I often wonder if women’s skin is anywhere as clean as their brains. I only wonder because I know so many cosmetic companies are in the business of brainwashing.
As a dermatologist who never lost his passion for skin, I see the brainwashing effects on a daily basis. Seven out of 10 women who visit my clinic are only too happy to declare their “skin type” when they see me. My children patients never utter those words during their appointments and the only type my male patients have are of the blonde or brunette persuasion.
It’s time women stopped making themselves such an easy target. Deceitful skincare companies go after you harder than your children or male counterparts because you’re the ones willing to take the bait time and time again. Why? Because you’re desperate.
I don’t blame you, either. You’re desperate because you want — and deserve — to look your best, but short of going under the knife, can’t find the solution. You’re desperate because you spend your hard-earned money on product after product only to get broken promise after broken promise. You’re desperate because the cosmetic industry made you that way and wants to keep you that way.
The time has come to finally take the targets off your backs, ladies. Take the time to educate yourselves on what works and what doesn’t work in the fight against aging. Read the fine print in the advertisements. Ask yourself if the claims these companies are making have any scientific merit. Decide if you’re putting your money into pretty packaging or high-grade ingredients.
I couldn’t think of a better day than April Fool’s Day to ask women to stop playing the fool and, in effect, finally make a fool of deceptive cosmetic companies.
Have you ever wondered what’s worth paying for and what’s just a waste of time and money?
We realize high-quality skincare comes at a price, but some of the stuff now on the market is patently ridiculous. Here are just a few examples of items currently being marketed.
A Swarovski crystal-studded cream pot: You have to wonder how many pageant dresses were harmed in the making of it and what function it serves the application process or your skin directly.
Creams that come with little spoons or spatulas: Does the miniature utensil help you better apply the cream or better eat up the tomfoolery?
A liquid serum bottle made of actual gold: Why do we suspect you’d have better luck taking it to the pawn shop than you would putting its contents on your face?
So is all impressive packaging a giant rip-off? No. Sometimes it’s not a luxury at all; sometimes it’s a necessity.
Case in point, some of the new pumps and jars. There might be a bit of a wow factor to them, but most of these airless pumps and jars were designed strictly with function in mind. According to Dr. Obagi, “pop up pumps promote cleanliness (keeping fingers out of the jar means that bacteria can’t be introduced) and keep the key ingredients safe from degrading.” Retinol, retinoic acid, Vitamin C and many natural/organic products spoil quickly when exposed to air or UV rays.
You’ve seen the commercials. You’ve heard the pitch. Skincare companies want you to think they’ve customized a product just for your pre-menopausal pores or for your husband’s ever-so-masculine glands or your tween’s pre-pubescent t-zone.
What’s next? An anti-aging line specially-designed for the twice-divorced Japanese-American Ivy League graduate who enjoys spin classes and Bunco? A pore minimizer for the green-eyed metrosexual from Miami with a hybrid car? An acne treatment exclusively crafted for the Latino captain of the football team with an Eagle Scout badge?
Skin is skin. World-renowned dermatologist and creator of ZO Skin Health, Dr. Zein Obagi, will tell you there’s oily skin and dry skin. Beyond that, it’s not nearly as complicated as some people would like you to believe. Don’t let deceptive marketing tactics make you think otherwise with silly new schemes intended for nothing more than getting you to open your wallet. ZO Skin Health wants you to open something else: YOUR EYES.
Unless you’ve consulted a dermatologist with a one-on-one appointment and that dermatologist turned around and put together a research and development team to craft a treatment based on your appointment — then there’s no such thing as a custom skincare program JUST FOR YOU.
Open your eyes to what’s really going on. Recognize that your husband needs a skincare cream “custom-made for the kind of guy who cares about skincare” about as bad as he needs a toothbrush with bristles designed to only attack the tartar of middle-aged men.
As Dr. Obagi puts it, “Is there a treadmill for short people and another one for tall people?”
Think about it.
When you take away the age, the race, the sex and whichever other gimmick is being used to peddle products, what’s left? Skin cells. When you take away the manly packaging or the commercial with that celebrity your teenager idolizes, what do you have? A product. It’s up to you to decide its quality, but we suspect the trickery is used for a reason.
ZO Skin Health doesn’t need trickery. The truth, aka YOUR RESULTS, is our hard sell.
ZO Skin Health
deborah
