Your favorite influencer is lying to you.

Yes you read the title right. Your favorite skincare influencers are lying to you and you blindly following them is only profiting them while you are emptying your pockets on things which won't give you the results your favorite influencers guarantee. It is very important for you to research the products and ingredients and always be a smart consumer. In recent times when I finally started my skincare journey, I unfortunately watched few influencers talk about products from various brands and I took their words as the truth and got so many products which did not work for me and wasted my savings. I do not want anyone else wasting their money like I did because we all work hard to earn and you should know what you are purchasing and also know what ingredients you are putting on your face. This post is going to be a long rant about Indian skincare influencers and my issues with them. I won't be taking individual names but giving you a summary of things you need to look up before you watch an influencer and whether you can trust someone's opinions and at the end I will be recommending creators who make informative vides on ingredients, brands and give their honest opinions on products and are wise consumers. 

    One thing which annoys me the most is when influencers who don't disclose their sponsorships publically in their videos. In India, we do not have a law which mandates disclosing of  sponsorships yet. This is a very serious problem because viewers who are not very educated on skincare and ingredients and are new to this who are looking for advice are usually the one's who are most affected by this. Unlike in Western countries the influencer uploading sponsored content have to not only disclose the sponsorship in the description but also state it in the video. This is something which is missing here and its sad that content creators don't explicitly state the sponsorship. While I am not against the idea of sponsorship in itself but I am against the idea of hiding it from the people who consume your content without whom you are nothing. I have seen big content creators who have endorsed physical scrub with walnut shells to their viewers and when one of the viewer commented about it they said it's okay to use it mildly and then in another video they said physical scrubs are bad for your face and stick to chemical exfoliation..... And this is not the only time this particular influencer has done something like this. 

    Then there is another type of videos that I usually come across on YouTube where the influencer uploads DIYs which include ingredients like coffee powder, lemon, vinegar, etc. and suddenly the next video is uploading a video about AHA BHA peel to a possible audience who do not know how chemical peels and exfoliators work. This is equally dangerous because viewers of these individuals actually take the word of them as the ultimate truth and chemical peels are something which are dangerous even for a person who has been into skincare for a long time let alone a person who has never used any sort of actives on their face. It is really very irresponsible of content creators who put out content without having proper knowledge about the products that they are using and causing potential damage to their audience's skin and pockets. 

    You do not need to layer actives over actives over actives to get results. It is a sad reality that when you watch a skincare routine or brand review videos you the audience is made to feel like you will need all the products mentioned to create a routine which is not true. You only need products according to your skin's needs to see a result. Products like toners, essence and eye creams are not needed as you are made to believe.

    No you do not need a chemical peel for exfoliation. With the Ordinary's AHA BHA peel getting hyped up on tiktok and YouTube it is really necessary to put a disclaimer and you can get similar results from a simple exfoliator like Lactic acid and Salicylic acid. 

    Fragrance and preservatives are not the devil as many influencers make it seem to be. It's okay to use products with fragrance unless you have really sensitive skin or you are allergic to them. Fragrance are usually added for several reasons like to avoid the pungent smell of certain actives or to protect their formulation or even just for a good luxury experience. Preservatives like paraben are often demonized by influencers and as per FDA they still do not have any information which shows that parabens have any damaging effects on human's health. 

    Recommending products that do not use good preservative ingredients. I have seen many videos where the product is being praised for not having preservatives and being praised for being 'natural'. Here, the idea of 'chemicals bad and natural good' also comes into play. Products which are made without preservatives are dangerous as it is very likely that the product can catch molds and fungus which are dangerous especially since you will be using these products on your skin. 

    Recommending products with no full ingredient list. There are few brands here who do not have a list of the full ingredients mentioned on their website and packaging. It is very important to know what ingredients goes into the products that you are going to use on your skin. 

These are some of the things that I do feel like are usually done by influencers which their viewers don't deserve. I hope we see a change in the situations soon and now onto my recommendations of content creators who I enjoy watching:

1. Dr. Dray: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnxmUrGMtpQT844Yd_l7Zyg

Dr. Dray is a board certified dermatologist and I watch her videos for skincare related knowledge and also to get information about how to use products.

2. Dr. Alexis Stephens: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2I480CzINvT-3cBAtsBySQ

Dr. Alexis Stephens is also a board certified dermatologist who does a lot of videos on issues like hyperpigmentation, melasma and her channel also is a very good place for ingredients which work the best for skin of colour.

3.Arnakshi Patgiri (not a skincare specialist I just watch her videos for reviews on Indian skincare products): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtMcH1Wq4Q2au3hXUEEZnng 

If you love skincare and makeup like me then you need to check Arnakshi's channel and give her some love. Her channel is informative and aesthetic. 

4.Aboli A (not a skincare specialist I just watch her videos for reviews on Indian skincare products): https://www.youtube.com/c/AboliA/featured

If you want to learn about products, ingredients and basics then Aboli's channel is perfect for you. She has amazing videos on patch testing and how to use products. 

    I hope this post was helpful and do subscribe and leave comments with your suggestions and views. Have a good day❤