The beauty economy may not be worth so much money
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From ancient times to the present, everyone has the love of beauty. But what is different from the past is that with the development of society and economy, people's pursuit of beauty has become more and more intense.
However, since dermatology and cosmetic science are still developing, many problems have not been well researched and explained. Therefore, many questions about skin care in daily life have also plagued consumers for a long time. At the same time, however, the modern beauty product industry has been in a high-speed boiler, recklessly consuming a steady stream of anxiety.
In this context, the pseudoscience of beauty products is currently being valued, and the beauty methods and regimens of thousands of years ago have even become popular again. Exploring the techniques of our ancestors is helping people to make choices that benefit both themselves and nature more soberly and rationally.
Does beauty really cost that much?
At present, the beauty industry is huge, and beauty products are all-encompassing. No matter what kind of beauty products it is, one of the invariable features is "expensive". People default that the more expensive the beauty products, the better . For example, a ridiculously expensive shampoo, if people are willing to believe that the advertised product contains white truffle and caviar, then a small 250ml bottle of shampoo may cost $60, of course, we can also expect the shampoo to Let our hair go from "ordinary" to "extraordinary".
The beauty industry also involves celebrity endorsed cosmetics, fragrances, fashion products, and a variety of fitness and weight-loss options. In fact, many of the skincare products’ huge sales growth has been largely driven by social media influencers. These influencers often recommend the products they are using and post their makeup guides on social networks, whether it is Chinese Internet Weibo, Xiaohongshu, etc., or through Instagram photos, YouTube and live video, etc., to show people How to create a specific look.
In 2018, the British BBC screened a documentary about the skin care and beauty industry - "The Truth of Beauty". The documentary mentioned that the British spend as much as 9 billion pounds on cosmetics and skin care products every year. In response to this, the host of the documentary Cherry Healey cut into several beauty concerns that British consumers care about most, and tried to find out whether it is a matter of becoming beautiful. Need to spend so much money.
The findings of the survey are almost predictable—people's daily diligence has a limited impact on their faces, and the credibility of skincare efficacy for beauty products that cost consumers a fortune is yet to be clarified.
Judging from the moisturizing products that people diligently use every day—whether men or women, the most frequently used skin care products are moisturizing products. According to survey statistics, 3/4 of women and half of men use moisturizing cream. As for whether moisturizing cream can keep the skin hydrated, healthy and youthful, at the University of Sheffield, 25 volunteers with healthy skin were invited to complete an experimental test on moisturizing creams.
The experiment is divided into skin moisture content test and barrier function test. Simply put, it is to measure how much water the skin loses. The more water is lost, the worse the skin's barrier function. Poor skin barrier function can lead to problems such as dryness and irritation of the skin. The experiment selected 3 best-selling basic moisturizing cream products in three price ranges from low to high: moisturizing cream A is 365 yuan/100ml, moisturizing cream B is 204 yuan/100ml, and moisturizing cream C is 14 yuan /100ml.
After three weeks, for the moisture content test, the user's skin did increase in moisture. However, experiments have shown that the moisturizing creams with better hydrating effect are the B and C models with lower prices. This has a lot to do with the ingredients in the moisturizer, both of which contain large amounts of the most common moisturizer, glycerin. The higher its position in the ingredient list, the more it is present in the product. For the barrier function test, the skin did not change and the health of the skin did not improve.
And then, from the beauty products that cost people a lot of money - people will see all kinds of promises on the labels of skin care products, some terms seem very authoritative and very professional, and many people will pay for it. However , even if it is "recommended by a dermatologist", the credibility of the efficacy of skin care products may not be certain. The reason is that the so-called efficacy is actually more of a talk.
For example, "active ingredients" only need to pass a simple in vitro test, that is, use instruments in the laboratory to test, without contact with the human body. "Skin-tested" is when it's been tested on a person to post this. "Clinically proven results" does not mean that scientists have proven its effectiveness. For example, if a beauty product can actually reduce wrinkles by 10%, it can indeed be claimed to be clinically proven, but even then, people use It's also hard to see its effect with a magnifying glass.
To some extent, this is understandable. After all, some government research institutes, like the National Institutes of Health or the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, have little interest in funding large, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies, which leaves many beauty products with little solid scientific evidence to draw from.
The ancient beauty style is back in vogue
On the other side of the pseudoscience of beauty products, there is a resurgence of beauty and wellness treatments from thousands of years ago, a more natural approach to beauty that uses traditional ingredients and ingredients.
Amajit Sahonta, president and founder of Ecovia Intelligence, said, “Originally, formulations were plant-based to reduce the impact of cosmetics on human health. However, as sustainability has become an important aspect of the beauty industry These pioneers have taken the lead in developing sustainable brands. Now beauty products are no longer just about natural and organic materials, but about the wider green issue. ”
A 2021 report by the NPD Group, a market research firm, found that 68% of consumers want skincare products with “clean” ingredients, i.e. free of fluorosurfactants (PFAs), parabens and phthalates Unclean chemicals such as diformates. Meanwhile, consumer interest in beauty and skincare products with natural and organic ingredients continues to rise, reaching $11.9 billion in 2020, up 2.9% year-on-year, according to UK research firm Ecovia Intelligence.
