No, you shouldn’t be following your favourite celebrity’s skincare routine—here’s why

Dermatologists are raising the alarm about following someone’s skincare routine without factoring in your skin’s needs and history

An unexpected perk of writing about beauty for a living is knowing good skin when you see it. You know, seemingly clear skin that has been craftily painted with enough brushstrokes to rival Picasso. And you know, healthy, glowing skin that radiates from within without relying on the twin crutches of concealer and colour corrector. The matter of how far I was willing to go for the latter was put to the test when I started watching my first K-drama, What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim. Each episode was a never-ending expanse of porcelain-perfect skin that appeared to have never crossed paths with puberty or acne scars. If the women sparkled with the luminosity of a thousand diamonds, the men glistened brighter with balmy-smooth skin that was impossibly dewy yet shine-free at once. Overnight, my browser history changed as I started rabidly looking for products that would grant me a sip of this nectar of youth and vitality. It is probably just a concoction of fortuitous lighting and make-up, a voice of reason whispered in my mind, even as my fingers feverishly clicked on another listicle of at-home skincare devices that Korean stars swear by. 

Surface-level claims

After all, such is the allure of a celebrity skincare routine. It is the equivalent of spending a lifetime craning your neck for a stolen glimpse above the crowds and then suddenly being granted access to the head of the queue. You may not wake up as your favourite celebrity every morning—but hey, this vial of skin essence applied at exactly the correct hour each night could help you lay claim to their blemish-free skin. “I keep things simple,” “I swear by natural remedies” and “I like to let my skin breathe,” are phrases often bandied about when celebrities are quizzed about their skincare, although few have been as abused as the infamous war chant, “I drink lots of water in the day.” Selfies of goopy at-home concoctions offer up a morsel of honesty that is just enough to trigger our voyeuristic intrigue and conveniently hand-wave the fact that a DIY ubtan isn’t all that your favourite celebrity is relying on to take care of their skin after prolonged hours of cakey make-up. 

It comes as little surprise, then, that the notion of expecting a celebrity’s alleged skincare routine to yield the same results for you is baffling to Dr Kiran Sethi, aesthetic dermatologist and founder of Isya Aesthetics in New Delhi. “When a celebrity talks to you about their skincare routine, they are very rarely actually sharing what they are doing. In today’s world of savvy marketing, it isn’t hard to pick up on the collaborations woven into the narrative or the possibility that they are presenting a certain image based on future collaborations. Sadly, you will rarely get the actual truth from a celebrity about what they're doing for their skin,” she rues. 

If a celebrity were to indeed share their honest-to-god skincare routine with their hand on a stack of bibles, there is a more pressing matter at hand: You will only be learning what works for their specific skin type. “Even if a celebrity allowed you to rifle through the drawers of their nightstand, you will still be gaining a fragment of information without knowing about their lifestyle, water intake, skin problems and areas of concern,” Sethi cautions. Her words speak of a universal truth embroiled at the heart of all our endeavours in the quest for good skin: Skincare routines need to be customised, and what works for your bestie may not work for you. “Perhaps your best friend doesn’t spend much time in the sun whereas your skin is sensitive to acids. Each person has a different skin type, needs and requirements but when we get caught up hearing about a magical product that worked for someone else, it is easy to lose sight of what we want,” she explains.

Proceeding with caution

While it might seem tempting to stock up on that one magical serum that your favourite star claims to always have in her bag, the unglamourous truth is that a visit to a professional dermatologist will help you devise a more effective skincare routine that accounts for your genetics, history of allergies and specific needs. The notion is seconded by Karishma Kewalramani, founder of FAE Beauty, who believes that a celebrity’s skincare routine should never serve as the sole source of information. “Instead, do your homework on portals like The Inkey List to scour through the ingredients they are recommending and then make a decision on what will work for you. Perhaps, your favourite star swears by retinol but is it appropriate for where you are at in your skin journey? A reality check always comes in handy before making a purchase decision,” she advises. 

And what if you do ever feel tempted to give in to the siren call of a famous figure’s skincare routine? Aanam Chashmawala, content creator and founder of Wearified, recommends factoring in the person’s skin type and concerns. “ Somebody recently happened to try the products I had recommended but since I have dry skin and hers is oily, our experience was different. My advice to her was that it isn’t about following an influencer’s routine but paying attention to their skin needs and trying to derive common ground from there,” she shares. 

As a creator, the responsibility of what she is recommending to her followers doesn’t weigh lightly on Chashmawala. “I try to specify that I have normal-to-dry skin when sharing my product experiences to help people understand whether it will work for them or not. If a complicated question is sent to me, I consciously remind people that I am not a certified dermatologist and queries about sensitive skin or specific skincare concerns are best directed to a doctor,” she signs off. 

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