保拉·贝冈花了数十年时间剖析化妆品行业，但她并没有发现太多值得赞扬的地方。 从承诺奇迹的抗皱霜到毫无功效的神奇药丸，她已经见过这一切。 她是一位美容专家、作家和出版商，对美容产品世界抱有适当的怀疑态度。
她曾出现在联合电视节目中，并撰写了几本开创性的书籍，包括《没有我的情况下不要去化妆品柜台》和《美容圣经》。 她的标题“蓝眼影应该是非法的”表明她并不害怕直言不讳。 老实说，谁能不同意呢？
我们与保拉坐下来，了解她对美容的看法，这些信念让我们不应该花钱。
Why I Question Everything
What motivates people to criticize an industry built on hype? For Paula, it was a lack of critical feedback.
“There is very little analytical or critical perspective. Dermatologists don’t criticize themselves, plastic surgeons don’t criticize themselves, and God knows, Fashion magazines and the cosmetics industry can’t criticize the cosmetics industry.”
We are inundated with “latest and greatest” claims. We get so caught up in looking at the trees that we lose sight of reality. The forest is gone.
Her background is more than academic. She completed her science degree in college, but worked as a make-up artist and beautician for several years. She also owned a cosmetics shop. In the late 1970s and 1980s, her take was simple. If astringents could close pores, our pores would be negative. If anti-wrinkle creams really work, we wouldn’t have wrinkles. Companies would stop to stop releasing new versions because the last one has done its job well enough.
She began reporting on beauty for KIRO-TV, which led her to leave sales and enter the world of journalism. This change led to her first book, published in 1984. Readers wanted to know more, so she kept to write. Over the past 20 years, she has interviewed cosmetic chemists, dermatologists and oncologists. She reads journals. She takes chemistry classes. She verifies if the research exists or if the company just made it up.
挤压：有争议的做法
让我们谈谈房间里的大象。 保拉说挤痘痘是可以的。 等等，什么？
如果您是皮肤科医生或美容师，当然可以。 他们拥有工具和知识。 但对于我们其他人呢？ 这是她提供的细微差别。
我们挤压是因为我们知道它可以减少肿胀。 当您清除造成压力的脓液和液体后，肿块就会下降。 有用。 问题是我们如何去做。
“关键是动作要轻柔，不要损伤皮肤。”
当你挤压时，你不仅仅是去除瑕疵。 您正在处理水肿——内容物周围生长的囊囊。 感觉里面还残留着什么东西。 我们没有耐心。 我们不断推动。 最终，我们会损伤皮肤。
然后我们忘记了最重要的一步：消毒。 之后我们需要使用过氧化苯甲酰或水杨酸。 许多产品都含有这些成分。 我们也往往用力擦洗，从而导致结痂。 结痂会导致疤痕。 不要那样做。
Moisturizing cream myths
Let’s talk about moisturizers. This is where the industry lies to us.
We believe that moisturizers can eliminate wrinkles. We believe that dry skin causes wrinkles. Therefore, not using a moisturizer can lead to aging.
This is a big myth.
The appearance of wrinkles has nothing to do with dry skin. When dry skin causes wrinkles, even a 10-year-old child with dry skin can develop wrinkles. they don’t know.
The main cause of wrinkles is sunlight, which accounts for about 70% of wrinkles. Genetics also play a role. However, we focus on moisturizers instead of sun protection.
“You can’t beat a $20-$30 moisturizer over a $50-$100 moisturizer.”
Just because it’s expensive doesn’t mean it’s effective. The most important thing is sunscreen. If the moisturizer you use during the day doesn’t contain SPF, it won’t help prevent wrinkles. It’s pointless.
At night? Moisturizers are great. Look for formulas that contain antioxidants and anti-inflammatory agents. Some are beautifully formulated. During the day, however, in addition to moisturizing, you also need sunscreen.