Take, for example, rose oil, which has a long history in the Middle East . The Turkish love of distilled rose water dates back 2,000 years, and today Turkey remains one of the largest producers of rose water and rose oil in the world. Today, rose oil is still loved by modern people because of its anti-inflammatory properties and used to soothe irritated skin, while rose oil is rich in vitamins, minerals, and skin-beautifying antioxidants.
For another example, in recent years, there has been a growing demand in the Western world for the ancient spice turmeric, especially turmeric latte, known as the "golden milk". This bright yellow root plant is an important medicinal ingredient in Ayurvedic remedies in ancient India, and has been used for more than 4,500 years. "Turmeric is an excellent immune booster with powerful antioxidant properties, five to eight times more potent than vitamins C and E," said Shabir Daya, Victoria Health's in-house pharmacist.
The shift from chemically active beauty products, to organic products, to sustainable products, the change in the beauty industry also reflects a shift in social awareness . "As the COVID-19 pandemic and the climate crisis leading to natural disasters such as floods, droughts, crop failures and displacement around the world are intensifying, we recognize that , nature is fighting back. It is time for humanity to realize that we must live in symbiosis with nature.”
To restore natural balance and reconnect with the elements of the world, the global beauty industry is unearthing and exploring ancient traditions inspired by nature and natural ingredients . Australian wellness brand "Subtle Energies" combines the benefits of traditional Indian Ayurvedic medicine and aromatherapy. In addition to basic products such as jojoba oil and ashwagandha oil, new skin care products also include rusha citronella oil and jasmine oil. and frankincense essential oil.
Human beauty and the natural environment have been intertwined since ancient times, and now the connection between the two is finally being taken seriously. Consumers are looking for beauty products that reflect and respond to their concerns. They want to take care of others when they are beautifying themselves, and care for the earth and all life on the planet. A broader approach to beauty linked to the entire environment.
The truth about beauty
It is not difficult to find that people's concept of beauty is changing. Although people still care about whether beauty products are effective or not, they will still lose the battle against the anxiety of selling beauty, but the turn of social awareness has also made more people. More concerned with natural balance and beauty truths.
Of course, the first of beauty is to treat beauty products rationally. If you treat beauty products irrationally, you cannot control beauty products . Having unrealistic illusions about beauty products, believing that all skin problems can be solved with beauty products, even quickly, can lead people to believe in advertising and be impatient.
The fact is, because many people do not recognize and use beauty products correctly, even if they use suitable products, they may not get satisfactory results, so they change brands quickly, keep changing, and spend a lot of money, but they still have to. less than satisfactory results.
Rational treatment of skin care products requires a correct understanding of beauty products and the relationship between beauty products and the skin, based on safety, effectiveness and credibility. Safe products, even if they can't make the skin better, won't cause damage to the skin, which is also the most basic requirement for choosing beauty products. An effective product is one with good ingredients and great skin feel, and it's targeted. Credible products don’t have exaggerated claims, ingredient lists are clearly and correctly labeled, and they don’t make unrealistic promises to consumers.
In addition, if you want to be beautiful, it is more important to stay healthy. On the one hand, there is a healthy diet. Since the Industrial Revolution, the food production of human society has become more and more refined, the proportion of coarse grains and vegetables in the diet has become lower and lower, and the fiber is deficient. And many people think that the finer they eat, the better, and they indulge in all kinds of industrial foods that are beautifully made, colorful and colorful, unaware that this practice is self-destructing health.
Numerous studies have shown that foods with a high glycemic index and high fat have negative effects on the skin, especially in inflammatory skin. Consuming large amounts of foods high in sugar (carbohydrate) can lead to high blood sugar levels, which can reduce the ability of the skin to repair itself, make wounds more difficult to heal, and can promote the development of acne.
Obviously, if you are healthy, your skin will naturally be in good condition, and you can't see the difference with skin care products that cost hundreds of dollars or tens of dollars. When life is unhealthy and skin quality is poor, we have to rely on high-end skin care products and cosmetics to cover up, and rely on various cosmetic measures to improve. So, on the whole, what people really need to do now is to reduce the intake of high-sugar and high-fat foods and increase the proportion of crude fiber and whole grain foods .
On the other hand, it is to maintain a healthy schedule. The most active time of human cell division is from 2:00 to 4:00 in the morning, and skin cell regeneration or other energy recovery activities are also carried out at night. During this time, cell division and energy recovery can be carried out most efficiently only when a person is sleeping.
Too many studies have proven a strong link between sleep deprivation and skin damage, and only enough sleep can keep skin elastic and radiant. More importantly, the negative effects of staying up late are cumulative, and may not be visible when you are young, but as you age, you will see deeper nicks on your face than time.
People may have realized that expensive beauty products do not necessarily promise our ideal beauty results, on the contrary, the best beauty results are free. The password of beauty is nothing but a principle of maintaining balance with nature and respecting the laws of the human body. The real beauty is not from the outside in, but the beauty from the inside out, and this kind of beauty from the inside out is in our daily diet and daily life. It is the cheapest and most effective cosmetic method, not one, but the only one.