MANILA, Philippines — Thanks to social media platforms like TikTok, beauty sales in the US alone reportedly soared to $31.7 billion (over P18 trillion) in 2023, fueled by trending hashtags like #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt.
While there is nothing wrong about following trends, at the recent Watsons Skin Solutions talk in SM Mall of Asia, doctors and dermatologists Charlene Ang-Tiu and Ma. Cricelda Rescober-Valencia shared some hacks on how to follow beauty trends with caution.
“Actually, I'm not a Tiktoker, but we have a Tik Tok account with my other colleagues, but we don't usually watch, but a lot of patients that we get, they inform us that the products they are applying are from Tik Tok,” Ang-Tiu said in a group interview including Philstar.com.
Beauty trend no. 1: Multi-step beauty regimen
@kyygemini This is my super extra 20 step skincare routine.?????????????? Of coarse I dont do this every night, but here are some of my favorite products and why I love and recommend them! Products tagged from tiktok shop! ???? Feel free to ask questions about my fave skincare products! ???? #skincare #tiktokshop #skincareroutine #20stepsofskincare #extraskincare #beautytok #koreanskincare #skincareproducts #skincareroutineaddiction #skincare101 #skincaretiktok #skintok #bestskincare #bestskincareproducts #recommendedskincare #skincareproductsmusthave ? Upbeat Summer Pop(476030) - TimTaj
Due to the Hallyu or Korean Wave, the multi-step skincare regimen has been all the rage on TikTok and other social media platforms.
But according to Dr. Ang-Tiu, there is no universal or “one-size fits all” skincare solution, so layering on these different types of skincare can destroy the skin’s natural barrier and pH balance.
“There are products which are good for some skin types and there are products that are not effective for other skins,” she said. “It can be like normal measure on the dry side; natural, sensitive or can be a combination, combination of these oily and acne. So what you look for in skincare actually depends on your skin type. If you're oily, you may need a bit of drying to remove the excess oil and if you're dry, of course, to moisturize. So, it's more of like a balance that you need to achieve and to know because that's your skin.”
The only “universal” skincare product that everyone should use, said Dr. Ang-Tiu, is sunscreen, especially since Filipinos live in a tropical country.
“We had a lot of patients that use a lot of products at the same time, but we don't want a lot of active ingredients working at the same time because it will destroy the skin’s barriers, which will cause another problem,” she explained.
Keratosis Pilaris, also called “chicken skin,” can also occur in areas where a lot of products are applied, Dr. Rescober-Valencia said in her talk.
“Your face… can appear normal at first or it could be accompanied by signs of skin disruption and it can happen as a manifestation or associated with acne, Rosacea and other conditions like these,” she said.
The common signs of a destroyed skin barrier, Ang-Tiu said, include persistent redness.
Among those that experienced “extreme redness” after using the wrong skincare product was Sharon Decapia, Watsons Philippines Assistant Vice President for Marketing, Public Relations and Sustainability.
In an interview with Philstar.com, Decapia recalled that after using a “one-size fits all” skincare product, her skin turned so red that she had to spend more to visit a dermatologist for proper treatment.
Thus, according to her, Watsons Philippines has been advocating for the right information and solutions through the personal care store chain’s own Dermskin category, which she said, carries “dermatologically-approved products formulated with innovative active ingredients, ensuring safe and effective results for your skin.”
“It's not just us trying to sell them (customers) more and more products, but what we want is for them to find the right solution,” she said.
“We understand the access to quality products must go hand in hand with education. And we want to advocate the right information, the right solution because right now, with the many products available in the market, it's easy to make that mistake and somehow you might end up regretting it. If you use an ingredient that does not match your skin type, for example, that can be catastrophic,” she warned.
“Derm-fusion” products, or those that have been approved by doctors to target specific needs, have been a hit among men and women, with 40% of Watsons Philippines’ Dermskin shoppers being men, noted Jared Ernest De Guzman, Customer Director.
“Most often than not, our customers actually like the ‘derma-fusion’ products because they're unscented, good for sensitive skin and very straightforward in terms of ingredients and benefits,” he asserted.
