More than ever, skincare is being seen as a vital part of one’s beauty regime. Younger generations especially have been able to find a variety of products to help with their specific skin needs. Companies are making their products more affordable and available for all skin types. YouTubers and other content creators educate teenagers and young adults about the importance of keeping our skin healthy. This change in the skincare industry has been great and completely necessary. However, it was not always like this. If you have a detailed skincare routine, your parent or guardian has probably asked you questions about it. Why does it take so long? What is niacinamide? Generation X, the generation in which most of our guardians were born, was a starting point for where skincare is today. 

I created a Google Form with questions aimed at adults and teenagers. With the help of my mom, we sent the form out to about 15 adults and 15 teens, receiving 26 responses in return. Using the responses I received, I was able to see the perspectives of so many different people.

For the first question, I asked if all the adults had a skincare routine when they were teenagers. The results were quite surprising to me. 71.4% or 10 adults had a skincare routine, while 28.6% or 4 adults had no routine. 

Then, for the current teenagers, I asked them if they currently have a routine. All 12 teens who completed the survey have a skincare regime. In only a few decades, it is seen how important and widespread skincare has become through these two questions alone.

Then I asked if skincare was seen as a vital step in their beauty regime, and 57% of adults believed that skincare was important. For the teens, 66% believed that their skincare routine was just as important as brushing their teeth or combing their hair. There was not much of a difference between the two age groups, which I found very interesting. 

Next, I asked both the adults and the teens to explain their skincare routine. Some examples I received listed below. The first three responses are from adults, and the next three are from teenagers.

Adults:

“Just wash my face with soap/water in the morning and at night before bed.”

“Wash my face, put on acne medicine daily.”

“I washed my face with Noxzema every night.”

Teenagers:

“Wash my face with CeraVe acne cleanser, use The Ordinary niacinamide serum and then use CeraVe moisturizer.”

“I use a cleanser, toner, moisturizer, and then SPF if I do it in the morning. It’s basic, but the initiative helps me keep a routine in the morning and at night. My skin still breaks out, but I know how positive it can be for the long-run.”

“I use Clinique, then I use water and use Alba Botanical face wash.”

As seen in these examples, the world of skincare has become more varied with more brands and products. Among the adults, only a few companies were mentioned like Noxzema. However, teenagers described many types of brands for all skin types like Clinique, CeraVe, The Ordinary, etc. 

This survey helped show the vast difference in skincare over a few decades and has shown the improvements made in companies and products, allowing their products to be more accessible for all skin types.