TikTokers Are Using Period Blood for DIY Face Masks: Experts Weigh in

1 year ago 37

Selena Gomez Shares Her Morning Beauty Routine connected TikTok

TikTok's latest skincare inclination conscionable mightiness get your panties successful a twist.

There's nary denying that the video-sharing app is known for its viral quality tips and tricks like the recent "I'm Cold" constitution lookthe "vampire skin" effect and many others. And now, the buzziest skincare trend is each astir utilizing play humor to make a DIY look mask.

Yes, you work that correctly.

The hashtag, #periodfacemask, has go truthful fashionable connected the societal media level that it has amassed more than six billion views. The hashtag #menstruationmasking has besides picked up steam with astir 3 cardinal views.

And portion the skincare hack can clasp antithetic names connected TikTok, the halfway of its intent remains the same. Users are taking their period blood, mostly collecting it with a menstrual cup, and smearing it each implicit their look successful the hopes of achieving clear, glowing skin.

But earlier you commencement riding the (red) wave, you're going to privation to work what skincare experts told E! News about the imaginable risks that tin originate from trying this inclination out.

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Will utilizing play humor arsenic a look disguise really work?

Blair Hayes, a board-certified aesthetics doc assistant, told E! News determination are respective reasons wherefore it's a large abdominous no.

"Our tegument obstruction doesn't let humor to penetrate into our skin," she explained. "It needs immoderate signifier of transportation method to get past the tegument barrier."

According to the Skin By Blair Aesthetics founder, the anti-aging benefits associated with blood-derived treatments are effectual if there's immoderate benignant of injury. 

"This usually comes successful the signifier of needles, micro-needling and lasers," she pointed out, adding, "there are precise debased levels of maturation factors successful your blood—or platelets—which marque up little than 1 percent of your blood. Not a precise effectual number!"

A platelet-derived maturation factor is 1 of galore many maturation factors that assistance modulate compartment maturation and division. But Hayes said the crushed wherefore aesculapian professionals rotation humor is to extract the platelets, which increases the concentration.

In short, she said that "there is zero technological evidence" down applying "whole blood" to the look arsenic a skincare benefit.

As Dr. Michelle Koo, a board-certified integrative surgeon, noted, "The PRP (Platelet-rich plasma injections) utilized for improving tegument prime is specially prepared and concentrated done a sterile trial conduit agar that concentrates the healing factors wrong the platelets."

How does a menstruation disguise disagree from a "vampire" facial?

First things first, a  "vampire" facial—popularized by Kim Kardashian in a 2013 occurrence of Kourtney & Kim Take Miami—is a akin conception to PRP. The cosmetic attraction uses a person's humor (typically drawn from the arm), separates the platelets and past applies the humor backmost to the face. PRP, connected the different hand, is simply a attraction that uses a patient's ain humor cells to assistance heal a circumstantial area, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Dr. Geeta Yadav, a board-certified dermatologist, broke it down for E! News, sharing, "Menstrual humor facials are not administered comparably to a PRP oregon 'vampire' facial, which uses micro-needling devices to propulsion the nutrients from one's humor and plasma into the skin."

"But that doesn't mean you should beryllium utilizing a microneedle roller with your play humor facial," the Facet Dermatology founder said. "The biggest quality present is that play humor is not collected hygienically oregon processed decently for it to beryllium delivered backmost to the tegument successful a utile way."

What are the benefits of utilizing play humor arsenic a look mask?

While galore of our experts hold determination are nary benefits to this TikTok trend, Dr. Yadav summed it up best: "Aside from the information that it is free, determination is zero vantage to utilizing menstrual humor connected your skin."

What are the imaginable risks and is it harmless to use?

All 3 of our experts pointed retired that this inclination is simply a look for infection.

"The postulation of humor is not sterile, it is contaminated with microbes specified arsenic bacteria, yeast and adjacent viruses that unrecorded wrong the uterus and vagina," Hayes explained. "When you smear your menses connected your face, you're besides transferring these microbes with it, which could pb to a nasty corruption if your tegument obstruction isn't perfectly intact."

Translation: You amended anticipation you don't person adjacent a insignificant scratch.

As she enactment it, "How would you similar to larn you person a sexually transmitted corruption by waking up 1 morning, post-period-facial to chlamydial conjunctivitis oregon a herpes outbreak connected your face?"

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What are amended alternatives to this trend?

While Hayes recommends trying a "vampire" facial alternatively of a play mask, Dr. Yadav suggested that you can't spell incorrect erstwhile you put successful bully skincare products. And if you wanted immoderate other encouragement, Dr. Koo provided some words of wisdom.

"Avoid fads, look astatine the science," she said. "What is applicable for 1 usage is not necessarily existent successful different usage case. Avoid thing that seems excessively bully and excessively accelerated to execute your results."

She added, "In my opinion, thing successful beingness worthy having comes without enactment oregon a price."

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