No-gos for your preteen
- Retinoids: typically used for their anti-aging effects, retinoids (including their derivatives retinol, adapalene, and tretinoin) can cause skin allergies, rashes, and irritation for tweens.
- Vitamin C: although there are many benefits to using vitamin C serums on adult skin, its use in children’s skin products hasn’t been studied and may cause irritation.
- Peptides: made up of amino acids, peptides are yet another powerful—but potentially irritating—anti-aging ingredient that should be avoided by those in the preteen set.
- Exfoliants: chemical exfoliants (think AHAs and BHAs) may dry, irritate, or even tear the skin.