A social media sensation with no signs of slowing down has teens and tweens spending hundreds of dollars on elaborate skincare routines.WISN 12 News has a warning every parent should hear.You’ve seen the videos flooding the social media feeds of girls and young women, teens and tweens posting everything from their shopping hauls to full-blown nighttime skincare routines.”When I was her age, I never thought of skincare or anything,” Kirsten Roessler said. On an afternoon shopping trip, mother of two Kirsten Roessler told WISN 12 News she can’t wrap her head around the skincare craze.”There’s like a lot of kids, young kids, that have better skin care routines than I do as an adult,” she said.She thinks it’s excessive.An October survey from Piper Sandler of more than 13,000 teens found on average they spent $342 on beauty products last year alone. That’s the highest since 2018.Giuliana Snamiska, 17, said she initially went to TikTok for help with her skin troubles.”I really enjoy skincare. I have trouble with acne, so I like taking care of my face a lot,” she explained.Her parents try to steer her away from the noise.”A lot of people out there are looking to sell their products, and I think that’s a problem. These young girls are so impressionable,” her father, Rich Snamiska, said.Dr. Yvonne Chiu, Medical Director of Dermatology at Children’s Wisconsin, knows the pressure all too well.”We’re seeing girls as young as 8 or 9 asking me about what skincare products are best for them. Whether they need an anti-aging serum, whether they need a routine,” she said.It’s a routine she said is totally unnecessary.”They don’t have issues with wrinkles. They don’t have issues with pigment abnormalities,” she said.Chiu warns products meant for adult skin can cause legitimate health concerns for kids. “A lot of these will contain Alpha hydroxy or Beta hydroxy acids designed to help exfoliate the skin and give the skin a smoother appearance, but they can be highly irritating. If you’ve got a young child who hasn’t really gone through puberty, whose skin isn’t as oily as or greasy as adolescent or adult skin, they can develop what we call an irritant dermatitis on the face; they can give themselves chemical burns,” Chiu said.Kirsten Roessler’s 12-year-old daughter Ariana, is uninterested in these products.”They don’t need that stuff because they’re little,” she said of the tween skincare craze.And Chiu said she wants more accountability from these companies.”I wish they would have more of a science-based, evidence-based approach to what they’re marketing to kids,” she said.While Giuliana Snamiska said despite all of the TikTok hype, the best thing she did for her skin was seeing a licensed dermatologist.”As much as they tell you on social media, it’s not going to fix all your problems if you spend all your money on these products,” Snamiska said. Chiu said teens and tweens only need to use a gentle facial cleanser, a scent-free moisturizer, and most importantly, sunscreen. They are all items people can get at the drugstore.
MILWAUKEE —
A social media sensation with no signs of slowing down has teens and tweens spending hundreds of dollars on elaborate skincare routines.
WISN 12 News has a warning every parent should hear.
You’ve seen the videos flooding the social media feeds of girls and young women, teens and tweens posting everything from their shopping hauls to full-blown nighttime skincare routines.
“When I was her age, I never thought of skincare or anything,” Kirsten Roessler said.
On an afternoon shopping trip, mother of two Kirsten Roessler told WISN 12 News she can’t wrap her head around the skincare craze.
“There’s like a lot of kids, young kids, that have better skin care routines than I do as an adult,” she said.
She thinks it’s excessive.
An October survey from Piper Sandler of more than 13,000 teens found on average they spent $342 on beauty products last year alone. That’s the highest since 2018.
Giuliana Snamiska, 17, said she initially went to TikTok for help with her skin troubles.
“I really enjoy skincare. I have trouble with acne, so I like taking care of my face a lot,” she explained.
Her parents try to steer her away from the noise.
“A lot of people out there are looking to sell their products, and I think that’s a problem. These young girls are so impressionable,” her father, Rich Snamiska, said.
Dr. Yvonne Chiu, Medical Director of Dermatology at Children’s Wisconsin, knows the pressure all too well.
“We’re seeing girls as young as 8 or 9 asking me about what skincare products are best for them. Whether they need an anti-aging serum, whether they need a routine,” she said.
It’s a routine she said is totally unnecessary.
“They don’t have issues with wrinkles. They don’t have issues with pigment abnormalities,” she said.
Chiu warns products meant for adult skin can cause legitimate health concerns for kids.
“A lot of these will contain Alpha hydroxy or Beta hydroxy acids designed to help exfoliate the skin and give the skin a smoother appearance, but they can be highly irritating. If you’ve got a young child who hasn’t really gone through puberty, whose skin isn’t as oily as or greasy as adolescent or adult skin, they can develop what we call an irritant dermatitis on the face; they can give themselves chemical burns,” Chiu said.
Kirsten Roessler’s 12-year-old daughter Ariana, is uninterested in these products.
“They don’t need that stuff because they’re little,” she said of the tween skincare craze.
And Chiu said she wants more accountability from these companies.
“I wish they would have more of a science-based, evidence-based approach to what they’re marketing to kids,” she said.
While Giuliana Snamiska said despite all of the TikTok hype, the best thing she did for her skin was seeing a licensed dermatologist.
“As much as they tell you on social media, it’s not going to fix all your problems if you spend all your money on these products,” Snamiska said.
Chiu said teens and tweens only need to use a gentle facial cleanser, a scent-free moisturizer, and most importantly, sunscreen. They are all items people can get at the drugstore.
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