They say age is beauty but new research reveals the fight against aging is starting younger and younger with one in five young women stressing about wrinkles before they’ve even reached their mid-twenties.
A new study examined the way women from different generations approach their skincare and the age they first used certain products. Results found 30 percent of women under 35 regularly use anti-wrinkle products — and this includes one in five women under the age of 24.
The poll of 2,000 women across the country, conducted by Dermstore, found that the young women of today have started using products to fend off the signs of aging much sooner than their elders, with the average millennial user starting at 26 as opposed to the average over 55-year-old who started around age 47.
Over a quarter (28 percent) of women under 25 even admit that they “regularly” worry about their signs of aging, and this number increases to 42 percent for those aged 25-34 and then 54 percent for those aged 35 to 44.
Mercifully, however, it looks like this regular worry begins to decrease after the age of 55.
Younger women are even more likely than older women (20 percent vs 11 percent) to say they would consider getting plastic surgery to fight off signs of aging.
Cathy Beaupain, President of Dermstore said: “The findings are on point with what Dermstore has been seeing in our current audience base, which shows a shift in our core shoppers’ ages — now younger than previous years — and also a growth in newer skin care and beauty categories that are more favored by younger shoppers, such as Natural.”
When it comes to skincare in general, it looks like women are making use of the products out there at younger and younger ages. For example, under-25s are over three times more likely than over-55s to regularly use facemasks and nearly twice as likely to regularly exfoliate their skin.
Most people over the age of 35 believe that anti-wrinkle creams work, with nearly 60 percent of those over 45 using them regularly. Yet when it comes to sunscreen, a necessity in the fight against signs of aging, younger women are more likely to make sure they are always covered and reapply as directed than their elders.
According to the data, women under the age of 35 are more than twice as likely as those over 55 to have picked up a beauty or skincare product simply because it was recommended by someone famous.
Over 60 percent of under-25s have picked up beauty tips from an online article or video tutorial, as opposed to just one in 10 of those over 55.
The age at which women start wearing makeup is only getting younger it seems, as over 55s said they didn’t start until 15, while those between 35 and 44 started at 14 and women between 18 and 24 say they started at just 13 years old.
For foundation, over 55s say they didn’t start till they were nearly 18, while 18-24 years olds claim they started just after age 14. Under 25s also started wearing eye shadow or eyeliner before 14 years old, which over 55s didn’t dabble until aged nearly 17.
With all this in mind, it’s not surprising that attitudes of what the appropriate age to start wearing makeup differ as well, with over-55s saying it’s 15, and under 25s saying it’s just under 14.
For younger women, 15 is old enough for foundation, 14 for eye shadow, and just 12 for lip gloss.
As for those over 55, it’s 17 for foundation, 16 for eye shadow, and 15 for lip gloss.
Younger women have established their regular beauty routine by the time they were 16, while older women report that it took them until their 20s before they had nailed down their usual look.
But whether they established it sooner or later, it appears that getting a beauty routine down has always been an expensive process, with the average American woman saying they have wasted $460 on beauty and skincare products that just didn’t make the grade.
Cathy Beaupain added: “We understand that investing in skin care can be a huge expense, and can be frustrating if products do not meet a consumer’s expectations.”
“This is why we launched glow.com, a skin care recommendation system offering personalized solutions by diving deeper into a woman’s individual skin care needs and giving her dermatologist-approved product suggestions.”
“Beyond glow, we will continue to curate our product offerings to ensure that we represent the best assortment that is ‘good for you.’ We believe the latest innovations in anti-aging technology can be found in both breakthrough skin care ingredients and new devices.”