For people active in the personal care industry, one of the most vexing comments made by laymen is, perhaps, that cosmetics are “frivolous and useless.” The statement is so preposterous that it hardly deserves comment. It could be pointed out that a half-of-a-trillion-dollar industry is likely to address a global need.

Personally, when I stopped conducting research in a cancer institute and entered the skincare industry, I suddenly felt that I was asked many more questions about my work, in social gatherings, than I was asked before, when I was a pharmacologist. That said, certainly there is room for consumers who choose not to use cosmetics for whatever philosophical, religious, ethical, economical or ecological reason, but I still warmly recommend the use of shampoos, soaps, toothpaste, lip balms and sunscreens! I also recommend reading about the importance of self-esteem of the individual in society as well as about the role of cosmetics in building self-esteem. Here are just a few examples of how cosmetic use improves quality of life.

Cosmetics and Self-Esteem

Twenty elderly women were asked about the role of appearance, body work and the presentation of self in their everyday experience. Their own experience of everyday beauty practices suggests that the act of sustaining well-ordered appearance later in life allows for the enforcement of positive self-image in the context of personal beauty and body work. In the words of the authors:¹

Maintaining a positive appearance was shown to be crucial in their daily life and served as a ritual of not only presenting an appearance that signified control over the aging body, but to continue to enjoy it. The carefully calculated engagement with various non-surgical and surgical beauty practices also emerged as an embodied practice of mediating intersubjective social encounters through which self-esteem was engendered by evidencing the self’s efforts to show respect to others.

In another study, 27 women wearing no makeup, a control cosmetic and their own makeup were photographed and their pictures were analyzed by 300 evaluators. The authors concluded:
Our study evaluated the first impressions, age perception, self-esteem and the quality-of-life impact that cosmetic makeup has on women’s appearance and confidence. Subjects wearing cosmetic makeup appeared four years younger than those wearing no makeup. And the control cosmetic makeup subjects on average projected a 37% better first impression than subjects wearing no makeup. We objectively quantified and qualified the benefits of applying cosmetic makeup. Makeup can reduce the perceived age, improve the first impression projected and increase the self-esteem of those who apply it.²

This and other studies served as the basis for different programs aimed at increasing the well-being of nursing homes residents (and to reduce the costs of the care provided) by providing cosmetic programs. Indeed, far from being a frivolity, beauty treatments could lift residents’ moods and encourage a sense of individuality. The urge to please (and to seduce) might be stimulated by a cosmetic treatment that improves the appearance. The residents (40% of whom are sexually active) might be encouraged to show more physical independence, thus improving their psychological well-being while reducing the amount of work for the assisting nurses.

A study in this sense reports that 29 adults aged 65 and above participated in a beauty program consisting of 13, 90-minute weekly sessions focused on facial skin care, makeup application and massage with essential oils. The authors summarize their results as follows:

“Before and after the beauty program, self-perceptions of aging and depression were assessed using the Attitudes Towards Old People Scale (ATOPS) and Taiwanese Depression Questionnaire (TDQ), respectively. The participants’ ATOPS scores after the program were significantly higher than those examined before the program (p< 0.001), and their TDQ scores were significantly lower than those before the program (p< 0.001). Additionally, the participants’ body images were improved, the participants disrupted their stereotypes about makeup, and they were willing to gradually maintain their appearance. Overall, the beauty program was effective for enhancing the self-perceptions of aging and reducing depression in older adults.”³

Cosmetics and Illness

Cosmetic treatments seem to help improve the psychological status of cancer patients. The Personal Care Products Council’s Look Good Feel Better program has been helping patients for 40 years. As PCPC notes:

The Personal Care Products Council established the Look Good Feel, Better Foundation (formerly the Personal Care Products Council Foundation), which pioneered the groundbreaking Look Good, Feel Better public service program that improves the quality of life, self-esteem and confidence of people with cancer by helping them to manage the appearance caused by cancer treatment side effects. Through free group workshops, online and virtual support, and expert beauty content and instruction, Look Good, Feel Better helps women, men and teens regain a sense of normalcy and control, empowering them to harness the power of hope and beauty to face the challenge of a lifetime.

Yet, some authors⁴, for whatever philosophical, religious, ethical, economical or ecological reason, have mixed feelings about this public service program. In her own words, Dr. Karen Kendrik states:
“Image programs are a specific type of psychosocial cancer service developed to help women address the appearance-related side effects of cancer treatment. They include the Look Good, Feel Better program, medical and mastectomy boutiques, and other cosmetic and makeover programs. In this paper I argue that the primary goal of image programs is to “normalize” female cancer patients by hiding the physical evidence of illness and by reconstructing women with cancer as physically attractive, heterosexual and not disabled. The recovery of femininity and a feminine appearance is seen as central to recovering health. As a result, image programs take on a certain clinical legitimacy and become powerful reproducers of heterosexist and ableist discourses of gender and wellness.”

As if the pleasure of having a good appearance and feeling well were characteristics of healthy heterosexuals only!  

References

1. Elfving-Hwang J. Old, down and out? Appearance, body work and positive ageing among elderly South Korean women. J. Aging Stud. 2016; 38 : 6–15.
2. Dayan SH, Cho K, et al. Quantifying the impact cosmetic make-up has on age perception and the first impression projected. J Drugs Dermatol. 2015 Apr;14(4):366-374.
3. Wu YL, Chao SR. The Effects of a Beauty Program on Self-Perception of Aging and Depression among Community-Dwelling Older Adults in an Agricultural Area in Taiwan. Healthcare (Basel). 2023 May 10;11(10):1377.
4. Kendrick K. ‘Normalizing’ female cancer patients: Look good, feel better and other image programs. Disabil. Soc. 2008;23:259–269.

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Paolo Giacomoni, PhD
Insight Analysis Consulting
[email protected]
516-769-6904
 
Paolo Giacomoni acts as an independent consultant to the skin care industry. He served as Executive Director of Research at Estée Lauder and was Head of the Department of Biology with L’Oréal. He has built a record of achievements through research on DNA damage and metabolic impairment induced by UV radiation as well as on the positive effects of vitamins and antioxidants. He has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications and has more than 20 patents. He is presently Head of R&D with L.RAPHAEL—The science of beauty—Geneva, Switzerland.