Beauty Clinic: Skincare advice for a teenage boy
Q. My teenage son, 17, has the usual quota of spots and blackheads. Using a targeted skincare regime does help but he has given up because it looks ‘girlie’… Is there a range that might be more appealing to him?
A. We think he might like 31st State (31st-state.com), a new well-priced range of clean, natural, effective ‘face, body and hair stuff’ for teen boys, launched this summer. It was created by former pharmaceutical PR Stephanie Capuano for her own two teenage boys and named after her home state California.
When her boys reached puberty and the breakouts started as well as the ‘stinking’ (so there’s a roll-on deo at £5.99), Stephanie googled natural skincare options in vain. In desperation she even bought a £65 pot of treatment pads for her 14-year-old, ‘which worked by cutting them in half and using once a day instead of twice a day…’.
Frustrated at the complete lack of suitable products that also looked cool, Stephanie set about creating a range of products primarily for her own sons’ needs, formulated by an expert. ‘Very importantly, I created it out of concern for all the unnecessary chemicals in most existing products for these boys, and in direct response to the growing base of scientific evidence linking the negative effects of endocrine disruptors on male reproductive health.’
Stephanie worked closely with her sister in California, who serves on the board of the Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, who raise funds to support research into the environmental causes of cancer and other health problems. ‘Their Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, which works to apply pressure on the beauty industry to phase out harmful chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects and health problems and replace them with safer alternatives, was a guiding principle in development of 31st State formulations.’
31st State products are free from: SLS, SLES, parabens, mineral oil, petrolatum, petrochemicals, propylene glycol, synthetic colours, PEGs, PABA, phthalates, genetically modified Ingredients aluminium, plastic microbeads, lead, mercury and formaldehyde. They are vegan and cruelty free, sourced and made in the United Kingdom.
31st State products smell fresh, the packaging is cool enough for any guy’s bathroom shelf, and, we’re told by colleagues with teen sons, they work.