去角质
去角质剂怎么样？ 我们听说它们可以去除死皮并展现容光焕发的肤色。 但它们有必要吗？ 哪种类型对您的屏障来说实际上是安全的？
Let’s be honest about the texture of your skin. Dead cells accumulate. They make you feel rough, dull, and yes, older if you’re pushing past twenty. The harsh truth? You probably need to exfoliate. Sun damage, clogged pores, dry patches—it all piles up. But not all methods are created equal, and some are actively damaging your barrier.
There are two camps here. Mechanical exfoliants. And chemical ones using alpha or beta hydroxy acids.
The mechanical stuff? The gritty scrubs? That’s essentially an ’80s relic. Rubbing abrasive particles across your face feels satisfying in the moment, but it’s dated. It’s aggressive. You can get the same physical removal with a simple, clean washcloth. Save the money. Save your skin.
What actually moves the needle is a well-formulated acid product. Beta hydroxy acids (BHA) penetrate oil to clean out pores. Alpha hydroxy acids (AHA) work on the surface to shed dead cells. They are tricky to formulate. Get the pH wrong, or the concentration too high, and you’re looking at redness, stinging, and irritation. But the research backs it up. Chemical exfoliation is superior for almost every skin type.
Finding the Right Foundation Shade
We all make mistakes with foundation. The biggest one? Wearing the wrong color.
It sounds obvious. But how many of you have blended a shade in the fluorescent hell of a department store mirror? Stop doing that. Store lighting is designed to sell, not to reflect reality. You need to see your skin in natural daylight. Walk outside. Look at your jawline. If it blends seamlessly, you’ve found it. If it looks like a mask sitting on top of your neck, keep looking.
This isn’t just about vanity. It’s about accuracy. Foundation technology has improved dramatically. The range of shades is better than ever. But you have to do the legwork. Don’t settle for “close enough.” Close enough looks cakey. Close enough ages you. Match your skin exactly. Period.
When Eye Shadow Goes Too Far
Here is where makeup often loses its purpose. I see women wearing intense, strange-colored eyeshadows. Iridescent. Glittery. Neon.
Ask yourself why you’re wearing it. Are you going to a gala? Sure. Are you heading to the office in a conservative suit? Or just running errands?
If you’re not wearing iridescent clothing, why are you wearing iridescent eyes? It creates a visual disconnect. Makeup, at its best, empowers you. It enhances. It makes you look polished, put-together, and appropriate for the environment. Wearing four-inch heels to the gym makes no sense. Wearing glitter-bomb eyes to a Tuesday meeting is just as disconnected.
Beauty requires context. If your outfit is business casual, your makeup should complement that energy—not distract from it. Stop wearing costumes to work. Start wearing makeup that makes you feel sharp, confident, and ready for the day.
The Bottom Line on Exfoliation and Application
The goal isn’t perfection. It’s intention.
- Skip the scrub. Switch to a gentle chemical exfoliant tailored to your skin type.
- Check in daylight. Foundation should disappear into your skin, not sit on top of it.
- Match the moment. Let your environment dictate your color choices.
It’s easy to get swept up in trends. New glitter shades drop every week. Viral scrub recipes circulate on social media. But your skin doesn’t care about trends. It cares about health. It cares about balance.
You don’t need
Why Paula Begoun Says You Shouldn’t Fear Popping Pimples
It’s easy to feel like the beauty industry is a closed loop. Companies market products, magazines tout the latest trends, and dermatologists rarely critique their own field. Paula Begoun saw this cycle and decided to break it. She didn’t just write books; she went back to school. She took chemistry classes. She interviewed oncologists and cosmetic chemists. She read journals. She became a reporter in a world that prefers PR.
Her approach is simple: check the science. Does the ingredient work? Is there proof? Or is it just marketing noise?
When it comes to acne, her advice is controversial to the average consumer but logical if you look at the mechanics of skin. “If you are a dermatologist or an aesthetician, you can do it,” she says. Why? Because removing the swelling and the pus inside the blemish helps it heal faster. The problem isn’t the squeezing itself. It’s how you do it.
