Teenagers have started using beef fat to clean their faces, here's why experts are worried

As it is the case with most, if not all, social media content, you can always find the best and the worst of things, often very close to each other. Of course, this new TikTok trend is not as bad as the one pushing teenagers to pinch themselves to make fake and temporary scars on their faces, but it is still questionable. Dr. Muneeb Shah spoke to the New York Post about this trend and the risk you could face in terms of skincare.

Teenagers using beef fat as moisturizer

We're slowly coming out of winter but spring is not quite there yet. To face the cold and its consequences on our skin, there is nothing better than a rich moisturizer, right? Well, some people have innovated the concept of moisturizing by buttering themselves up with, you guessed it, beef tallow otherwise known as beef fat.

'I only put beef tallow on my skin,' writes a TikTok user. Another user adds: 'my skin has never been so beautiful'. Used to fight acne and to moisturize the skin at the same time, beef tallow used in this context still raises questions and concern from dermatologists.

Read more:5 TikTok skincare trends that just aren’t worth it

A surprising choice

Interviewed by the New York Post, Dr. Muneeb Shah said that while slathering on beef tallow might not have any long-term harmful consequences that we know of, it wouldn't have been his first choice.

There are so many good skin products out there that are both affordable and accessible that I think it's foolish to take risks by using a product that we don't know if it works or not.

Read more:Skin Cycling: Everything you need to know about the skincare routine that’s breaking the internet

Beef tallow can irritate your skin

Known as 'Dermdoctor' on TikTok, Dr. Muneeb Shah has got more than 18 million followers on his profile. According to him, in addition to being a rather surprising choice, the use of beef fat would also have harmful effects on the skin.

It was shown that the oleic acid disturbs the cutaneous barrier and causes more irritations.

It is safe to say that Dr. Shah does not recommend the use of this ingredient on your skin at all.

It is true that beef tallow is already used in soap making, but it first goes through a saponification process. It is therefore not used raw as the TikTok users in question do. Reserve your tallow for your shoes and other leather jackets!

This article has been translated from Gentside FR.

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Sources used:

NewYorkPost: Beef tallow skincare trend concerning docs: ‘Not really the best’