CHOICES SHAPE YOUR FUTURE
By Judith Ashton
Great… just in time for Christmas! Make up for kids as young are 4. Another gullible market to exploit!! Do kids need make up? Definitely not. Why are companies creating it? Profits of course.
This is such an uncomfortable issue with many ramifications for mind, body and spirit.
Firstly, let’s look at the use of make-up amongst tweens and teens. Some already follow skin care routines and in some cases use anti-aging products! Young skin is fragile and goes through many changes, especially at puberty and should be treated with care and respect.
The Renfrew Centre Foundation reports that 20% of girl teens feel insecure/ self-conscious and unattractive without makeup. Only 5% feel more attractive bare-faced, nearly 58% of young girls wear some makeup and 65% start between 8 and 13. The reasons range from bullying to social media.
Market Research Future estimates that the global children’s cosmetic market will reach $1.79 billion by 2026. What are we doing to our youngsters? To their minds and bodies. This should be a real concern.
Many multi-national brands, like many global corporations are very clever. They invest millions figuring out how we think, what we want and how to trigger FOMO (fear of missing out). Rather than promoting confidence and self-worth, these companies are selling dependence to girls who feel incomplete without makeup. Profit trumps ethics! Follow the money.
The growing pressure to meet unattainable beauty standards by a younger and younger age group is abhorrent and can have life threatening consequences. Eg. anorexia. Manufacturers and influencers should take responsibility for the messages they are pushing on youngsters.
Look at most of the “influencers”, they look like clones and would be “Love Island” contestants and it’s these people that many young girls in our society want to copy from a very young age. When I was young, as a Hippie, everyone wanted to be an individual and to express themselves by the original clothes they wore or by being different from the norm. Now it seems that everyone wants to look the same.
Big influential brands are influencing our ideas of beauty. When did great big pouty lips start to be perceived as beauty and the “must have” for countless women? Have you noticed the trends? Long fake nails, fake tans, scary eyebrows, ultra- eyelashes, puffy lips, long straight hair, not to mention the tattoos and piercings. To me it’s just plain weird, as these accoutrements make women look very odd and not naturally attractive. Where is natural beauty?
It’s a tragic fact that if you ask many women about their body, they are often unsatisfied with their shape, size, height, nose, bum, etc… the list goes on.
37 years ago, as one of the founders of The Irish Massage Therapist’s Association and many times, president, I have seen hundreds of bodies, all shapes, sizes, good and poor health, young and old, each one, different and every single one has a story. With age, people tended to feel more comfortable with their body but that has also changed. Thousands are getting surgery on so many different body parts and I’m not only referring to women. Men too!
Is the gym craze all about health? Yes, and a lot about comparison. Many gyms are full of mirrors. I wonder why?
As a society, we have many important issues to tackle and confidence is a big one. Mental health, lack of self-esteem, self-expression, body image etc ..they are all interlinked and if people think that surgery and make up are the answers we have a long way to go. They are the symptoms not the causes of disconnect. Disconnect from self, from other, from community and from Nature. It’s all connected. It’s disconnect bred by insecurity, created by clever marketing and an eye on big money. More pressure, more profits!
Remember Pamela Anderson? Baywatch? I thought she was an airhead but no…. she’s wonderful :YouTube: “ How To Fail : Pamela Anderson Redefining Beauty.” It’s part of the Dove Self Esteem Project, a vision of a world where beauty is a source of confidence not anxiety, helping girls develop and increase body confidence and self-acceptance.
What can we do to not buy into all the myths that are being forced upon us? We do have choices. The question I always ask myself is, “Is it natural?” If yes, fine… if no, forget about it!
Youtube :Ted X Judith Ashton The Power and Importance of Human Touch
