It’s a Saturday afternoon after soccer, and I find myself in a place I tend to visit a lot. I’m talking about the aisles of Sephora.
First, no slam to Sephora—it’s a great store; I love the products. But I never, ever, ever thought I would be visiting this place so often.
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Why am I here? I am the mother of 13- and 11-year-old girls, and for the past year or so, their obsession, along with their friends, on skincare is growing and growing.
Don’t get me wrong—my mom used to work at Merle Norman Cosmetics back in the day. I was even a beauty advisor at my local mall as a young adult—I get the importance of skincare. But have we gone too far? This mom needs help!
Okay, I admit I have said yes to the Drunk Elephant moisturizer (that was a birthday gift—I did that once, not doing that again; it was costly), and they have saved THEIR money for the Bum Bum lotions... (I believe this product is supposed to firm your bum?) Again, they are 13 and 11... right? They ask for face masks, serums, creams—you name it. I have said no many times.
I do know to avoid products with retinol, hyaluronic acid serums, but still, we have been victims of too many products, and then a slight red irritation has developed. Experts say use products that are labeled hypoallergenic and non-comedogenic (designed to avoid skin pore blockages and acne breakouts)—so that is a helpful tidbit.
I mean, I would rather have them lather on lotion than makeup... I feel like this is harmless fun, but sometimes my eyes roll and roll about the time and talk about skincare. I will say they are educated and concerned about SPF—that’s a good thing! (I was just diagnosed with skin cancer).
I reached out to Dr. Steven Grekin, a dermatologist from Warren, for his thoughts on this growing craze.
“My biggest issue is the tweens don’t need to do half of what they are actually doing. They need a gentle cleanser, maybe a toner that sets the skin up so it can breathe appropriately.”
Dr. Grekin went on to say, “Less is more. Your skin has so many natural traits you were born with; you don’t need to add to things that will disrupt your natural skin.”
For winter, Dr. Grekin says remind your tween or really anyone.
Make your shower cooler, shorter, and don’t over-dry your skin with too much soap.
One suggestion—Dr. Grekin said to check out La Roche-Posay—a quality product for tweens, not a crazy price, and should not cause any kind of irritation.
Hope this helps you tween parents—hang in there—this is a phase, right?
(Oh, a bit of advice: those small little skincare fridges they say they NEED and want—don’t fall for it—they get them and never use them.)
Happy Holidays!
Karen Drew