Beauty Myths
Here are 3 beauty myths you should know about.
It’s easy to believe some common beauty “tips” or “advice” when you’ve heard everyone from your mom, your friends, and even acquaintances swear by them. We’ve all heard of the most popular ones like “smiling causes crow’s-feet,” “a lack of sleep causes dark circles,” and “you get varicose veins by crossing your legs too much.” A lot of these beauty myths aren’t 100 percent true, but genetics can play a big factor on some traits (like varicose veins). The phrase “I got it from my mama” can sometimes ring true. You were getting not only a glimpse into her past but also a preview of how you might look when you grew up. As an adult, you still want to know: Will you age like your mother? You might, but it’s all about starting and sticking to a healthy beauty routine. “If you’ve inherited your mother’s ageless looks, you’ve won the genetic lottery. Adhere to a similar lifestyle and you’ve got a good chance of aging like she did,” says dermatologist Whitney Bowe, MD. To get to the bottom of these questions, we asked the experts to reveal how your features are affected by your genes—and for the truth about the most common beauty myths.
- Your Eyes
The myth: Smiling causes crow’s-feet.
The science: That’s not completely true; it’s more about squinting, says Doris Day, MD, clinical associate professor of dermatology at New York University Medical Center and author of Forget the Facelift. Creases around the eyes are more prevalent in women with thin, fair skin. If your mother has crow’s-feet and you share her skin tone, you could be at increased risk of developing them, too. But the real culprits are usually sun exposure and repeated squinting, notes Day.
- Your Undereyes
The myth: A lack of sleep causes dark circles.
The science: Day says insufficient sleep doesn’t actually cause permanent undereye circles, but it does cause temporary changes that make the skin look darker. Natural shadows from deep-set eye sockets, blue veins that show beneath the skin, and darker pigmentation are all things you can inherit from either parent. But your habits matter, too: Sun damage, sleep deprivation, and aggressive eye rubbing can exacerbate undereye circles, says Zeichner.
- Your Legs
The myth: You get varicose veins or spider veins by crossing your legs too much.
The science: Doing so won’t cause either problem, says Paul Jarrod Frank, MD, a cosmetic dermatologist in New York City. “Bulging blue varicose veins have an enormous genetic component,” he says. “They have to do with an inherited weakness in the valves of the blood vessels.” The smaller, squiggly purple spider veins are less attributable to genetics; sun damage to fair skin is a bigger factor, says Zeichner.
SOURCE: Real Simple
