Cosmeticorexia: the new diagnosis of the TikTok generation

Cosmeticorexia: why children have started fighting aging before reaching their teenage years

A new alarming trend of the TikTok generation

Girls of primary school age are increasingly using anti-aging creams, serums with acids, retinol and other active ingredients that are traditionally intended for adults. Doctors and psychologists are already calling this phenomenon “cosmeticorexia” (cosmeticorexia) — an obsessive fixation on skincare and a desire to achieve perfect appearance at any cost.

If just a few years ago children were mainly interested in decorative cosmetics, today many of them understand retinol, niacinamide, AHA and BHA acids no worse than adults. All thanks to social media, where videos about multi-step skincare routines gather millions of views every day.

Experts believe the beauty industry is facing a new reality: its audience is getting younger rapidly, and the age at which children begin to worry about their appearance is getting lower.

How children became customers of the anti-aging industry

According to specialists, the main driver of the trend is social media. TikTok, Instagram and YouTube are full of videos in which bloggers demonstrate complex skincare routines, talk about the “right” ingredients and show dozens of cosmetic products that are supposedly necessary to maintain youth.

The problem is that platform algorithms hardly distinguish between adult and child audiences. As a result, content created for women aged 25–40 is actively consumed by children aged 8–12.

Many brands have also begun releasing products in bright packaging resembling toys or sweets. This makes cosmetics especially attractive to younger audiences, although the products themselves often contain ingredients designed for mature skin.

Why doctors are sounding the alarm

Dermatologists warn: children’s skin is fundamentally different from adult skin. It is thinner, more sensitive and has a more vulnerable protective barrier.

When a child begins to regularly use products with retinol, acids or other active substances, serious problems may arise:

- skin irritation and redness;

- disruption of the natural protective barrier;

- allergic reactions;

- increased sensitivity to the sun;

- chronic dryness;

- inflammatory processes.

According to doctors, many active ingredients were developed to combat age-related skin changes that begin to appear only decades after childhood. In other words, a child is trying to solve a problem they simply do not have.

Some dermatology clinics are already reporting an increase in visits from teenagers and children with damaged skin barriers after independently using popular products from social media.

The psychological consequences may be even more serious

However, physical harm is only part of the problem.

Psychologists note that cosmeticorexia can become the first step toward forming an unhealthy attitude toward one’s appearance. When a child sees idealized images of bloggers and celebrities every day, they begin to perceive any natural skin features as flaws.

As a result, a dangerous mindset takes shape: appearance requires constant correction and improvement.

Specialists link this trend to rising anxiety among teenagers, lower self-esteem and the development of body dysmorphic disorder — a mental disorder in which a person becomes excessively focused on imagined defects in their appearance.

Particular concern is raised by the fact that such worries begin to arise in children even before adolescence.

A billion-dollar market that keeps getting younger

The global skincare industry is valued at more than $180 billion and continues to grow actively. Competition between brands is intensifying, and the race for new customers is becoming ever tougher.

Experts note that children and teenagers are gradually becoming one of the most promising audiences for cosmetic companies. Young consumers spend a lot of time on social media, quickly pick up trends and strongly influence their parents’ purchases.

That is why more and more marketing campaigns are aimed at younger audiences, even if the products are formally intended for adults.

Authorities have started to intervene

The problem has already moved beyond doctors’ offices and attracted the attention of regulators.

For example, in Italy antitrust authorities have launched an investigation into a number of cosmetic brands and marketing practices related to promoting products among minors. The focus is on advertising campaigns that may create a sense among children that they need to use anti-aging cosmetics.

Regulators want to determine whether such messages are creating artificial fears about appearance among underage consumers.

What children’s skin really needs

Dermatologists emphasize: most children do not need complex skincare.

The basic set usually includes just three elements:

1. Gentle cleansing of the skin.

2. Moisturizer if needed.

3. Sunscreen to protect against ultraviolet rays.

Everything else in most cases is not about medical necessity, but about marketing and the influence of social media.

When the fight against aging starts too early

Cosmeticorexia has become yet another example of how the digital environment changes children’s perceptions of themselves. If teenagers used to want to look older, now many begin fighting aging even before it can actually begin.

Experts believe that the main task of parents, doctors and educational institutions today is not only to protect children’s skin, but also to form a healthy attitude toward one’s appearance. Otherwise, a generation raised in the era of filters and perfect photos may face an unprecedented level of self-dissatisfaction at a very early age.