Beautify

The secret of Korean skin

TB (according to Znews) August 15, 2024 21:07

The 10-15 step skin care routine is rarely practiced by Koreans and is often just a sales pitch for cosmetic brands.

K-beauty became popular with the Korean wave

From 2017 to 2023, South Korea's cosmetics exports increased by 219%, totaling more than530 billion USDand for the first time surpassed Japan's imports of beauty products from France.

Hailed as effective yet affordable, Korean beauty procedures promise customers "mirror skin" that is smooth, supple, healthy and youthful like Korean idols.

However, according to Kay Lan, an international business development consultant for a cosmetic clinic, the real story of Korean skin care can be very different from what is advertised and marketed by cosmetic companies with the goal of selling as many products as possible.

The Truth About the 10-15 Step Process

Due to the heavy commercialization surrounding the Korean skincare industry, it is sometimes difficult to determine what is true and what is overstated to consumers. Many of the myths, such as the 10-15 step skincare routine, are rarely practiced by Koreans and are simply gimmicks for cosmetic brands to sell a wider range of products to non-Korean customers.

Behind the glitz of fads and trendy buzzwords, Korea actually has a unique and interesting relationship with skin care.

According to experts, aspects like prioritizing skincare over makeup, worshiping sunscreens, and tailoring product choices and skincare routines to specific skin needs—in short, opting for gentler ingredient combinations rather than a “more is better” approach—have come to define the best aspects of Korean skincare culture.

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Koreans rarely take care of their skin in 10-15 steps every day.

At the same time, Korean skin care routines (especially moisturizers) tend to be more elaborate than the Japanese beauty industry's "less is more" approach, making K-beauty a crossroads between Japanese and Western styles.

The Golden Rule

In another notable difference, Western skin care products focus on problem-correcting approaches, often stripping the skin of oil and using stronger ingredients like retinol, azelaic acid, and other exfoliants.

While exfoliants are helpful and important in renewing the skin, using too much or at the wrong time can be counterproductive. In contrast, Korean skin care focuses on maintenance rather than regeneration and uses multiple layers of moisturizers along with ingredients like hyaluronic acid, lower doses of alpha hydroxy acids, ceramides, and allantoin.

Many of the ingredients in Korean skin care products are identical to those in the West, but they are often used in low doses.

Korean skin care is also famous for using unique ingredients like snail slime and bee venom, which have shown promising results in short-term trials but more research is needed to confirm long-term effectiveness.

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Korean cosmetics can use many unique ingredients, in addition to traditional substances.

In recent years, one of the most exciting aspects of Korean skin care has been the combination of cutting-edge technology and traditional herbal medicine. On the one hand, the K-beauty export boom has prompted the Korean government to invest more in cosmetic technology and skin diagnostic programs to nurture the country’s biomedical industry. On the other hand, Korean products sometimes include hanbang (herbal) ingredients such as ginseng, green tea, gotu kola, mugwort, and rice water.

When considering your own skincare routine, Korean products are a great place to start because of their good quality and affordable prices.

The first step is always to research products that have good reviews from people with similar skin types to yours. If you don’t know your skin type or are unsure, schedule an appointment with a dermatologist or licensed medical spa aesthetician to learn about your skin’s needs.

Other golden rules to learn from the Korean beauty industry are to use broad-spectrum sunscreen and to limit the use of overly harsh treatments.

TB (according to Znews)
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The secret of Korean skin