Recently, a young TikTokker when viral with her complex regime for reducing the signs of aging. This is a daily occurrence on the site, but this time it caused the world to sit up and take notice. This time that TikTokker was only 14.
The content creator, who answers to the name of Carson on TikTok, divulged that she began her complex routine when she was a mere 12 years old. The skincare ritual includes the twice-daily consumption of apple cider vinegar pills, a double dose of retinol, a pair of Korean sheet masks on her face everyday, an obligatory layer of sunscreen beneath her makeup, and a daily cup of green tea.
“I always start my day with a cup of green tea and a dollop of honey… Green tea, you see, works wonders in thwarting the ageing process, and it’s exceptionally anti-inflammatory,” she said.
However, perhaps the most disconcerting facet of her regimen is her revelation that “Whenever I’m going on a long road trip, I always tape up a piece of construction paper. This effectively screens out the majority of the UV rays.”
The video has since been removed, but prior to its disappearance, it had garnered the attention of nearly 10 million viewers. In response, numerous individuals expressed their dismay at the trials young women endure in the present era. One Twitter user said, “like not even being able to look out the window on a road trip bc you’re terrified of getting a line on your face. the kids are not alright”
This is just one example of a prevailing trend on TikTok, which is inundated with thousands of similar videos seemingly perpetuating a culture of high-cost, labour-intensive anti-ageing regimens. None of this should be surprising, however, as this is the same platform that recently introduced a filter capable of digitally ageing one’s face in real-time, conjuring up AI-rendered images replete with wrinkles, thinning hair, and under-eye bags. Even celebrities are not immune to the allure of the filter and then viciously attacking the versions of their older selves. In an online video, an “aged” Kylie Jenner, can be seen shaking her head disapprovingly. “I don’t like it,” she protests, “I don’t like it at all.”
@relllivinglearnin The viral aging filter got #kyliejenner letting us know she aint her for the wrinkles chilleeeee😂‼️ #kyliejenner #fiter #oldage #viralvideo #foryou #fyp #kj #billionaire #laughter ♬ original sound – RellLivingLearning
Sarah, a 29-year-old YouTuber boasting an impressive following of over 400,000 subscribers, made waves when she uploaded a video last year, titled “My Extreme Fear of Ageing.” In this candid piece, she delves into the profound impact this fear has had on her life: her reluctance to venture far from home, her persistent worries about her body’s gradual weakening, and her rather unconventional birthday gift to herself – a gallon of sunscreen, all in a bid to stave off the dreaded wrinkles.
The video stirred a significant response, amassing 759 comments from individuals in their 20s and 30s who shared Sarah’s trepidation about the inexorable march of time. One comment poignantly encapsulated the sentiment: “On the day I turned 27, I found myself leaving work prematurely, overwhelmed by unrelenting tears at the thought of growing older.” The fear of ageing, it appears, is a sentiment that resonates deeply with today’s younger generations.
A preoccupation with ageing
This growing preoccupation with the fear of ageing is not a novel phenomenon, but it does appear to be intensifying. In 2018, a report published by the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) highlighted that millennials harboured the most pessimistic views about the ageing process. Many viewed it as a stark descent into decline, often associated with the spectres of dementia and loneliness.
As part of their report, the RSPH issued a call to action, advocating for the abandonment of the term ‘anti-ageing’ within the beauty industry. They argued that such language might exert undue pressure on women, compelling them to perceive ageing as an adversary to be vanquished. Equally concerning, a study conducted in 2017 unearthed that a startling 30% of women under the age of 35 were using anti-wrinkle products as part of their regular skincare regimen.
The beauty industry’s always cruel standards have been sharpened by the ever-present involvement in social media, where comparisons abound and likes are often distributed based on looks. A study by the nonprofit organization Flawless revealed that a staggering 60% of young adults confess to feeling increasingly anxious about ageing, with social media playing a prominent role in exacerbating these fears.
The true cause of the fear
It has been suggested, however, that the fear of ageing is not the true fear, but rather a fear of uncertainty and unhappiness, for instance, many who express a fear of ageing associate it automatically with inevitable dementia and loneliness. Others suggest the fear of ageing stems from an innate sense of their own ageism and a fear that one day this will be reflected back on them.
Geriatrician Louise Aronson adds, “We put ‘loved ones’ in nursing homes, underfund them as a society, and hope never to need one ourselves. Who wouldn’t be afraid of going there themselves?”
According to Margaret Morganroth Gullette, an American scholar in age studies, ageism continues to be a socially acceptable prejudice to the point of being murderous.
“As we age, we are seen as less human,” she says. “A profound lesson to emerge from the COVID pandemic is how older members of our society are treated. The problem is we don’t value old age. COVID made ageism far worse as we saw people in nursing homes dying because their lives did not matter enough. Many people think that was incompetence, true — but ageism explains it better.”
Turning around these perceptions will require a lot more effort on our own part in changing how our society treats our aged. If we treated the aged well, then perhaps we wouldn’t be so scared of becoming elderly ourselves. Part of adjusting this mentality and behaviour will be how our media portrays the elderly moving forward. Will we continue to perpetuate dangerous stereotypes around the elderly and unhappiness or will we look at age as a nuanced subject just like any other?
For instance, perhaps we should be publicising more, that despite the apprehensions surrounding ageing, empirical data paints a different picture. It indicates that, on average, life satisfaction tends to peak toward the twilight of one’s existence. This contentment ebbs during midlife but starts to ascend once a person reaches the age of 50. This intriguing pattern of happiness over the course of a lifetime has been formally recognized as the “happiness U-curve,” a concept developed by Jonathan Rauch. It’s often referred to as the paradox of ageing, as it contradicts the common notion that youth is synonymous with happiness.
Were these things logical, the knowledge of the happiness U-curve would be a cheering comfort to people as they get older. But when has logic ever dictated irrational fear?
