A Harrogate mum has launched a series of information sessions following a rise in teenagers and pre-teens using potentially harmful skincare products.

Skin care specialist, Debbie Songhurst was so concerned after her 11-year-old daughter started asking for products which are not suitable for young skin that she is now trying to raise awareness of the issue among children and their parents. She said:

“Although I’m a skin specialist, I wasn’t really aware that children were using these products. I thought, this is quite scary. So I started asking people what products their children were using, then looking into those products and what was in them. I was so shocked at what I found.”

What Debbie discovered was a wide range of products using ingredients that are unsuitable or even damaging for young skin. Many have only ever been tested on adults and contain potentially harmful active ingredients intended for adults only. These include exfoliating acids and anti-ageing properties which can provoke serious side effects on young skin.

But with their appealing packaging and gushing reviews from social media influencers, these products are becoming must-haves for a younger audience. Added to that is the pressure teens and pre-teens feel to aspire to unrealistic images of flawless skin, and to buy products that all their friends are using. Debbie said:

“Children are talking about having ‘problematic’ skin or needing to use anti-ageing or firming products. They are using ingredients that are too strong and not safe for their young skin. This can cause skin irritation, early ageing and premature pigmentation. It can break down the skin barrier and can have long-term implications on their skin.”

“Approach children’s skincare with caution”

Debbie, a former pupil at Rossett Acre Primary School and Harrogate Grammar, trained as a medical tattooist and now works as a consultant for companies such as modelling agencies, educating people on how to look after their skin.

She said concerns around under-18s’ skincare is growing; a recent BBC report highlighted the issue, while the British Association for Dermatologists has warned of children as young as eight using skincare products that could leave them with irreversible skin problems. Debbie said:

“I wouldn’t let my children use the products that I use. Teen and pre-teen skin is much more delicate than adults’ skin and using unsuitable products makes it vulnerable. These products absorb a lot quicker into children’s skin and break down the protective barriers.

“When it comes to children’s skincare, it’s essential to approach it with caution and prioritise safety. Using gentle products specifically formulated for their age group is crucial.”

A ‘minefield’ – with added ‘natural’ confusion

Even with more education, Debbie said it can be hard for people to know exactly what the ingredients on a skincare bottle are, as there are so many different words for the same thing. One lady she worked with was using three different products that were basically all the same.

Adding to the confusion is the myth that ‘natural’ ingredients or products are safer. An example of this is the anti-ageing ingredient glycolic acid, sometimes called sugar cane, which is unsuitable for children’s skin. Debbie said:

“It’s a minefield. So many parents have said to me, ‘My kids are using this product because it’s natural’. But ‘natural’ doesn’t necessarily mean good, and often there are synthetic equivalents.”

Debbie Songhurst hosts one of her skincare seminars for teens and pre-teens.

Ingredients to avoid

Although there are so many ingredients out there that it’s hard to be specific, Debbie mentioned the following as being harmful for younger skin:

• Vitamin A / Retinol / Bakuchiol – Debbie said to think of retinol as like a volcano as it brings the base layer of the skin to the surface. It’s used in anti-ageing products because it’s increases cell turnover bringing the new derma to the top at a faster rate. She said: “Many people think that vitamins must be good for the skin. Most seem to have heard of retinol and some kids know that it’s not suitable for their skin. But they don’t know that it’s also called Vitamin A or that Bakuchiol is very similar and is also a potent active ingredient. Kids have got much thinner skin than adults and so their skin absorbs more, and these active products could break down their protective barrier. Even in adults, you would build up the retinol very slowly to allow the skin to get used to it and almost certainly have to include a strong SPF daily to protect the skin.”

• Glycolic acid / Sugar cane / AHA – Debbie said: “Glycolic acid is in quite a lot of products. It’s an exfoliant with a small molecular size, which allows it to penetrate the skin deeply into the skin, children don’t need such a strong exfoliant as this. A simple microfibre cloth will suffice and is much gentler on young skin.”

Recommended skincare routine for teens

While she said it’s not a bad thing to have a skincare routine at any age, Debbie stressed that it’s not necessary for pre-teens and teens to use lots of products. She said skincare for children should be “really uncomplicated” and recommends this three-step routine using products designed for sensitive skin:

• Firstly, remove dirt and bacteria with a simple face wash and microfibre cloth.
• Then apply a moisturiser.
• Finally, and most importantly, an SPF should be used. Debbie said: “Twenty-five per cent of sun damage to your skin happens before you are 18. A lot of the ageing and damage to our skin that we are trying to treat with all these products as adults is down to not using SPF when we were younger.” She said SPFs are regulated and organic ones use a more natural approach to protecting the skin so are best for young more sensitive skin. She also warned against thinking that skin is protected from the sun’s rays if you use make-up containing an SPF, as the amount of SPF that ends up on the skin is not enough to provide sufficient protection. Instead, apply an SPF and then put make-up on afterwards.

Debbie added that other simple things can also help teen skin that’s prone to breakouts, such as changing pillowcases regularly and cleaning your phone as this harbours a lot of bacteria.

She added that if teens have especially problematic skin, they should see a specialist who can devise an individualised approach to address the issue.

Skincare education events

Debbie’s first two teen and pre-teen skincare information sessions, held in Harrogate last month, were so popular that she is planning a third event in June. She is also looking at potentially offering sessions for schools. She said:

“The aim is to raise awareness among children and their parents about the importance of looking at the ingredients in products, like we do with food. I don’t want to scare people; I just want to help them question the benefits and possible problems of putting certain skincare products on their skin.”

The next information session is on Tuesday, June 4, at the West Park Hotel in Harrogate. Book tickets here.

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