I have seen it all when it comes to skin care hacks: from using baking soda to exfoliate to using a lemon as a toner. These are all old-school hacks that will cause more problems than they solve. I would never tell my daughter, mother, or best friend to embark on these. So, before any new crazy trends start, let’s go over the worst TikTok skin care trends that I’ve come across.
Toothpaste On Pimples Or Better Known As “Let’s Inflame & Sweep Zits Under The Rug” Trend
Ok, toothpaste on pimples is an idea that operates on trying to dry out acne and that is the opposite direction we need to move in. If you’ve talked to me before or have read any of my blogs, you know that acne needs hydration, I don’t have to explain this.
Putting toothpaste on pimples would irritate and dry out acne, and continue to cause problems that can’t be solved. Drying out a breakout is just kicking the can down the road. Curing pimples requires a simple intervention of proper home care rather than proceeding in denial of the deeper problem. Pimples will always come back until they are healed at the root level. It is not helpful to dab toothpaste and then bury our heads in the sand.
Face Taping or Also Known As “I Am Desperate & Don’t Value My Time” Trend
Influencers are trying at-home mini facelifts with face tape. They temporarily lift areas of the skin to mask fine lines and wrinkles.
Nothing could be a bigger waste of time. It is irritating and completely useless to the face. It can actually speed up the process of aging by irritating our skin and unhealthily stretching it. There are no upsides to taping skin.
Baking Soda To Exfoliate or Also Known As “A Russian Roulette Chemical Peel” Trend
Another old belief that is said to work. If you think you can heal your skin by traumatizing it with a low PH acidic baking soda paste, you’re wrong. It’s actually a very dangerous hack that is completely outdated. No one can heal their skin with chemical peels.
Don’t even get me started on why chemical peels are completely obsolete. They dehydrate, inflame, and disrupt the acid mantle barrier, sun sensitize, and diminish dermal thickness over time.
Lemon As A Toner Or Also Known As “I Want To Age Faster” Trend
This one is going to give you sun sensitivity and hyperpigmentation. You are purposely sensitizing your skin to the sun so it can burn, lose collagen and create hyperpigmentation. Faces should never be used to synthesize vitamin D. If you want to age faster and cause hyperpigmentation, then this is for you.
Sunscreen Contouring Or Also Known As “I Don’t Use Sunscreen Correctly” Trend
If you’re trying to highlight and bronze your skin, just use a highlighter and bronzer. Aren’t hacks supposed to be short cut with a benefit? Sunscreen contouring is way more trouble and hassle than just using a highlighter and bronzer. You are incurring UV damage to the exact places that must be protected the most. This may be impossible to fathom when you are twenty but just trust me on this one.
Sun on the face will age you, period. There are no exceptions. Don’t sacrifice the health of your skin; just use makeup instead. Plain and simple.
The Bottom Line On TikTok Skin Care Trends
TikTok has been a huge source of skin care trends, and not all of them should be praised. These hacks are like worthless foam. They will not substantiate skin health in any way and worse, they will steal your time. If you’re looking for information on how to really take care of your skin, schedule a complimentary virtual consult, where you will get 1:1 support for your skin.

About the author
I took many wrong turns when I started learning about skin at 19. The more I spent on skincare, equipment, and training, the further I felt from actually helping skin. I was frustrated with only being able to offer temporary and superficial solutions at best. What emerged from the disappointment and turmoil, I now call, The Regenerative Skin Process. Skin Harmonics is a dedicated medical fusion holistic skincare clinic that provides a root cause approach delivering lifetime skin health through medical grade skin care products, new learning, and Deep Pore Cleansing Facials.