” Practical Dermatology, Bryn Mawr Communications, practicaldermatology.com/articles/2019-aug/guiding-parents-through-a-safe-and-effectivepediatric-skincare-routine. Accessed 25 Jan. 2024.
Professional, Cleveland Clinic medical. “Retinol: Cream, Serum, What It Is, Benefits, How to Use.” Cleveland Clinic, my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/23293-retinol. Accessed 25 Jan. 2024.