How to Steer Clear of Skincare Product Lies

Commercials, social media, billboards, and subway ads feed us a lot of misinformation about how we should be taking care of our skin.  Consumers are often drawn to a lot of products that don’t make any positive impact on our skin. Let’s look at the five top useless skincare products.

Over-the-counter anti-aging cream. Pharmacy aisles are packed with creams that promise to smooth out wrinkles and bring out that youthful glow. In most cases, these creams are no time machine. Prescription-grade retinoid cream brands that feature tretinoin, tazarotene, and adapalene are some of the very few research-backed creams that will reverse the signs of aging.

Antibacterial soap and gel. The World Health Organization has called antibiotic resistance “a threat to global health security.” Obliterating germs from our skin doesn’t make us less prone to sickness, it only decreases our resistance to bacteria. We need germs to stay healthy. Antibacterial soaps and sanitizers that contain triclosan don’t fight cold and flu viruses, they just blindly attack bacteria.

High SPF sunscreen. Sunscreen protects our skin against UV radiation. However, there’s very little difference between the varying degrees of sunscreen SPF. When generously applied, SPF 15 sunscreen shields us from 93 percent of UVB radiation, SPF 30 blocks almost 97 percent, and SPF 50 blocks approximately 98 percent. SPF mainly measures UVB protection, so be sure to choose a broad-spectrum sunscreen, which means that you’ll not only be protected from UVB but UVA radiation, which contributes to early skin aging.