Myths Busted by The Beauty Brains

Remember all those weird beauty questions that pop into your head when you’re reapplying your chapstick for the 100 billionth time today, or when you’re looking at your empty tube of persa gel, the huge zit on your forehead, and wondering what you have laying around the house that might cure that monster?

The May 2011 issue of Allure magazine set out to solve some of these myths along with the folks at the Beauty Brains, and to –FINALLY- set your mind at ease. Hint: Use this post as ammunition in clearing up that long standing debate with the BFF about which is truth and which is urban myth.

Here’s the fact vs. fiction break down:

• Chapstick actually IS addictive: It tricks your body into thinking lips are properly hydrated, which signals to stop new-cell production, leading to dryer lips that make you want to apply more gloss more often. Petroleum and beeswax formulas are the most habit forming, because they’re best at staying on your lips and making them feel faux-moisturized for the longest.
• Human saliva CAN cure zits: Yes, though it is gross, spit contains histatins, little antibacterial proteins, that help clear up the bacterial growth causing your blemish.
• The moon DOES make your hair grow: The changes in melatonin levels that arise with the fluctuations of the light in the night sky can cause flux in hair follicle growth.
• Armpit hair CANNOT grow long enough to braid (unless you have tiny tiny fingers): Hormones in the human body signal to hairs when to stop growing. Most people’s underarm hair reaches a maximum length of 1.5 inches before your body hits the off switch.

Want more? Check out the Beauty Brains’ book Can You Really Get Hooked on Lip Balm? 

 Or, take a look at the blog updated with a new feature about every two days. Bonus: you can ASK THEM QUESTIONS to find out the answer to the myth that’s been naggling at your subconscious for years if you haven’t spotted its answer above. Yesterday’s topic: Does botox turn you into an Emotionless Zombie? Spoiler alert: the answer is YES.

Allure Beauty Product Finder

Allure magazine announced in their April issue that they are solving the problems of any woman who has ever tried to pick out a new eye shadow or lipstick, only to have the mission go terribly awry. They are in the process of creating a beauty product finder, guided by user inputs. It is coming soon on their website, but they have a link to beauty product award winners here to keep you busy in the meantime.

I, like most women, have my standby weekday beauty routine: apply compact, dot on a little cream blush, brown eye liner, shimmery taupe shadow, curl eyelashes, two coats of mascara finish with some raspberry lemonade chapstick. On a fancy night out I bust out my smoky eye palette, and liquid black liner for a cat eye effect. For standard weekends, I tend to coordinate my eye shadow with the color palette of my outfit. There are several routes I can go down with my makeup, but when I want to go outside my normal box, I tend to draw a blank when product shopping.

I wander the aisles of CVS looking a little lost trying to find products I read about in magazines. Or I rub endless blushes and lip tints onto the inside of my palms in Sephora with no idea what I’m really looking for. The makeup counter people in Macy’s intimidate me, and tend to be less than friendly. I want to wear lipstick, but somehow always end up with a garish looking shade. I’d like to start wearing “big girl” makeup (read: more expensive, and not bought in a drug store), but I don’t want to lay out the moolah without knowing it’s going to look good.

Enter the Allure beauty product finder. You input what type of product you are looking for (hair, skin, makeup), and choose from a selection of product options. Then you input things about yourself, your skin type, price range, and the flaws you’re trying to mask with your purchase. Then with a click of a button, Voila! Personalized beauty recommendations from Allure’s trove of editor tested products. I can’t wait for it to be ready. Happy shopping!

American Beauty

No, I'm not talking about the movie. As anyone who watches America's Next Top Model could probably tell you, standards for beauty in the fashion industry change from year to year, morphing from "traditional" beauties like Christy Brinkley and Turlington to those with more unique features. The standard for gorgeous used to be a symmetrical face, high cheekbones, long flowing hair, and strikingly sculpted beauty. Models who walk the runways now might not stop you in your tracks on the subway, but are prized for their specialness, their individual look. Different is better, traditional is commercial.

The desired look for models has evolved from Twiggy's waif to to a love of an athletic, toned body (think Patti Hansen and Cindy Crawford) to Kate Moss's "short" waifish beauty,  and back again. More recently, there has been the love of the sexy bombshell that every Victoria's Secret model embodies: leggy, and busty with a flat stomach and round butt. Standards for the ideal beauty to be featured in every magazine and on TV show change with these idealized looks.

So what is the typical "American" beauty? Google image the word beauty, and you'll see that this is not a simple question. However, Allure magazine set out to find the answer with a beauty survey of 2,000 respondents designed to determine what our nation perceives as the most attractive physical archetype.

The results? The majority of men and women surveyed perceived a photo of Latina woman with dark eyes and dark hair as the most attractive from a variety of races and ethnicities. The male winner? A dark-haired, dark-eyed male model of Indian descent.

The reigning beauty standard of the past has expanded, likely in response to the increasing diversity and growing acceptance of all races and ethnicities that inhabit this great melting pot. Beauty has always taken on a range of forms, but a more inclusive conception of what is skin colors, and facial features are idealized has only appeared in recent years. With increased idealization of more forms of beauty, I hope to see a new generation of confident women emerge as more and more girls can find their likeness in the glossy pages of a magazine. Here's to hoping the next fashion and beauty revolution brings a transition away from emaciated and towards healthy figures.