Most people squeeze aggressively. They ignore the edema—the cystic sac that forms around the contents. You can’t push the whole thing out by force. If you keep going, you damage the tissue. Then, you forget to disinfect. You skip the benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid. You scrub your face raw, creating scabs. And scabs lead to scars.
Don’t scrub. Be gentle. Disinfect. Let the skin breathe.
The Moisturizer Myth: Why Expensive Doesn’t Mean Effective
Here is where the industry loses its grip on your wallet. We’ve been sold a story that dry skin causes wrinkles. It’s a comforting lie. It suggests that if you just hydrate enough, time will stop.
It doesn’t.
“Wrinkling is unrelated to the dry state of your skin,” Begoun notes. “If wrinkles were caused by dry skin, then 10-year-old kids with dry skin would have wrinkles.” They don’t. The real culprit? Sun exposure accounts for about 70% of wrinkling. Genetics play a role too.
So why do we obsess over moisturizers? Because we want to believe that a $50 jar does something a $20 jar doesn’t. It doesn’t. There is no magical ingredient in the expensive product that the cheaper one lacks, provided you’re looking at the sun protection factor.
If your moisturizer doesn’t contain sunscreen, wearing it during the day is useless. You’re essentially slathering on oil without a shield. At night? Go ahead. Use the nice stuff. Look for antioxidants and anti-inflammatories. Enjoy the texture. But during the day, if there’s no SPF, you’re not preventing wrinkles. You’re just making your skin look shiny.
Scrubs Are Out. Acids Are In.
Exfoliation is good. Dead skin cells make your complexion look dull and feel rough. Once you pass 20, your skin cell turnover slows down. Sun damage and clogged pores become real issues. You need help shedding that old layer.
But how you do it matters.
There are two main ways: mechanical and chemical. Mechanical exfoliation involves scrubs. Granules. Hands moving around your face. Begoun calls this an “80s-style” approach. It’s dated. And frankly, a washcloth can do most of what a scrub does without the risk of tearing the skin.
Chemical exfoliation uses alpha-hydroxy acids (AHAs) or beta-hydroxy acids (BHAs). These are trickier to formulate. They carry a risk of irritation if done wrong. But the research supports them. They penetrate better. They work more effectively for most skin types.
Don’t fight your skin with grit. Use acids. Use them correctly. And stop buying products that promise to close your pores. Pores don’t have muscles. They can’t open or close. They’re just holes. Treat them with respect, not force.
Foundation: The Mask That Defines Us
We wear foundation to even out our complexion. To hide the redness, the spots, the fatigue. It’s a tool, not a virtue. But the industry sells it as a necessity. A beauty essential.
Begoun’s view is practical. Foundation sits on top of the skin. It doesn’t change it. It doesn’t heal it. It covers it. The question isn’t whether you need it. The question is whether you’re using it to protect or just to please.
If you’re using it because you feel naked without it, that’s fine. We all have insecurities. But don’t mistake coverage for care. The real work happens underneath. In the sunscreen. In the gentle cleansing. In the acceptance of how skin changes over time.
The industry wants you to believe you need more. More products. More steps. More money.
The truth is quieter. Less is often more. Especially when it comes to what you put on your face.
Truth: We often use the wrong color. The foundation should match your skin exactly. You just have to keep looking until you find the right one. Instead of relying on department store lighting, take the time to look in daylight. Stick with a color that matches your skin tone, as foundation colors have improved dramatically across the board – across all skin tones.
Product: eye color
Truth: I think the biggest mistake I see is women forgetting what they are dressing for. That’s why there are, among other things, these intense, strangely colored eyeshadows or very shiny, iridescent eyeshadows on the market. The problem is, if you don’t wear iridescent clothing during the day, why wear iridescent eye shadows with glitter scattered everywhere? I often see women forget what makeup is for. My definition of makeup and the way I write is about empowering women; Make women more beautiful. And part of being beautiful is being appropriate. It makes no sense to go to the gym in 4-inch high heels. Likewise, if you wear a business suit to work, why would you wear flashy, weird colors that don’t suit the outfit in a conservative environment?