Beauty trend no. 2: Over-exfoliation
@therealmelaninbratz This is prime example of how exfoliating and good product can change your whole skin base! ????????? #fyp? #texturedskin #exfoliation #skincare #skincare101 #xyzbca #sensitiveskin #skintips #skintransformation #skinjourneywithmilli ? SHeaven Can Use Your Heart Mashup - Prod. Josh Bracy
Dr. Ang-Tiu said in the group interview that while she understands people’s need to make their skin feel smoother and cleaner through exfoliation, she stressed that this should only be done once or twice in a week at the most.
“But it's not really necessary to maintain the healthy skin because the skin exfoliates by itself every 28 days,” she said.
The skin has many functions, and among them is to protect from infections. But by over-exfoliation, you destroy the barrier that protects against infection, the doctor noted.
“If you over-exfoliate… I think that's like shaving. You're scraping or shaving the topmost part (of your skin). I honestly don't have experience with that but you don't want (to do that)… because the epidermis, that's your protection (from) the environment. So if you over-scrape or clean it, then you're destroying that barrier,” she cautioned.
Beauty trend no. 3: Home-based beauty treatment machines
@lebaneseangel22 DEVICE IS ON MY SF under skin & self care???? *Hopefully my final update on my at home laser hair removal device: My legs are HAIRLESS but i missed a few spots across my armpits and bikini/brazilian. The hairs were long and thin. I couldn’t feel them but I saw them with my eyes ???? After i buzzed them off i didn’t remember where they were ???? so i did a full session on those areas. It took me 30 minutes to do all 3 areas because i double zapped ???? I’m convinced double zapping is why my legs are so perfect bc y’all there’s not a SINGLE hair or stubble on either leg. BUT I DON’T RECOMMEND YOU DO THIS bc tbh i didn’t do my research first & idk if there’s risks. But i told you i’d share this journey transparently, so that’s what i’m doing ???? #athomelaserhairremoval #iplhairremovalathome #laserhairremovalathome #laserhairremovaltreatmentresults #amazonlaserhair #amazonhairremoval #amazonbeautyfinds #amazonbeautymusthave #iplhairremovalresults ? original sound - Lebaneseangel22
Apart from products, many social media videos nowadays vouch for do-it-yourself (DIY) beauty treatments, some even involving machines that were previously only available in aesthetic clinics.
The problem with home-based beauty treatment using machines, said Dr. Ang-Tiu, is even if one followed an online tutorial for using the machine, there is a tendency to misuse the machine most especially by those who are not licensed to operate them.
“If you overuse it because you don't know things like the frequency, there's a lot of factors with the wavelength, the energy, it could be dangerous,” she said. “We don't want that patients do self-treatment if they're not educated or trained about it.”
The wrong frequencies or temperature from these machines can result in extreme temperature, which can cause trauma to the skin, the doctor said.
“You don't want extreme heat or extreme cold, you get more frostbite, which is not common here but extreme heat, we get like, heat stroke, so avoid harsh products and too much exfoliation,” she suggested.
Beauty trend no. 4: Clean beauty
@carolinehannibal Bs for sure ???? #cleanbeauty #cleanskincare #skintok ? Did Somebody Say HipOpera - Latto & Christina Aguilera
“Sensitive skin has actually been identified as a global issue,” claimed Rescober-Valencia.
It's also prevalent worldwide, she said, and more than 50% of patients in the world are suffering from skin symptoms such as roughness, tightness and of course, a weakened skin barrier.
The main culprits for having a weakened skin barrier, she said, are dehydration or water loss; increased penetration of irritants and microbes; and increased allergen exposure, which will all lead to a persistent dry-itch cycle.
Thus, both doctors Ang-Tiu and Rescober-Valencia gave the clean beauty trend a thumbs-up because “it is all about using the minimum number of products on the skin with the most gentle ingredients,” Ang-Tiu explained.
“As I said, the skin is a barrier to the environment,” she enthused, “So for sensitive or dry skin, you need to repair the skin barrier.”
Oftentimes, she said, the only things that people need are the mildest products because the complicated ones sometimes make skin problems “more difficult and more expensive to treat.”